Matthews shakes slump, Maple Leafs shake Senators 7-5

TORONTO — Captain Auston Matthews shook off a slump with a goal and two assists, and Matthew Knies scored twice to lead the Toronto Maple Leafs to a sloppy 7-5 win against the Ottawa Senators on Saturday.

In the first game for the provincial rivals after the three-day Christmas break, the Maple Leafs (17-15-5) extended their mini win streak to two games. The Senators (18-14-5) dropped their second straight before 18,859 at Scotiabank Arena.

Matthews had gone four games without a point but enjoyed his first three-point outing of the season. He set up William Nylander on the power play to open the scoring, assisted on Bobby McMann’s go-ahead goal early in the second period, and scored on his next shift for a 4-2 Toronto advantage.

The Senators pulled to within a goal twice, but Knies’ second with 14:07 remaining stood up as the winner.

The Maple Leafs jumped out to a 2-0 lead after a Knies’ power-play goal. But Ottawa’s Nick Cousins scored late in the first period, and Ridly Greig pulled his team even 18 seconds into the second period.

Toronto then exploded for three goals from McMann, Matthews and Nick Robertson before the end of the second period. But Drake Batherson and Tim Stutzle scored in the opening 5:07 of the third to make it a one-goal game.

Max Domi enjoyed a three-assist game. Ottawa’s Claude Giroux played in his 1,300th career game and had two assists.

The Maple Leafs outshot the visitors 33-31. Linus Ullmark was pulled after the Matthews goal in favour of backup Leevi Merilainen. Joseph Woll was good enough for his seventh win in 12 starts.

TAKEAWAYS

Leafs: Nylander left the game after his third shift in the second period with an undisclosed injury. After missing only one game in the previous four years, he has been absent from four games this season.

Senators: After 210 AHL regular-season games with the Bakersfield Condors and Belleville Senators, former Edmonton Oilers first-round pick Xavier Bourgault of L’Islet, Que., made his NHL debut.

KEY MOMENT

Knies’ second of the game and game winner came 47 seconds after Stutzle made it a one-goal game early in the third period.

KEY STAT

The Maple Leafs entered the game last in power-play efficiency, but scored two power-play goals in the first period against the Senators’ 31st-place penalty-killing unit. It was the first time Toronto had scored two power-play goals in a game since Nov. 8 in a loss to the Boston Bruins.

UP NEXT

Senators: Host the Columbus Blue Jackets on Monday.

Maple Leafs: Visit the Detroit Red Wings on Sunday.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 27, 2025.