The Toronto Maple Leafs have made themselves at home on the road this season, collecting at least a point in 11 of 13 games (7-2-4). The Maple Leafs will look to continue their good fortune on the road and avenge an early-season loss to the Sabres when the teams reconvene on Thursday night in Buffalo, N.Y. Toronto finished a three-game homestand with a 1-1-1 mark following a 5-2 setback against the New York Rangers on Tuesday.
Auston Matthews continued his torrid stretch in the loss, responding to sitting out on Saturday due to an illness by recording his third straight two-goal performance and fifth in seven games in which he has played.
“Didn’t miss a beat,” Toronto coach Sheldon Keefe said of Matthews, who leads the NHL with 25 goals heading into play on Wednesday. “When he’s getting the puck around the slot, he’s got lots of confidence and he’s finding holes.”
Matthews found some holes in his last meeting with Buffalo. The former Hart Trophy recipient registered his third hat trick of the season and 10th of his career in the Maple Leafs’ 6-4 setback to the Sabres on Nov. 4. William Nylander notched an assist on Matthews’ second goal on Tuesday to extend his point streak to nine games (three goals, 11 assists). Nylander also set up Matthews with an assist in last month’s contest against the Sabres. Buffalo’s Tage Thompson scored in that encounter vs. Toronto and also tallied on Tuesday in a 9-4 drubbing by the visiting Columbus Blue Jackets. The Sabres yielded seven straight
