Auston Matthews returns to the lineup as the Maple Leafs hope to kick a tired, struggling Winnipeg Jets team while it’s down tonight at Scotiabank Arena (7:00 p.m. EST, Sportsnet Ontario/TSN3).
Game Day Quotes
Jets head coach Scott Arniel on his team losing its seventh straight game (0-4-3) in Detroit last night:
It is getting to be an old story. This league is based on winning games and getting points. We are in such a state where if we make a mistake as we did in the first period, it is in the back of our net, and then we are chasing games again.
We are stressed about trying to score goals, but we certainly had a lot of chances and opportunities. At the end of the day, until they start to go in the net and we find a way to get more than one or two goals, we are going to make it tough on ourselves.
It’s a broken record. We have to find a way. I am very appreciative of the work ethic and compete, but it can’t be when we are down a goal. It has to be a constant all the time. It is tough to say, but we have to play an absolutely perfect game, which is hard to do in this league.
Our goaltender is going to have to steal a game, our power play is going to have to score, and our penalty kill is going to have to be at its best. Every piece that goes into a game is going to have to be 100% perfect right now.
… Man, oh man, we have to find a way somehow. Maybe 2026 is when we can find it. Move off ’25, and maybe in ’26, we can start scoring some goals.
Craig Berube on Auston Matthews returning to the lineup after a game on the sidelines:
It’s huge. He’s our captain. I really like the way he is playing lately, driving the play, getting good opportunities, and playing with a lot of pace and determination.
A week ago, I just noticed him taking pucks to the middle of the ice more and attacking, taking people one-on-one, and winning all of those battles. He has an attack mentality around the net, and he looks like he is ripping the puck with more oomph on the shot.
Berube on the message to the rest of the team after a good “team” win over the Devils:
You can’t take your foot off the gas. Those guys who stepped it up — we need them to. They have to keep stepping it up.
It is about the team and the team game. We need everybody to be at their best within the team game. Go out, do your job, and play to the best of your capabilities every shift.
Just because Auston is back, it doesn’t mean we can relax. We have to go out and dictate the pace of the game and initiate in all areas of the game tonight.
Berube on the challenge presented by a struggling Jets team:
It is a good opponent tonight.
That top line is very difficult. Size and skill. They’ve got it all with that line. It has been a good line for a long time, starting with Scheifele down the middle of the ice. He is a big guy who can take pucks and distribute them. They can do it in all aspects — off the rush, in the zone. They’re just hard to handle. They have size, speed, and are good around the net.
We have to check, and we have to play a good, strong team game tonight. Special teams have to be good again.
Auston Matthews on returning to a team that picked up a big character win over New Jersey without him:
It feels good. That confidence seeps throughout the locker room.
We talked about it last week after two games in Nashville and Dallas — two games we lost, but we liked the direction we were moving in as a team. I think it has paid off.
In the last game before the break and coming out of the break, we’re collecting points in all of these games. We just want to keep the momentum going.
Matthews on the balance between getting in shooting lanes but not wanting to get hurt:
It is instincts. Most of the shots I am blocking are kind of the sifters — not the super hard shots coming from the point. They’re shots you kind of get in the way of because you are playing center and are in the middle of the ice. Sometimes, you have to lay your body on the line. It is just something that is part of the game.
Matthews on the turnaround in results of late:
A lot of it is confidence and the belief every night. I’ve said before how big the power play is, and special teams are in games. The two power-play goals against New Jersey are a big difference in the game.
Another positive thing for our group is that both units are firing really well, producing, and scoring. That is what you need out of your power play, and then you need the kill to do a job, which I feel like they have been for the most part this year. It’s good to see.
Maple Leafs (18-15-6) vs. Jets (15-19-4): Head-to-Head Stats
via NaturalStatTrick.com & AdvancedHockeyStats.com
Toronto Maple Leafs Projected Lines
Forwards
#74 Bobby McMann – #34 Auston Matthews – #11 Max Domi
#63 Matias Maccelli – #91 John Tavares – #23 Matthew Knies
#89 Nick Robertson – #55 Nicolas Roy – #53 Easton Cowan
#18 Steven Lorentz – #24 Scott Laughton – #19 Calle Jarnkrok
Defensemen
#22 Jake McCabe – #95 Oliver Ekman-Larsson
#44 Morgan Rielly – #51 Philippe Myers
#2 Simon Benoit – #28 Troy Stecher
Goaltenders
Starter: #60 Joseph Woll
#35 Dennis Hildeby
Extras: Matt Benning, Jacob Quillan
Injured/Out: William Nylander (day-to-day), Chris Tanev (IR), Dakota Joshua (IR), Brandon Carlo (IR), Dakota Mermis (IR), Anthony Stolarz (LTIR)
Winnipeg Jets Projected Lines
Forwards
#81 Kyle Connor – #55 Mark Scheifele – #13 Gabriel Vilardi
#91 Cole Perfetti – #19 Jonathan Toews – #9 Alex Iafallo
#36 Morgan Barron – #17 Adam Lowry – #70 Tanner Pearson
#62 Nino Niederreiter – #7 Vladislav Namestnikov – #14 Gustav Nyquist
Defensemen
#44 Josh Morrissey – #2 Dylan Demelo
#54 Dylan Samberg – #4 Neal Pionk
#64 Logan Stanley – #5 Luke Schenn
Goaltenders
Starter: #1 Eric Comrie (unconfirmed)
#37 Connor Hellebuyck
Injured/Out: Haydn Fleury
