What we learned about the Maple Leafs from Florida trip: Matthew Knies' maturity and more

By / / Sports / 8 minutes of reading


We knew the Toronto Maple Leafs’ final two-game regular-season road trip to Florida would have major implications on the top of the Atlantic Division standings. We should have assumed then that Matthew Knies — the man who loves playing in the sun and seemingly doesn’t fear the pressure that comes with playing the division’s best teams — would end up having a major impact on those standings.

“I want to play my best hockey at this time,” Knies told Sportsnet after the game when asked about the playoff feel of Wednesday’s 4-3 overtime win against Tampa Bay.

Knies’ hat trick against the Lightning gave him 10 goals in nine games against the Lightning and the Leafs two important points from their stint in the Sunshine State. They maintain a three-point lead atop the division with four games remaining.

The evident step Knies has taken in his maturity was part of what we learned about the Leafs through these two games with the playoffs on the horizon.

Matthew Knies talks the talk and walks the walk

The first time I met Knies in person, back in January 2023, he was a University of Minnesota sophomore. When we spoke about playing in the NHL, his face lit up at the idea of dining in five-star restaurants, of all things. He was just 20 and acting like it. I asked myself how long it would take him to mature into an NHL player who could be depended on night after night.

In just over two years, he’s answered my questions and, frankly, proved me wrong with how quickly he’s understood the assignment of being a Leaf.

Because it was sort of dumbfounding to hear Knies, in just his second full season, speak out declaratively after the Leafs’ remarkably poor effort in the 3-1 loss to the Panthers.

“I think we didn’t do a good enough job. I think our physicality, we were a little bit soft in some areas,” Knies said.

“Soft” was the word that stuck out in his assessment. It was a word the Leafs probably needed to hear.

I understand that what players say in front of cameras doesn’t always present a clear window into what teammates say behind closed doors. But Knies taking admission for his team’s play and offering a blunt criticism suggests he’s also ready to take ownership of this Leafs team far ahead of schedule. That he is ready to do so with another possible series in Florida beckoning (yes, we’re getting ahead of ourselves) speaks volumes about who Knies has become.

Some other veteran Leafs who underperformed in the loss did not take it on the chin. Knies did. One of my most prominent takeaways from the Leafs’ time in Florida is that it’s time to throw off whatever reins may have been on Knies. He’s maturing into a person you can build a team around.

“(Knies) has a pretty good idea of who he is and what makes him successful, and I think he really leans into that,” Auston Matthews told reporters after the win in Tampa.

Even if that means Knies could cost the Leafs more than they previously anticipated in his upcoming RFA deal? The Leafs would be foolish not to pay up for a young person willing to admit faults in a way not every veteran does.

Because the following day, Knies backed up his statement with one of his best games of the season. His hat trick, including the overtime winner against the Lightning, was the difference. Knies’ goals were scored directly in front of Andrei Vasilevskiy, which bodes well for his game in the playoffs.

Not long after his second goal, Knies got into a scrum with 6-foot-4, 230-pound Lightning defender Erik Cernak. And he looked to be enjoying every second of it.

“The reason for his success is his competitiveness. … It’s really, really high end,” Craig Berube said.

Let’s not forget that Knies tried to score on a Michigan less than a week ago and utilized a between-the-legs pass before his overtime goal in Tampa. Looking at where the Leafs are individually heading into the playoffs, Knies feels like the only player already in fifth gear.

Berube should not be afraid to up Knies’ ice time, given where his young forward’s head is at right now.

“I just feel more confident,” Knies recently told The Athletic of his success lately. “It comes with experience. Last year played, playing it was my first Game 7, little things like that give me a lot of confidence. I’ve played with (Matthews and Mitch Marner) for a while now, and I think I’ve earned my way there.”

