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Maple Leafs keep firing through losses, visit Seattle next

May 12, 2021; Ottawa, Ontario, CAN; Toronto Maple Leafs center Auston Mathews (34) controls the puck in the first period against the Ottawa Senators at the Canadian Tire Centre. Mandatory Credit: Marc DesRosiers-USA TODAY Sports
Marc DesRosiers-USA TODAY Sports

The Toronto Maple Leafs have put 101 shots on goal in their past two outings, yet have a pair of losses to show for it.

On Monday night, they will try to salvage a win from a three-game trip Monday night against the Seattle Kraken.

Vancouver’s Thatcher Demko stopped 51 of 53 shots Saturday night in the Canucks’ 3-2 win over Toronto.

“Obviously, we deserved a whole lot more offense in goals than we got tonight, but that’s what happens you spot them a 2-0 lead,” Maple Leafs coach Sheldon Keefe said. “It’s a team that relies on world-class goaltending to win games as it is, then you give them a two-goal lead then it’s an uphill climb from there.

“Loved that our guys kept fighting, two huge power-play goals to even the game, tough one to give up at the end of the second there to give them the lead back.”

Two nights earlier, the Maple Leafs had their six-game winning streak snapped with a 5-2 loss in Calgary when Flames’ goalie Jacob Markstrom stopped 46 of 48 Toronto shots.

The Kraken are coming off a 4-3 road victory against the Anaheim Ducks, led by Ryan Donato’s two goals.

“We were able to grind through it and push back at the right times, make plays at the right times and come up with key plays,” Kraken coach Dave Hakstol said. “Obviously that’s real positive for us, the biggest thing was that we got back to our competitiveness.”

Jordan Eberle scored the game-winning goal at 18:18 of the third period — his first goal since Dec. 6 — lifting the Kraken to their second victory in three games.

“This has definitely been one of the longer slumps of my career, it probably is the longest,” Eberle said. “I felt like every night I was getting three or four (chances), hitting crossbars, getting Grade-As and getting robbed. Eventually they go in and then they always seem to come in bunches.”

Seattle will be trying to match its season-longest winning streak of two games Monday.

Toronto’s Auston Matthews — who scored his 32nd goal of the season Saturday — will be trying to extend his seven-game points streak (seven goals, seven assists).

“I think we did a lot of good things,” Matthews said after the 3-2 loss in Vancouver. “I think our start maybe wasn’t as good as we wanted to and obviously they capitalized on it there early and forced us to have to dig ourselves out of a hole.

“But I thought the second period and the third period we really had a lot of time in their end of the ice and had a lot of really good chances, some unlucky and then some really good saves by their goalie”

Toronto had a complete roster Saturday after Wayne Simmonds rejoined the team. He missed the game on Thursday when he stayed in Toronto following the birth of his second daughter.

Ondrej Kase scored Toronto’s second goal on Saturday after leaving Thursday’s game as a precaution following a solid check from Calgary’s Nikita Zadorov.

“I felt really good today actually,” Kase said. “It’s kind of tough, after I feel like a good game, we lost two points so it’s tough to say now how I felt.”

Toronto reverted to the normal split of 12 forwards and six defensemen. Defenseman Travis Dermott was a healthy scratch. Petr Mrazek made 21 saves for Toronto on Saturday.

–Field Level Media

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