Auston Matthews scored the overtime winner as the Toronto Maple Leafs defeated the New York Rangers 2-1 on Thursday night. The goal came after Mika zibanejad fanned on a terrific chance at the other end.
The victory snapped a 0-for-9 stretch on the power play for Toronto, with Knies opening the scoring midway through the first period off a Nylander setup. It also ended a scoring drought for the Rangers, who hadn’t found the back of the net in 170 minutes and 39 seconds before Parssinen tied the game early in the third period, deflecting a Braden Schneider point shot through traffic.
Leafs forward Steven Lorentz was available to play after suffering an upper-body injury Saturday, but remained in the press box as head coach Craig Berube opted to stick with the lineup that had recently defeated the Detroit Red Wings and Nashville predators. Rangers goaltender Igor Shesterkin entered the game with a .972 save percentage, despite a 2-2-0 record and having been on the wrong end of two shutouts.
The Rangers have now been shut out in all three of their home dates this season, setting a dubious NHL record.
The leafs will next host the Seattle Kraken on Saturday, while the Rangers will visit the Montreal Canadiens on the same day.
