TORONTO – This first Kraken visit to a Canadian “Original Six” market typifies differences in pressure faced by the NHL’s newest franchise compared to one of its oldest.
The 102-year-old Toronto Maple Leafs have won the second-most Stanley Cup championships but haven’t even been to the finals since 1967. And the Leafs staging a third-period comeback to hand the Kraken a 6-4 defeat Tuesday night will provide the home side but a fleeting respite from fans of worn-and-weary “Leafs Nation” and their unrelenting angst.
Toronto struck for two goals by Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner 40 seconds apart midway through the third to transform a one-goal Kraken lead into their 10th loss in the last 11 games. Matthews would later complete a hat trick with an empty-net goal after Philipp Grubauer was pulled for the extra attacker late.
The Leafs appeared in control with a two-goal, second-period lead only to see Alex Wennberg and Colin Blackwell strike for a pair of tying Kraken markers just minutes apart. Then, defenseman Jeremy Lauzon unfurled a long slapshot that was redirected by Jaden Schwartz past Leafs goalie Jack Campbell at 5:54 of the final period to give the Kraken their first lead.
But that was short-lived as Matthews got in alone and put a deke move on Grubauer to tie the game at 9:03. Then, a Kraken penalty right after led to Marner scoring the go-ahead Toronto goal on a wrist shot from the high slot.
It was the third of four power play goals on the night given up by the Kraken, who’ve yielded eight in three games on this road trip.
Coming 24 hours after the Leafs blew a 3-0 lead in Columbus and had to rally late to squeak out a win, seeing the lowly Kraken – sporting the league’s third worst record – trying to pull off their own comeback was more than the 17,547 fans at Scotiabank Arena appeared ready to handle.
They’d seen John Tavares score a breakaway goal on Philipp Grubauer midway through the opening period to snap a 1-1 tie. William Nylander then scored his team’s second power play goal early in the middle frame to put Toronto ahead 3-1.
Carson Soucy had scored the other Kraken goal, a first period tally that came fewer than two minutes after Auston Matthews opened the scoring on the power play at the 3:18 mark on a wristshot from the left faceoff circle.
The Leafs have recently had strong regular season teams led by young goal scorers Matthews, Marner and Nylander, but failed to make it past the first round of the playoffs. That’s why, even with a solid 37-16-4 record, the fans here have quickly gotten unnerved by some middling recent play — Tuesday’s blowing of another lead won’t help — and suspect goaltending that leads them to wonder whether another quick playoff exit is forthcoming.
And in a town that’s tasted plenty of past glory, one-and-done playoff outings won’t ease any of the mounting historical weight.
Banners of 19 retired Toronto greats, including King Clancy, Ace Bailey, Johnny Bower, Frank Mahovlich and Tim Horton, hang from the arena’s rafters and remind present-day players that this organization was once expected to routinely win it all. There’s even a well-followed Twitter account called “Since Leafs Last Cup” that updates daily and on Tuesday had it at 20,034 days since that 13th and most recent championship was claimed 55 years ago.
In contrast, the Kraken on Tuesday signed forward Jared McCann – who hails from an Ontario town about 90 minutes south of here – to a five-year, $25-million contract extension and it barely registered back home on a day the Seahawks traded Russell Wilson and reportedly released Bobby Wagner. The Kraken are hoping to unload captain Mark Giordano for a draft pick in two weeks and their 17-37-5 record is challenging Arizona and Montreal for the league’s worst mark.
And yet, plenty of Kraken fans casually chalk it up to them being an expansion franchise and go on their merry way. This, despite the Kraken paying a record $650 million franchise fee for far more favorable expansion draft rules than typical first-year NHL teams used to get. Not to mention the fact plenty of pundits and analytical projections pegged them more of a 90-point playoff contender before the season began.
But nobody is going to riot along Lenny Wilkens Way outside Climate Pledge Arena when Dave Hakstol’s team is officially eliminated in coming weeks. In fact, recent Leafs’ assistant coach Hakstol faced as many questions about his former team from Toronto media types after Tuesday’s morning skate than he did pertaining to his current Kraken squad.
There are days when the Leafs would undoubtedly love to trade places with the softer landing given the free-falling Kraken. Then again, the environment of absolute relevance the Leafs have in this market is something the Kraken should strive for as an organization, even if reaching it stands as an impossible goal given the comparative histories behind franchises.
For a while, at least, they were ever-so-close to winning the night.
