No Matthews, no worries: Why Maple Leafs keep winning without their MVP

TORONTO — If sports made more sense, if they were more predictable, we’d probably watch less and gamble more.

But we would lose out on so many surprises, both fun and agonizing, and we’d rob ourselves of the twist-ourselves-in-knots explanations to impose reason on the nonsensical.

Take, for instance, the Toronto Maple Leafs losing Auston Matthews — their best player, their leader, hockey’s most handsomely paid commodity in 2024-25 — and… only getting better in his absence.

Really?

Max Pacioretty, a man of logic and process, isn’t buying such jibber jabber. 

The veteran adamantly shoots down the notion that Matthews hitting injured reserve with an undisclosed upper-body injury has given the Leafs a boost.

“We’re talking about the best player in the world here. You want him in the lineup every night possible, and there’s no replacing him,” says Pacioretty. If a jolt does exist, though, it comes from seeing the captain working through his mystery pain to rejoin a winning group. “Maybe that gives you a boost. We want to make sure we do right by him. He’s our leader.”

Matthews is a three-time Rocket Richard winner, a Hart Trophy champ, a recent Selke finalist, and the only active player with two 60-goal campaigns on his résumé.

He gets fed all the hard defensive matchups and causes the most difficult ones for the opposition.

You don’t subtract a talent of Matthews’ calibre, substitute him with, uh, trying harder, and instantly cook up a better squad.

And yet: With Matthews sidelined, the Maple Leafs have now won six straight and, with Friday’s 3-1 victory over the middling Detroit Red Wings, improved their regular-season record to a shimmering 37-19-2 in his absence.

Further, the Leafs won both Game 5 and 6 last spring while facing elimination against the Boston Bruins when their No. 1 centre got sidelined in the playoffs. Matthews pushed to return for Game 7, of course, and the winning ceased.

“Makes me feel a bit better, because I know the record when I’m out is pretty good too,” quips Morgan Rielly, before tossing out a theory.

“It’s just a matter of guys trying to take on more responsibility. You realize you’re at a loss without him, and guys have to step up and pull more weight. The goal will be to have that same mentality when everyone is healthy and playing.”

In the meantime, Toronto’s support players are enjoying some extra ice. Fourth-liner Connor Dewar, now recovered from a shoulder injury, just had a roster slot open for his season debut. And, oddly, the club’s previously disastrous power play has sprung to life without the most dangerous goal-scorer on the flank.

David Kämpf has instantly become more important to the penalty kill since subbing in for Matthews as Mitch Marner's PK pivot.

Matthew Knies and Morgan Rielly are looking right at home on a Matthews-free top power-play unit that has relied on a 6-for-10 run to steal one point in Minnesota, plus a pair of regulation wins this week against Boston and Detroit.

“I think it was going to be a matter of time. You just kind of had to stay with it. It's a long season,” said John Tavares, who scored Friday’s winner on the man-advantage and tacked on an empty-netter.

“We have a lot of skill, a lot of talent, a lot of ability to have a really good power play.”

Oh, and Anthony Stolarz continues his stellar play in net and remains the best individual story of Toronto’s young season. He made another 21 saves in this one, including a bare-handed grab:

Were these playoff games, the sense is Matthews would be participating this week. Instead, he and the Leafs exercise caution with the big picture in mind. No harm in letting him heal up and skip a few beatable opponents in the first half of November.

Matthews has not skated in five days.

“But we’re going in the right direction,” coach Craig Berube assures.

So are the Maple Leafs, who may have tantalized their division rivals when No. 34 wasn’t scribbled top middle on the visiting room’s whiteboard.

"There's probably a little more mental comfort not seeing him because it's a guaranteed tough night," Red Wings coach Derek Lalonde said. 

"But it's probably more a credit to their group and just everyone doing a little more and maybe a little more urgency to their game, more than the opposition letting up." 

Fox’s Fast Five

• Hockey Canada shot-caller Doug Armstrong was in attendance. How seriously is Armstrong’s group considering Detroit’s Cam Talbot (who entered Friday’s action with a Canadian-best .929 save percentage and 6.1 goals saved above expected) for the 4 Nations Face-Off squad?

• Surely it was embarrassing for Ville Husso — paid $4.75 million, No. 1 goalie money — to hit the waiver wire after one bad game for the Red Wings last month.

Well, Husso suited up for three games down on the farm, posted excellent numbers for Grand Rapids — 2-0 record, 1.23 goals-against average, .958 save percentage — and got recalled this weekend in response to Alex Lyon’s lower-body injury.

Husso gets a tough start Saturday, against the New York Rangers on a back-to-back, but a second chance to stand tall for the big club in a critical contract year.

• Quote of the Day.

“The only memory that jumps out is Randy Carlyle aggressively trying to keep off the ice when he was on the ice.” —Morgan Rielly on Hall of Famer Pavel Datsyuk

• Quote of the Day, runner-up.

"He sucker-punched me in a skirmish one time. Never got the opportunity to get him back. There's still time." —Berube on frenemy Jeremy Roenick, whom he’ll catch up with on Hall of Fame weekend 

• Hall of Famer Shea Weber was not only celebrated prior to puck drop, he also quietly took in the Leafs and Wings’ morning skates from the stands.

Weber visited his ol’ Canadiens teammate Ben Chiarot, who was happy to escort Weber’s young son, Beckett, around the Red Wings room.

“He doesn’t quite have the bomb that dad does, but he’s working on it,” coach Derek Lalonde smiled.