Maple Leafs edge out Canadiens 6-5 in shootout

The Toronto Maple Leafs emerged victorious against the Montreal Canadiens with a 6-5 shootout win in the opening game of the 2023-24 NHL season on Wednesday night.

LEAFS WIN!!!!!@LGCanada | #LeafsForever pic.twitter.com/DqgAlIzB5l

— Toronto Maple Leafs (@MapleLeafs) October 12, 2023

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It was the team from Montreal that established an early control, taking a 2-0 and 5-3 lead, but two late goals from Auston Matthews, which completed his hat-trick ensured the game went into shootout.

At that point it was anyone’s game, but a decisive lunge from Mitch Marner , followed by a brilliant save by Illya Samsonov on Kirby Dach gave Toronto the edge and subsequently the win.

John Tavares had three assists for Toronto, while John Klingberg – in his first game with the Maple Leafs – came up with two.

Alex Newhook scored twice for Montreal. Cole Caufield, Jake Evans and Jesse Ylonen also scored, while goaltender Jake Allen made 37 saves; Dach also had two assists.