Mitch Marner made the night memorable as he reached a career milestone and led the Toronto Maple Leafs to a 6-2 victory over the Seattle Kraken on Monday night, snapping the Leafs’ two-game losing streak.
Marner scored a goal and added two assists, bringing his career total to 400 points. He became the second player from the 2015 draft to hit that mark, joining Edmonton’s Connor McDavid. Marner’s 17th goal of the season gave Toronto a 4-1 lead, and he also assisted on Michael Bunting’s power-play goal in the first period and David Kampf’s short-handed goal in the third.
“It’s a pretty cool achievement,” Marner said. “I have to thank my parents and everyone who’s supported me. This moment is something I can share with them. I’ve got the puck, stick, and everything to give to them. It’s just a really special moment.”
Despite having his eight-game points streak snapped last week in Calgary, Marner has racked up 22 points in his last 11 games.
Bunting contributed a goal and an assist, while Auston Matthews added two assists for Toronto. Jack Campbell made 23 saves in net.
Seattle’s Calle Jarnkrok scored his ninth goal of the season midway through the first period after a turnover by Toronto. Jared McCann added a power-play goal in the third period, setting a career-high with his 20th goal of the season.
“It’s a significant milestone, something I’ve worked really hard to achieve,” McCann said.
Toronto displayed their power play prowess, going 2-for-2 with the man advantage. The Leafs entered the game with the NHL’s top power play, converting on 30.5% of their chances.
Ondrej Kase scored on the power play in the first period, redirecting Bunting’s shot past Seattle goalie Philipp Grubauer. Marner’s power-play goal at 9:15 of the second period came off a rebound.
“I thought our special teams were elite today,” Toronto coach Sheldon Keefe said. “We knew we had a potential advantage coming into the game, and the execution from our players, especially on the power play, was exceptional.”
Alexander Kerfoot opened the scoring for Toronto just 3:56 into the game, beating Grubauer high on the blocker side after going 12 games without a goal. Jake Muzzin sealed the win with his second goal of the season at 18:19 of the third period.
“You always want to score and contribute,” Kerfoot said. “It’s always in the back of your mind, but it’s not something I was losing sleep over. You just want to help the team.”
Grubauer was pulled after allowing three goals on 11 shots in the first period. He was replaced by Chris Driedger, who made 11 saves over the final two periods.
Seattle coach Dave Hakstol explained that the goalie change was made to shift the momentum.
“At that point, if you give up another goal, you’re in a deep hole,” Hakstol said. “I just wanted to change the momentum and push in the other direction.”
WELCOME BACK
Climate Pledge Arena, Seattle’s home rink, sits on the original site and under the original roof of the Seattle Center Coliseum, built for the 1962 World’s Fair. The first hockey game played there was an exhibition on Sept. 30, 1964, between the Seattle Totems of the Western Hockey League and the reigning Stanley Cup champion Maple Leafs. Toronto won that game 7-1.
UP NEXT
- Maple Leafs: Return home to face Pittsburgh on Thursday.
- Kraken: Begin a three-game road trip at Winnipeg on Thursday.
