Leaf Takeaways: Toronto uses fourth line as a force, Stecher strikes

They’re only a .500 team at present, but the Maple Leafs left Scotiabank Arena feeling like a million bucks. 

A three-game winning streak that was pulled out in dramatic fashion Thursday night will do that for a club rescued by its fourth line and a light-scoring defenceman in a 5-4 decision over the New York Rangers. 

Our takeaways from the longest run of Toronto triumphs since February of last season: 

Fourth and long shots

Few in town had heard of Teddy Blueger, Brandon Duhaime and especially Zack MacEwen when general manager John Chayka was reconstructing the bottom six forwards in the summer. 

On Thursday, they had the rink rocking, a combined seven-point night, right on cue when leading scorer Auston Matthews was blanked on four shots and William Nylander held to a power-play assist. On goals that gave Toronto a 2-1 lead and tied it 3-3, the fourth had their first points of the season, before Duhaime assisted on Troy Stecher’s winner with 28 seconds remaining.   

“Fast, predictable, hard hockey,” summed up MacEwen of their collective ethos. “We know what each other is going to do with the puck, we want to get it behind the defence, wear them down for the next line and when we get rewarded, that’s great.” 

Coach Jim Hiller said centre Blueger (from the Vancouver Canucks) and Duhaime (Washington) were envisioned as part of a new energy line with their penalty killing abilities, while right winger MacEwen’s season-ending knee surgery with New Jersey made him a dark horse. Then Dakota Joshua was hurt in camp and Steven Lorentz traded in the Kirill Marchenko deal. 

“They’ve looked really good together,” Hiller said. “They give us something, I don’t know what you want to call it.” 

Duhaime defines it as “playing to our identity … you look at us and it’s pretty straight line, physical and hard to play against.” 

Said Stecher: “We see that every day from those guys in practice. They’re ultimate pros, they’ve been around. I felt we were rather sluggish tonight and they dragged us into the fight. They stepped up big.” 

When you don’t succeed, just Troy, Troy again 

Craving a place where he can make a difference in the twilight of his career, Stecher was caught up in the moment of his first goal of the season. 

 Scoring on a delayed New York penalty, he went to the bench exhorting teammates and the crowd to get loud. 

“Since last year, I’ve really embraced being a Leaf,” said the Richmond, B.C. native. “There’s so much a passion and love for the Leafs in the city, it’s really hard not to. 

“It’s trying to bring the room together, more than just the 20 guys in here, it’s a big-time family.” 

Toronto’s defence has been under hyper criticism since last year and the recent injury to Chris Tanev puts more pressure on the current group. Most agree it needs an upgrade at some juncture of this season, yet Stecher and Morgan Rielly were cast together the last couple of games and have made it past their defensive challenges to boost the offence. 

The blueline took a further hit Thursday when the club announced Marshall Rifai will be out week-to-week with a lower body injury sustained Tuesday in Columbus. That’s a raw deal for Rifai who missed most of last season with wrist surgery when he had a shot at a job. Also ominous was Nick Blankenburg not finishing the game with an undetermined ailment. A call-up or two could be coming Friday for the trip out West. 

In the Nick of time 

In all the excitement of the fourth line’s play, Stecher’s heroics and Sergei Bobrovsky’s 459th NHL win to tie Henrik Lundqvist for sixth in NHL history, Hiller didn’t want Nick Paul’s gumption in the final minute to go unnoticed and asked the media to stay around for his version of events. 

Out to protect at least a point in the game, Paul drew a New York penalty, but that’s not what really impressed his coach as Stecher’s goal unfolded. 

“He stayed on and forechecked, his linemates (Marchenko and Nylander) came off. The puck’s there, he gets it and fights for it with one hand on his stick to keep it alive and we know what happens next.

“It’s that extra effort. Often times it doesn’t lead to too much, but you just keep doing it because sometimes it does. That moment was pretty important for us.” 

lhornby@postmedia.com

X: @sunhornby   

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