It’s Leafs vs. Oilers on Saturday Night Hockey, with both teams entering the game on three-game winning streaks (7:00 p.m. EST, Sportsnet).
Five of the top eight point scorers in the league will feature in this matchup tonight:
| Player | Points | League Rank |
|---|---|---|
| Connor McDavid | 31 | 1st |
| Leon Draisaitl | 21 | 2nd |
| Evan Bouchard | 19 | 4th |
| Auston Matthews | 18 | 6th |
| William Nylander | 16 | T-8th |
Doesn’t get much better than this for game #13 of the regular season.
McDavid is on a 260-point pace through 10, has broken 24 minutes in ice time six times already this season, and the Leafs have limited control over the matchups on the road, nor do they have their McCabe-Tanev matchup pair (as much as McCabe-Raddysh has held its own of late, it’s not quite the same). Matthews’ line will be taking on head-to-head shifts where the Leafs can find them, but they’re going to need to find another level to their five-man defensive structure over four lines and three pairs to pull this off tonight — or hope to get a really big night from their goalie, or win a next-goal-wins shootout, or some combination thereof. The McDavid line has been unstoppable, is playing massive minutes, and Mike Babcock controls the matchups.
Notably, Tristan Jarry (.873 SV% in three starts) will be in the Oilers’ net, and Mattias Ekholm is now injured. The Oilers and Leafs are giving up basically the same amount defensively (3.2 vs. 3.17) and own the second and third-best power plays. The Leafs have a big advantage on the PK on paper (97.4 vs. 72.4). A lot of this will come down to whether the Leafs can stay out of the box — an issue for them this season — while keeping something resembling a lid on the five-on-five scoring opportunities for McDavid-Draisaitl. There should be some areas to exploit against Edmonton’s PK, defense, bottom six, and Jarry.
We’ll see if Jim Hiller forges ahead with his forward lines from Friday’s practice now that they’re facing a top opponent on the road, as their third line of McKenna-Sissons-Lettieri appeared particularly vulnerable against the Rangers.
Game Day Quotes
Connor McDavid on the challenge against the Leafs:
They have some players, for sure, and they’re playing well. It is always an exciting game in our building when the Toronto fans show up and it’s loud. You get both sides going. It makes for a fun atmosphere. Should be a fun game.
Jim Hiller on a potential Matthews vs. McDavid head-to-head matchup:
A lot of times, they’ll dictate the matchup because they get the last change. I don’t know what we’ll see there, for sure.
They’re two great players. I said really good; they’re two great players — well documented. I’m not telling you anything that nobody doesn’t know.
We’re really happy with the way Auston’s played this year. Definitely 200 feet.
Matthews on McDavid’s 31-points-in-10-games start to the season:
I don’t think it’s really too surprising. Since he came into the league, he’s been the standard. Obviously, a fantastic player, and not too many people in the history of the game have done what he’s continued to do.
It’s obviously really impressive, and a lot of respect for him. A very, very big challenge.
Matthews on going head-to-head with McDavid:
Same thing when we were in Colorado a couple weeks ago. It’s similar on a lot of nights. You go play some really good players, some really elite players, and you just try to limit their time and space as much as possible.
But they’re very good. They’re going to get their chances. They’re going to get their opportunities, and they’re going to make something out of nothing sometimes. Just trying to limit that as much as you can.
Matthews on Mike Babcock’s influence early in his career:
There was a big focus on defensive stuff. A lot of video on guys like Zetterberg, Bergeron, Crosby, stuff like that.
Coming into the league as an 18-, 19-year-old, you don’t really think about that stuff too much. Obviously, you come to the NHL level, it’s hard, and it’s difficult. Defensive positioning, awareness, all that stuff plays a pretty big part in your offensive stuff as well.
That’s kind of what he preached a lot, especially my first couple years.
Matthews on the bench’s reaction to Troy Stecher’s late winner vs. NYR:
It was electric. He’s been known to pump up the crowd before, so it was obviously a really big goal. The building was rocking, and obviously scoring with 40 seconds left in the game.
A really, really great individual effort by Paulie to keep the puck alive, drew a penalty, and then just the guys staying on the puck and working and finding him coming down. It was definitely really lively.
Matthews on Jack Roslovic’s play and their developing chemistry:
He’s been playing great. He’s flying. He’s a really smart player. Skates obviously so well. I just feel like the chemistry between myself and him has gotten better and better as we’ve gotten more reps.
You get two preseason games, and you jump right into it. But I feel like it’s just continuing to build. Now we have a really good understanding of where we want to play and how we want to play and where each other are at on the ice, no matter who’s on the left side. Cowan’s obviously been a great fit.
Rosie’s been playing great. It’s been a lot of fun reconnecting with him. You just want to continue to work and do the right things and create.
Matthews on the fourth line getting rewarded against the Rangers:
That’s huge. They’ve been playing great for us all season long, and they haven’t got rewarded.
I think back to the San Jose game when we were tied up, it was even, we didn’t really have much juice. The game just kind of felt like a bit of a standstill. Those guys went out there, and they had a big, heavy shift. They kind of dragged us into the fight.
