January 11, 2026<\/a><\/p>\nOn Matias Maccelli\u2019s power-play goal and his overall power-play contributions:<\/p>\n
He has a lot of composure with the puck and makes a lot of plays. He does a great job on entries on the power play, when handling the puck on the half-wall, and he makes good plays.<\/p>\n
It was a great goal \u2014 a great read by Willy to see him there, and he fed him. He\u2019s been playing really well. Obviously, confidence is a big thing, and he has a lot of confidence right now with the puck.<\/p>\n
On the reasons for the team\u2019s improved consistency since the Christmas break:\u00a0<\/p>\n
Well, we\u2019re healthier, for sure, and the goaltending, for sure. It is more stabilized after goaltending injuries early on.<\/p>\n
We\u2019ve scored goals all year, to be honest. I know the power play hadn\u2019t been, but we were scoring. We weren\u2019t defending. We are defending a lot better, and we\u2019re keeping the puck out of our net. That is the biggest difference for me.<\/p>\n
The PK has been good all year.<\/p>\n
On William Nylander\u2019s ability to make it look easy offensively:<\/p>\n
Yeah, he is capable of that. He is a skilled guy with a lot of talent. Tonight, Willy got three points, and for me, it was the work. He was skating. He was back-checking. He was stripping people of pucks. When he does that stuff, he can be a great player, obviously.<\/p>\n
On the team\u2019s injury list shortening:<\/p>\n
Yeah, it is great. We are getting healthier as it goes along here. Having Brandon Carlo back has been a big, big help, with what he does back there on the PK, defending, and being the big body back there. I thought he had a solid game tonight, and he has been solid since he\u2019s been back.<\/p>\n
On the team answering the bell physically when Joseph Woll was touched in the crease:<\/p>\n
Great job by Max. You can see everybody is like a pack of wolves. Get in there, and stick up for your teammates and the goalie. Cowboy was in there.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s good. We\u2019re tight right now, and we have to keep being tight.<\/p>\n
On Scott Laughton\u2019s faceoff prowess:<\/p>\n
It is a great weapon, and we are a great faceoff team. He has been on a roll, especially on the penalty kill. He starts on his offside a lot, but he wins them a lot, which is huge to get the puck down the ice. It kills the momentum of the power play a little bit.<\/p>\n
He has been very effective, and that line has been very good for us. I know Bobby (McMann) was on it tonight, and there are different guys at times, but the line doesn\u2019t change their mindset. They just keep playing the same way.<\/p>\n
On the team\u2019s strength down the middle:<\/p>\n
They\u2019re solid down the middle, for sure, starting in the faceoff circle. Our centermen are doing a great job of positioning from our own zone out in the middle of the ice and demanding the puck.<\/p>\n
We\u2019ve talked about Matthews and what the difference is. That\u2019s the big difference for me: getting the puck in the middle of the ice and attacking from the middle of the ice.<\/p>\n
On the difficult road trip coming up:\u00a0<\/p>\n
Yeah, it\u2019s tough. Good teams. It is not an easy couple of games to start with. We\u2019re heading to Colorado tomorrow. There are two late games back-to-back with Utah and Colorado, who is a great team right now.<\/p>\n
It is going to be a good test for us. We\u2019re going to have to really defend well. Special teams will be important, and all aspects of the game will be important. They\u2019re a very good team.<\/p>\n
It is all good teams we\u2019re playing on this trip. It will be a tough trip.<\/p>\n
Game Highlights w\/Joe Bowen: Maple Leafs 5 vs. Canucks 0 <\/p>\n
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