Toronto @ Calgary preview
Scotiabank Saddledome
Last Meeting ( Nov 10, 2023 ) Calgary 4, Toronto 5
The Toronto Maple Leafs continue their road trip against the Calgary Flames on Thursday in dire need of changing their fortunes.
The Maple Leafs surrendered a two-goal lead en route to a 4-2 loss to the Edmonton Oilers on Tuesday, the first outing in a four-game road swing, for their fourth consecutive defeat.
Toronto has lost three consecutive games in regulation for the first time since October 2021.
"Obviously (we're ticked) off about it, but all these games we've been playing, we've played some really good hockey," forward Mitchell Marner said. "We've just given them back. We've had a lot of chances to extend leads in games and haven't done a good job of that."
The Maple Leafs have surrendered a lead in all four games during this swoon. In fact, seven of their last eight defeats have come when holding a lead, and five of those came despite holding a multi-goal edge.
"Once again, you don't find a way to win a game when you've got a lead, and that burns here, especially on a night where I thought our guys played a really good hockey game," coach Sheldon Keefe said.
Toronto has only four regulation wins in its last 14 games, two of which were against San Jose, which sits at the bottom of the league standings.
Forward Auston Matthews scored his league-leading 34th goal of the season and 18th in as many outings Tuesday and is looking for positives as the Maple Leafs try to turn the corner.
"There's a lot of good things that we are doing," Matthews said. "It's just a matter of being consistent executing on some of these opportunities that we have later in games."
Calgary is on the other side of the coin. The Flames erased a two-goal, third-period deficit in a 3-2 overtime win over the visiting Arizona Coyotes on Tuesday. It was their seventh victory when trailing through two periods.
Calgary is just outside of playoff position having climbed from near the bottom of the league.
"We're fighting to make the playoff dance, so every single game is magnified for us," said center Nazem Kadri, who has five goals and 10 points in a seven-game points streak. "We're trying to show that desperation early, and we're coming together, rallying as a team, and that's a great sign."
The Flames are riding a season-high four-game winning streak thanks to a comeback against a Coyotes team that had been successful in limiting scoring chances.
"Players sometimes have a tendency to get frustrated in those situations, when it's not coming easy, and they try to do too much," Calgary coach Ryan Huska said. "We haven't had a lot of success in games like that because we have gotten ourselves frustrated and we haven't stuck with it, but (Tuesday), we did. And whether down a goal or two, we've shown we can come back."
Along with Kadri, leading the way offensively has been Blake Coleman, who has collected five goals and eight points in a four-game spree, and Yegor Sharangovich, with six goals in four games, including the overtime winner against the Coyotes.
No. 1 goalie Jacob Markstrom returned to practice Wednesday after missing Tuesday's game with a lower-body injury. If Markstrom isn't ready, Dan Vladar would likely make his second consecutive start.
--Field Level Media