Top stars’ offensive inconsistency

The players at the top of the Leafs’ food chain were firing on all cylinders in their 3-2 win over the Panthers a week before they went to South Florida: Marner, Matthews and William Nylander all logged either a goal or a primary assist. Less than a week later, all three had some of their most disappointing games of the season in the loss to the Panthers. They combined for one shot and could not force their way through the Panthers’ staunch defense. That’s the kind of defending they can expect to see in the playoffs. The quick drop-off once the Panthers inserted Aleksander Barkov back into the lineup — among other factors — doesn’t inspire confidence heading into the postseason.

The Leafs will go as far as their top three offensive talents can take them. The Leafs got zero production from outside the top six through two games. That Marner, Matthews and Nylander were inconsistent with their production through the last two games has to be concerning to Berube. These two games were a reminder that if the Leafs’ first-round opponent can shut down those three, it might be a short series.

Now, Marner in particular came back to life offensively against the Lightning with the game’s opening goal 1:13 after puck drop. He added two assists and moved like a player determined to get a result. Matthews added two primary assists, as well.

That’s the version of these players the Leafs need. This upcoming first-round series will be one of the most important in the recent history of this franchise. But with a little over a week to go until the playoffs, we still don’t know which version of the Leafs’ best players will show up.

One bad goal from Joseph Woll, but a quick recovery

The outcries over the first goal Joseph Woll allowed against the Panthers were heard far and wide across social media. It’s a goal Woll should have stopped, yes.

What perhaps didn’t register in the wake of the loss? Just how well Woll rebounded after that goal. He ended up stopping 34 of 36 shots, keeping the Leafs in the game.

Anthony Stolarz is the Game 1 starter at this point. But Woll’s ability to recover, both in games and in season, shouldn’t be discounted. It was on display against the Panthers and it has been as of late. Don’t be surprised if Berube gives starts to both goalies in the first round of the playoffs.

Since getting pulled for the first time in his NHL career on March 5 against the Vegas Golden Knights, Woll has played seven games. He’s stopped 30-plus shots in four of those games and has a .918 save percentage.

As against the Panthers, Woll deserves credit for turning things around quickly. If he must do so against a team such as the Panthers in the playoffs once again, confidence should be high that he can lock things down.

As for Stolarz? He might have allowed more goals than Woll in the second night of the back-to-back (three goals allowed on 28 shots), but the game never felt out of reach with Stolarz in net. He continues to cover ground around the blue paint in a way very few Leafs goalies have.

The Leafs need Jake McCabe — how will he look come the playoffs?

Stop me if you’ve heard this before: Jake McCabe has become one of the most important Leafs this season. Without him in Florida, thanks to an injury sustained in the April 2 win over the Panthers, they were a worse team that couldn’t shut down the heaviness and offensive onslaughts that good teams presented.

I lost count of how many times the Panthers pierced the Leafs’ zone and wondered aloud how things might have been different with McCabe on the ice.

Yes, Brandon Carlo’s ability to snuff out the Lightning’s transition game the next night was immense. And yes, Morgan Rielly blocked seven shots against the Lightning, which is what you want from him in the postseason. The Leafs set a single-game franchise record with their 33 blocked shots.

But just as much, Rielly’s most glaring errors led to chances going the other way.

McCabe just settles down the entire back end and brings balance to the top four.

Now, maybe a bit of time away from game action for McCabe could benefit the Leafs in the playoffs. Because if the loss against the Panthers was any indication? Berube is going to rely on McCabe far more than the 21:31 the defenceman averaged under Sheldon Keefe against the Boston Bruins in last year’s playoffs.

The 24:31 McCabe played on April 2 against the Panthers was tied for his eighth-highest ice time of the season. He usually logs his heaviest minutes against some of the better teams. He’s going to have to again.

The Leafs could have used McCabe on the penalty kill against the Lightning. There’s a reason McCabe had logged more short-handed time than any other Leaf heading into the game.

Simon Benoit has to do better to clear Lightning forward Brandon Hagel from the front of the net on the Lightning’s third goal. That feels like the kind of play McCabe might have made.

The Leafs’ third pair has struggled as of late. I don’t know what the answer is, but it probably involves limiting their ice time in the playoffs once McCabe returns.

(Photo: Kim Klement Neitzel / Imagn Images)





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