Five Takeaways - Leafs vs. Sabres - 04/02/18

1. Fourth line puts Leafs in front as Johnsson nets lone goal of opening period. Playing their penultimate home game of the regular season, the Leafs started the night on a positive note when winger Andreas Johnsson beat Sabres netminder Chad Johnson at the 5:44 mark of the first period and gave the home side a 1-0 lead that would carry over into the second frame. Johnsson tapped in a bullet pass from centre Tomas Plekanec for the goal, which was the 23-year-old's second of the year in his ninth career NHL contest.

After Buffalo defeated the Buds 3-2 at Air Canada Centre last week, Toronto looked like a squad that was determined to exact revenge. And getting production from throughout the lineup was a terrific way to do so.

2. Reinhart evens score for Sabres, but Matthews extends points streak, regains lead for Toronto. Sabres centre Sam Reinhart produced two goals and three points in his previous three games against the Leafs, and the 22-year-old added another marker to that total Monday, netting his 24th goal of the season 2:27 into the second period on the power play to even the score at a goal apiece. However, Toronto regained the lead 2:34 after Reinhart scored with a power play goal of their own: Buds centre Auston Matthews registered his 32nd goal of the year and his fourth goal and eighth point in seven games since returning from injury.

Matthews' goal kept his consecutive games point streak alive at seven games - and he'd add another point on an assist on linemate William Nylander's first goal of the night - and Johnsson would chip in an assist on the go-ahead goal for his first career multi-point NHL game. And Matthews and Nylander weren't the only Leafs to post multi-point games on this night.

3. Nylander strikes twice in three-minute span to improve Buds' advantage to three goals after two periods.Forward William Nylander performed well in the absence of linemate Matthews, but, like any NHLer, Nylander got a boost when Matthews came back: the 21-year-old had two goals and four points in the past six games, and Matthews contributed to Nylander's third goal and fifth point in seven games when he made a fantastic pass from Toronto's zone up the middle of the ice to Nylander, who split the Sabres' defence and fired a shot past Johnson for his 18th goal of the season at 7:39 of the second.

That marker gave the Buds a 3-1 advantage, and Nylander then made it 4-1 at 10:32 of the second when he took a pass from winger Zach Hyman and flipped it up and over Johnson for his second of the night. Nylander added an assist in the third frame for a three-point game - his fourth of the year - and put the Leafs in the driver's seat heading into the third period.

4. Buffalo cuts Leafs' lead to two goals on power play marker early in third, but Matthews fires home second of night to restore three-goal lead.Like Reinhart, winger Jason Pominville has had success against the Leafs of late, scoring two goals and four points in his previous three games against Toronto. And Pominville scored his 14th goal of the season Monday at 2:56 of the third - with another power-play goal - to cut the Buds' lead to 4-2 with 17 minutes remaining in regulation time.

But fortunately for Leafs Nation, Toronto responded with its fifth goal of the game at 6:29 of the third when Matthews scored his second of the night and 33rd of the year. The goal came on the Leafs' third man advantage of the game, and blueliner Jake Gardiner earned the secondary assist to get him to the 50-point plateau for the first time in his seven-season NHL career. Buffalo won two of the previous three showdowns against Toronto, but in this battle, the Leafs clearly were the hungrier, more cohesive and determined group, and the results could be seen throughout the lineup.
5. Toronto earns 28th home win of year, ties franchise record for standings points in a single season. Buffalo outshot the Buds 15-9 in the final 20 minutes of action, but Leafs netminder Curtis McElhinney didn't allow another goal after Pominville's marker, and Toronto locked up its 28th home win of the year with one more game at ACC (and another on the road) left in the 2017-18 campaign.

The victory also pushed the Leafs' standings points total to an impressive 103 points, tying the team record that was set by the 2003-04 squad. Toronto can set a new mark with a point against the Devils in New Jersey on Thursday, or back at the ACC Saturday against the Montreal Canadiens. But even if the Buds remain at their current points total, this year's group has been one of the most thrilling, resilient teams in the storied franchise's history - and with the post-season right around the corner, they look confident and poised to deliver even better memories to Leafs Nation.