See more Toronto Sun on Google — save as a Preferred Source They were two hot hockey teams, but a cool Devin Cooley was the difference. And now the Maple Leafs might be without winger Kirill Marchenko for a bit, as well as having their four-game win streak stopped 5-2 in Calgary.
Cooley, the Flames goaltender, with a fraction of Sergei Bobrovsky’s experience at the other end, outplayed the veteran and turned 26 Toronto shots away Monday, a score inflated by two empty netters. The Flames, extending their own run to four victories, denied the Leafs and thousands of their fans in the visitors’ final trip to the Saddledome.
William Nylander, in his birth city and set up by Auston Matthews’s 800th NHL point, had made it a one-goal game with 13 minutes to play. But the Flames were well-deserving of their early lead with more hustle and timely stops.
Toronto was also starting a power play after the Nylander goal when an irate Matthews was judged to have played the faceoff puck with his glove. The captain then took another high-sticking minor to test Toronto’s top-ranked penalty kill a fifth time.
Leg injury for Marchenko Marchenko’s left leg had bent awkwardly under his falling frame on a slide into the boards and his night was done early in the second period. With a 5-0 shot advantage in the opening minutes, the Leafs looked ready to stretch their streak.
However, the Flames found their pace, while their ears were probably burning from so many Leaf supporters creating a din. The Flames own young No. 92 broke the ice, Matvei Gridin on Russian countryman Bobrovsky, after the latter dropped a bit too early to leave the top shelf open.
Less than two minutes later, Easton Cowan was pushed off a puck in the Leaf zone and Mikael Backlund exploited it for a similar shot and goal. Cowan was also in a snit from a hard hit late in the period and put his team down a man trying to retaliate.
Prior to that, a Leaf advantage triggered by Cooley playing the puck in the no-go trapezoid, dominated possession yet couldn’t score. Cooley got a toe on Marchenko’s quality setup from Nylander.
With Cowan off to start the second period, Gridin darted behind Troy Stecher on a bank pass and beat Bobrovsky, this one on the opposite far side. While Cowan was benched for a bit, it got worse when Marchenko briefly tested his ability to skate during a break, but headed to the room.
Leafs coach scrambles lines The Leafs’ first goal came after coach Jim Hiller had to scramble lines minus Marchenko and put youngsters Cowan and Gavin McKenna on Colton Sissons’s wings. Cowan drove the net to tip defenceman Stecher’s shot and twice set up Nick Paul on a late second-period Calgary minor.
Toronto crosses the border into Seattle on Wednesday before its four-game trip wraps Saturday in Vancouver. lhornby@postmedia.com X: @sunhornby What Maple Leafs GM John Chayka had to say about team’s injury timelines Why struggling New York Rangers are adding former Maple Leafs goalie