That’s so important. That’s stuff that doesn’t show up on the stat sheet every night. Just the energy and the passion that they bring every night has been huge for us.
It was awesome to see them get rewarded last night because they’ve been doing such a good job on both sides of the puck, and they play tough, heavy minutes.
Hiller on facing off against his former boss, Mike Babcock:
It’s nice to have him back. I think he’s done a good job with the team.
It’s not only Mike. It’s D.J. Smith. He and I have a long history and relationship. I’ll probably be thinking about how many times I’ve beaten him in pickleball, to be honest with you.
These are fun games. Just like sometimes for players, when they see ex-teammates, it’s good to see those guys.
Mike Babcock on facing the Leafs’ core he coached back when they first broke the league:
I was real fortunate. Obviously, we had to do a lot of losing to get Matty. I can tell you that. That was a home run when we won that and got him.
We had Mitch Marner. We had Hyman. We had tons of good young guys. We weren’t a veteran team, and in the end, we didn’t get it done in playoff time. That’s why I got a new address.
For them, like you say, they’re in their prime now. Mo’s on the back end. Real good person. Played great for me, and I enjoyed coaching him.
Matty, it’s always great to see his progression in the league and how good a player he is. He scored four goals, I think, his first game in the league, but he’s still come miles in that time.
Who else did you say was there? I already talked about Morgan Rielly.
Willy: one unbelievable human being. Can flat-out score. I watched him the other night. He was drilling it in the net and can fly. What I always remember about him is he’d have a kids’ thing or whatever, and he’d be the guy out there for hours playing with all the kids and doing all the stuff. He’s a great, great person.
Him and Kappy were good friends and were always at the same restaurant I was at at night lots of times, so I saw him a lot.
Anyway, it’s great for them that they’ve had good careers and they’re doing well.
Maple Leafs vs. Oilers: By the Numbers
Swipe the table to compare teams.| Category | Maple Leafs 2026–27 · 12 GP | Oilers 2026–27 · 10 GP |
|---|---|---|
| Games played | 12 | 10 |
| Record | 6–4–2[17th] | 8–1–1[1st] |
| Points percentage | .583[17th] | .850[1st] |
| Goals for | 43[5th] | 46[3rd] |
| Goals against | 38[T-29th] | 32[T-16th] |
| Goals for / game | 3.58[8th] | 4.60[1st] |
| Goals against / game | 3.17[18th] | 3.20[19th] |
| Home record | 4–3–1[20th] | 3–1–1[13th] |
| Away record | 2–1–1[T-8th] | 5–0–0[1st] |
| 5v5 shot attempts % | 46.7%[24th] | 47.3%[23rd] |
| 5v5 goals for % | 44.8%[23rd] | 56.3%[9th] |
| 5v5 PDO | 98.6[19th] | 105.2[4th] |
| Power play | 28.6%[T-3rd] | 35.3%[2nd] |
| Penalty kill | 97.4%[1st] | 72.4%[23rd] |
| Head-to-head (2025–26) | 1–1–0 | 1–1–0 |
| Leading scorers · Goals–Assists–Points | ||
| Scorer #1 | Auston Matthews8–10–18 | Connor McDavid8–23–31 |
| Scorer #2 | William Nylander6–10–16 | Leon Draisaitl10–11–21 |
| Scorer #3 | Kirill Marchenko6–6–12 | Evan Bouchard7–12–19 |
| Scorer #4 | Easton Cowan5–6–11 | Vasily Podkolzin7–5–12 |
| Scorer #5 | Jack Roslovic4–6–10 | Mathieu Joseph2–3–5 |
Maple Leafs Projected Lines
Select a player name to view their card (must be on active NHL roster).
Forwards
| Line | Left Wing | Centre | Right Wing |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 53Easton Cowan | 34Auston Matthews | 96Jack Roslovic |
| 2 | 86Kirill Marchenko | 20Nick Paul | 88William Nylander |
| 3 | 92Gavin McKenna | 15Colton Sissons | 71Vinni Lettieri |
| 4 | 24Brandon Duhaime | 73Teddy Blueger | 19Zack MacEwen |
| Scratch | 29Bo Groulx |
Defense
| Pair | Left Defense | Right Defense |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 22Jake McCabe | 43Darren Raddysh |
| 2 | 44Morgan Rielly | 28Troy Stecher |
| 3 | 36Dakota Mermis | 95Oliver Ekman-Larsson |
Goaltenders
| 72Sergei Bobrovsky | Unconfirmed (starter TBA) |
| 41Anthony Stolarz | Unconfirmed (starter TBA) |
Injuries Or Other Absences
| Player | Status |
|---|---|
| 91John Tavares | Week-to-week injury |
| 8Chris Tanev | Week-to-week injury |
| 83Marshall Rifai | Week-to-week injury |
| 3Nick Blankenburg | Week-to-week injury |
| 18Miles Wood | IR |
| 11Max Domi | Long-term Injury |
