Matthews scores 38th goal to help Maple Leafs top Canucks

TORONTO -- Auston Matthews scored twice, giving him an NHL-leading 38 goals, and the Toronto Maple Leafs defeated the Vancouver Canucks 5-1 at Scotiabank Arena on Saturday.

"Despite a tough first period by our group, I thought the second and third we really strung along together some really good shifts," Matthews said. "I just think good play all around from all four lines."
Mitchell Marner had two assists, and Jack Campbell made 26 saves for the Maple Leafs (33-13-5), who have won five in a row. They lead the seven-team Scotia North Division by nine points over the second-place Edmonton Oilers, who defeated the Calgary Flames 4-1 at home Saturday. The top four teams qualify for the Stanley Cup Playoffs. The Maple Leafs have clinched a berth.
Toronto has allowed one goal in each of its past four games, including a 4-1 win against Vancouver here Thursday to open the two-game set.
"Our team really just recognized that it was time to really dial in the details of our game both offensively and defensively," Maple Leafs coach Sheldon Keefe said. "I think there's been a real shift there for us. Anytime we've had breakdowns, our goaltending has been excellent as well. Today we were not very good at all through two periods, but in the third, our team regrouped and made the decision we were going to take care of the game and it was going to remain in our control."

Tanner Pearson scored, and Thatcher Demko made 25 saves for the Canucks (19-23-3), who are 1-5-0 in their past six and are 14 points behind the Montreal Canadiens for fourth in the North.
"You can tell by how hard they're playing that they want to win badly," Canucks coach Travis Green said of his team. "It's a good hockey team over there. It's two of our better periods (in the first and second) that we've probably played coming out of COVID, and they'll be disappointed that they lost, that's for sure. That's the nature of the beast, you should be."
Vancouver, which had an 18-day pause through April 18 due to a COVID-19 outbreak within the team, finished its road trip 0-4-0.
"We wanted to come up with at least a win on this road trip and it is disappointing," Canucks captain Bo Horvat said. "At the same time, we can't dwell on it and just say we're going to pack it in. We got to still come to the rink and be willing to play these last 11 games and play hard. I mean, we're not out of it until we're mathematically out of it, and as long as you still have a chance we've got to come to the rink every single day and play hard."
The Canucks went up 1-0 at 13:28 of the first period when Pearson took a pass from Quinn Hughes near the right boards and scored off the left post.
Matthews tied it 1-1 at 15:24 when he took a pass from Marner from below the goal line and shot from the slot off the stick off Vancouver forward J.T. Miller.
Toronto took a 2-1 lead at 3:50 of the second period when Marner stole the puck from Alexander Edler behind the net and passed to Matthews, who scored from the right face-off dot. The goal gave Matthews 17 goals in 17 games.
"Wow, it's unbelievable. He's definitely a one-of-a-kind player," Galchenyuk said of Matthews. "To see the way he shoots the puck and makes plays, it's tremendous. It's fun to watch him."
Adam Brooks deflected a point shot from Justin Holl in the slot at 4:55 of the third period to make it 3-1. Jason Spezza got an assist, extending his point streak to five games.
Toronto extended the lead to 4-1 at 11:39 when Alex Galchenyuk put in a rebound at the top of the goal crease after Demko stopped William Nylander.

The Maple Leafs outshot the Canucks 14-4 in the third period.
"You've got to give their team some credit," Green said. "They've got a say in what goes on on the ice too. I thought they came out and played well. Did we tire? I'm not sure. We're trying to spread the minutes out as best we can. Obviously there's a lot of good players on their team, and you're not going to get the matchups when you're on the road, but we're trying to be conscious of it."
Joe Thornton scored into an empty net with 2:00 left for the 5-1 final, extending his point streak to five games.
"The boys (Spezza and Thornton) are buzzing, they bring so much energy every single day," Marner said of the forwards, who are 37 and 41 years old. "You wouldn't think they're two of the older guys on the team. It's been a blast playing with them, they bring energy every day and have done a lot for our team, being able to play in multiple spots in the lineup. Both guys have been huge for our team."
NOTES: Matthews also leads the NHL in even-strength goals (28) and goals at 5-on-5 (25). Toronto is 7-1-1 when he scores multiple goals this season. Through 47 games, the center is scoring at a rate of 0.809 goals per game, which would be the best in the NHL since 2000-01, when Mario Lemieux averaged 0.814 for the Pittsburgh Penguins. Alex Ovechkin averaged 0.793 for the Washington Capitals in 2007-08. … Holl left the game midway through the third period after taking a puck the face. Keefe had no update. … Marner has scored 10 points (four goals, six assists) in a six-game point streak. … The Maple Leafs finished the season series 5-3-1 against the Canucks. … Vancouver forward Jake Virtanen was placed on leave Saturday with the Canucks investigating sexual misconduct allegations involving him.