{"id":418839,"date":"2026-01-19T06:55:13","date_gmt":"2026-01-19T06:55:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/418839\/"},"modified":"2026-01-19T06:55:13","modified_gmt":"2026-01-19T06:55:13","slug":"maple-leafs-news-rumours-oel-hildeby-valis-mcmann-the-hockey-writers-toronto-maple-leafs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/418839\/","title":{"rendered":"Maple Leafs News & Rumours: OEL, Hildeby, Valis & McMann – The Hockey Writers – Toronto Maple Leafs"},"content":{"rendered":"

After surrendering two two-goal leads against the Vegas Golden Knights, the Toronto Maple Leafs<\/a> flipped the script vs. the Winnipeg Jets, coming from behind in the third period to pull out a 4\u20133 overtime win<\/a>. The Maple Leafs spent long stretches on Saturday night chasing the game in Winnipeg, playing more with patience than control.<\/p>\n

Related: 2 Takeaways From the Maple Leafs\u2019 4-3 OT Win Over the Jets<\/a><\/p>\n

Against a heavy Jets team that\u2019s usually comfortable defending leads, the path to two points looked narrow. Somehow, they found it anyway. That matters for two reasons. First, the standings benefit, because the points pull them up two. Second, because wins like these tend to expose which parts of a roster can hold shape when things tilt. <\/p>\n

This game did exactly that.<\/p>\n

There are nights when Oliver Ekman-Larsson <\/a>(OEL) fades into the background, and nights when you suddenly realize how many important things run through him. Saturday was the latter. He scored a goal, added two assists, and was involved in the play that led directly to the overtime winner. Ekman-Larsson has now put up six points in four games. <\/p>\n

\"MichaelDetroit Red Wings center Michael Rasmussen and Toronto Maple Leafs defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson fight for position in front of goaltender Dennis Hildeby (Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images)<\/p>\n

But that only tells part of the story. The bigger piece was how often Ekman-Larsson was in the right place at just the right time. Killing plays, moving pucks calmly, getting shots through traffic, and \u2014 Auston Matthews pointed out afterward<\/a> \u2014 OEL broke up the sequence that allowed Toronto to attack in overtime.<\/p>\n

Related: What the Maple Leafs\u2019 Stats Reveal About Their Identity<\/a><\/p>\n

That kind of impact doesn\u2019t show up as dominance. It shows up as control. When the Maple Leafs were scrambling early, Ekman-Larsson didn\u2019t chase the chaos. He simplified it. When they pushed late, he didn\u2019t force the offence. He just took advantage of what the hockey gods provided. On nights when Toronto doesn\u2019t have the game under its thumb, that steadiness becomes an advantage.<\/p>\n

Item Two: Dennis Hildeby and \u201cGiving Your Team a Chance\u201d<\/p>\n

Listening to his teammates after the game, the interesting part was that nobody in the Toronto room overthought Dennis Hildeby<\/a>\u2019s night in Winnipeg. For me, that means he\u2019s become part of the fabric of the team. That \u201che\u2019s just there doing his job\u201d might be the highest compliment a goaltender can receive. <\/p>\n

\"DennisToronto Maple Leafs goaltender Dennis Hildeby makes a glove save against the Tampa Bay Lightning
(John E. Sokolowski-Imagn Images)<\/p>\n

Hildeby stopped 27 shots in a 4\u20133 overtime win over the Jets on Saturday, doing exactly what he was supposed to do. He remained steady, battled through traffic, and kept the night from going off the rails. Of his 27 saves, several of them were the kind that arrive in scrambles and broken plays. These are moments where a goalie\u2019s job is to forget technique and channel refusal. Bobby McMann called him \u201cunreal,\u201d and the word fit the night.<\/p>\n

Related: Bobby McMann\u2019s Next Contract Is a Big Test for the Maple Leafs<\/a><\/p>\n

Hildeby didn\u2019t steal the game, but he kept it in reach. Winnipeg had chances to push the lead beyond two goals. They didn\u2019t, because Hildeby stayed calm and present when the game threatened to get away. It was a night where the old hockey saying \u2014 \u201cgave us a chance to win\u201d \u2014 made sense.<\/p>\n

Item Three: Borya Valis Is Finding His Game Again in the AHL<\/p>\n

Borya Valis popped up with a pair of goals Saturday in the American Hockey League (AHL) Toronto Marlies\u2019 5\u20134 win over the Iowa Wild. It was a welcome sign that his season is settling back into rhythm. After coming out of the gate hot, Valis hit a wall in November and December.<\/p>\n

\"BoryaBorya Valis, when he was with the Prince George Cougars. (Photo credit: Tri-City Americans)<\/p>\n

Lately, however, his game looks more comfortable again. He now has three goals and two assists over his last six games, which suggests he\u2019s finding his timing, not forcing plays, and getting back to shooting first. The shots have been there (75 shots in 36 games). When a young player is pushing that much rubber toward the opposition goalie, production usually follows.<\/p>\n

Related: Ex-Maple Leafs Goalie Michael Hutchinson: Where\u2019s He Now?<\/a><\/p>\n

There\u2019s no rush here, and there shouldn\u2019t be. Valis is 21, still learning where offence comes from at this level, and still figuring out how to carry it night after night. For now, this is about how he\u2019s trending, not whether he gets a call-up. Development doesn\u2019t move in straight lines. As the Maple Leafs organization found out with McMann, patience can be rewarded.<\/p>\n

What\u2019s Next for the Maple Leafs?<\/p>\n

The Maple Leafs won a game they didn\u2019t control, and that\u2019s worth thinking about. This wasn\u2019t a win based on dominance or systems working perfectly. It was about hanging in there long enough for chances to appear and then taking advantage.<\/p>\n

The Maple Leafs have built a bit of a reputation for third-period pushback, which sits oddly beside their inability to hold third-period leads. Funny, that. The next step is learning how to reduce the need for it. The resilience might be real, but the standings show that the margin remains thin.<\/p>\n

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<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"After surrendering two two-goal leads against the Vegas Golden Knights, the Toronto Maple Leafs flipped the script vs.…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":418840,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[175787,146727,43,44,141055,41,39,42,40],"class_list":{"0":"post-418839","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-headlines","8":"tag-borya-valis","9":"tag-dennis-hildeby","10":"tag-headlines","11":"tag-news","12":"tag-oliver-ekman-larsson","13":"tag-top-news","14":"tag-top-stories","15":"tag-topnews","16":"tag-topstories"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/418839","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=418839"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/418839\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/418840"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=418839"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=418839"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=418839"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}