TORONTO – Matthew Knies scored a objective and arrange a red-hot Auston Matthews to push the Toronto Maple Leafs to a 4-1 win towards the defending Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers on Tuesday.
Former Maple Leafs draft choose Carter Verhaeghe broke Joseph Woll’s shutout bid with 8:22 remaining as Toronto (20-15-7) gained its sixth straight at Scotiabank Enviornment. The Panthers (22-17-3) have been blanked solely as soon as this season.
Knies made it 2-0 early within the second interval. Then, lower than 4 minutes later, he arrange Matthews with a cross in entrance for the captain’s team-leading twenty first.
Former Maple Leafs captain Mats Sundin was in attendance. He was a part of a pre-game ceremony to mark Matthews changing into the all-time franchise chief in targets. Sundin had the mark at 420. Matthews now sits at 422.
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Matthews has seven targets and 11 factors in 5 video games for the reason that three-day Christmas break and was foiled by Florida netminder Sergei Bobrovsky on an early-game power-play breakaway.
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Florida outshot the house facet 32-23 as Bobby McMann added an empty netter.
This was the Panthers first go to to Toronto since hammering the Maple Leafs 6-1 in Sport 7 of their second-round playoff collection on Could 18. Toronto has gained each conferences this season by a mixed rating of 7-2.
TAKEAWAYS
Leafs: Defenceman Brandon Carlo (foot surgical procedure) returned to the lineup after a 23-game absence.
Panthers: Tremendous-pest Brad Marchand didn’t play within the third interval. He revealed earlier within the day that he thought-about signing as a free agent with the Maple Leafs final summer time. “It was between Florida and Toronto the place I used to be going to go. I by no means thought it was going to be attainable to re-sign with Florida. I actually didn’t.”
KEY MOMENT
After Easton Cowan scored with 24 seconds remaining within the first interval, Knies redirected a Troy Stecher level drive 42 seconds into the second interval for a two-goal benefit.
KEY STAT
In comparison with their 42-game marks a 12 months in the past, the Panthers are 5 factors behind the tempo they set, and the Maple Leafs are 9 factors again.
UP NEXT
Panthers: Go to the Montreal Canadiens on Thursday.
Maple Leafs: Go to the Philadelphia Flyers on Thursday.
This report by The Canadian Press was first printed Jan. 6, 2026.
© 2026 The Canadian Press
