Anthony Stolarz shines as Maple Leafs beat Rangers, win fourth in a row

Thank goodness for Anthony Stolarz.

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The Maple Leafs goaltender was largely responsible for two points on Friday night at Madison Square Garden.

Despite being outshot 35-17 by the New York Rangers, the Leafs recorded a 3-2 win for their fourth victory in a row.
In doing so, Toronto reclaimed first place in the Atlantic Division with a one-point lead over the Florida Panthers.

Playing without top defenceman Chris Tanev (upper body), the Leafs had trouble in the defensive zone. Stolarz, though, was his usual exceptional self.

Matthew Knies scored the winning goal on a pass out from behind the net from Auston Matthews at 6:21 of the third.

Mitch Marner also assisted, giving him 713 points and tying him for fifth on the Leafs career list with George Armstrong.

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The Knies goal came less than three minutes after Rangers’ Will Cuylle tied the game 2-2 while New York was shorthanded, converting on a 2-on-1 with Mika Zibanejad.

Leafs coach Craig Berube got away from his goaltending rotation, giving Stolarz a second start in a row. Joseph Woll was “a little under the weather,” Berube said, so was not available to start.

But Berube acknowledged in the morning that he wants one of his goalies to grab the bull by the horns heading into the Stanley Cup playoffs.

“It’s normally one guy who is going to take control of it, and sometimes you have to make switches,” Berube told media in New York. “Going into the playoffs, you want one guy being ready to take it.”

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William Nylander, who declared himself good to go in the morning after he missed overtime in Boston on Tuesday, ended a five-game goalless streak when he was credited with the Leafs’ second goal at the 51-second mark of the second period. The goal was official only following a review after the puck originally was ruled to have not crossed the line.

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And Nylander, who broken in alone, got some help for his 34th, as Rangers defenceman Urho Vaakanainen accidentally poked the puck past goalie Igor Shesterkin.

Stolarz stopped all nine New York shots in the middle period and the Leafs carried a 2-1 lead into the third.

The Leafs opened the scoring at 1:47 of the first period on a power play when defenceman Oliver Ekman-Larsson — who left the game in the third period and didn’t return — blasted a Max Domi pass behind Shesterkin. Diligent work by Nick Robertson, who won a puck battle with Vincent Trocheck, helped result in the goal, though he wasn’t credited with an assist.

Zibanejad deflected a Will Borgen shot past Stolarz at 13:08 for the first Rangers goal.

tkoshan@postmedia.com

X: @koshtorontosun

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