TORONTO, ON — Auston Matthews scored his 35th and 36th goals to take the NHL lead and the Toronto Maple Leafs beat the Minnesota Wild 3-1 on Thursday night to snap a three-game losing streak.
Matthews broke a tie midway through the third period. He stripped Wild fourth-line right wing Brandon Duhaime of the puck outside the Minnesota blue line and turned the other way for a give-and-go goal with Mitch Marner.
Matthews moved a goal ahead of Edmonton's Leon Draisaitl for the NHL lead.
Alex Kerfoot added an empty-netter in the final minute.
Petr Mrazek made 29 saves for Toronto. He was given the start over the struggling Jack Campbell.
Frederick Gaudreau opened the scoring for Minnesota midway through the second, and Matthews tied it 27 seconds later.
Kappo Kahkonen stopped 22 shots for the Wild.
Before puck drop it seemed like the contest would be a high-scoring affair. After all, the Maple Leafs and Wild are the third and fourth-highest scoring clubs in the NHL. But both clubs took the ice looking to tighten up defensively, having allowed plenty of scoring chances - and goals - to opponents in recent games.
Both clubs accomplished that goal, but especially the Wild, which held Toronto off the shot chart entirely for the first 10-plus minutes of the game.
"I think our start was better today than it was in Ottawa. It was a tight game, back and forth, chances both ways. And I thought we could have won that game," Wild defenseman Jonas Brodin told NHL.com. "I think they took advantage of their chances a little bit better. It's tough to lose."
Things don't get any easier for the struggling Wild, who have lost four of their last five and face the red-hot Calgary Flames Saturday as they conclude their Canadian road trip.
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