Marner triumphant in return as listless Leafs lose to Vegas

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Goalie Anthony Stolarz had a shaky start in his return from injury for Toronto

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Published Jan 23, 2026 • Last updated 1 hour ago • 5 minute read

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marner leafs Vegas Golden Knights’ Mitch Marner tries a wrap-around on Maple Leafs goaltender Anthony Stolarz during the third period in Toronto on Friday, January 23, 2026. Photo by Nathan Denette /THE CANADIAN PRESSArticle content

Mitch Marner got the last, and perhaps only, laugh on Friday night.

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In his first game at Scotiabank Arena as a member of the Vegas Golden Knights, Marner was booed throughout the evening and didn’t record a point against the Maple Leafs. The bottom line, though, was the Golden Knights were the better team and won 6-3 before a season-high crowd in Toronto of 19,305.

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There certainly was no joy in the Leafs dressing room afterward.

This has been another difficult stretch for the Leafs, who are 0-2-1 through the first three of a five-game stay at SBA. The challenge will only grow on Sunday afternoon when the visitors are the Colorado Avalanche, the best team in the National Hockey League.

The Leafs, after going 8-0-2 in 10 games, are 1-3-2 in their past six. For a team that likes to think it is fighting for a playoff spot, the lack of points can’t continue.

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Our takeaways from Friday night:

MIRROR IMAGES

The Leafs were down 2-0 before the game was five minutes old — so much for getting a lift from the crowd’s reaction to Marner — and never recovered fully.

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Why such a slow start in what the players had to know what was going to be an emotional evening? John Tavares summed it up well.

“Good question,” he said. “Every game is really important. We’re fighting for a spot. We have to look in the mirror and realize that coming off of a pretty good road trip, we haven’t been able to follow it up. We just haven’t been as good as we’ve needed to be.”

As disappointing for coach Craig Berube as the tepid beginning was the Leafs’ failure to push the Golden Knights into the ground in the third.

After falling behind 4-1 five minutes into the second, the Leafs took over and carried play through the end of the period. There was urgency that was not evident in other large portions of the game, and the Leafs’ determination enabled them to keep the puck in the offensive zone. And when Bobby McMann scored at 18:19 of the second to cut the Vegas lead to 4-3, the Leafs appeared poised to take further control in the third. After all, the Golden Knights played in Boston against the Bruins on Thursday night and did not arrive at their Toronto hotel until 2 a.m. on Friday.

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But the Leafs couldn’t muster the strength to properly go on the attack, with just five shots on goal in the third and nothing on goalie Adin Hill during a late power play. After the man advantage was over, Mark Stone scored on a two-on-one and later added an empty-net goal to put the Leafs away.

“We have to make a bigger push than that,” Berube said. “It’s a one-goal game. I didn’t like the power play at the end. We have to have more. The standard has to be better and higher. We’re at home. We’re not playing consistently enough with the urgency that is needed.”

How could that be with the Leafs three points out of the second wild-card in the Eastern Conference? The efforts are unacceptable. The inconsistencies could just be a result of what the Leafs really are.

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Goalie Anthony Stolarz was not great in his first game since Nov. 11.

His recovery from an upper-body nerve issue complete, Stolarz gave up five goals on 30 shots. Similar to how he was playing before he went out of the lineup more than two months ago, he didn’t make the necessary saves on Friday night.

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Jack Eichel beat Stolarz — who had no chance — on the Golden Knights’ first shot at 1:06 of the first after Leafs defencemen Jake McCabe and Oliver Ekman-Larsson vacated the front of the net.

It was 2-0 at 4:31 when Keegan Kolesar scored following a large rebound off the blocker of Stolarz.

The veteran netminder grew more comfortable as the game progressed, but like his teammates, wasn’t sharp for a full 60 minutes.

“You forget about the (early) goals, and you just try to focus on the next shot,” Stolarz said. “That’s your job. What it boiled down to tonight was I just didn’t make a timely save to swing the momentum. I just have to get back to work (Saturday) and try to find it.”

What are the challenges that come in the first game back for a goalie after being out for so long?

“Probably the tempo and the speed,” Stolarz said. “You can do your best to replicate those in practice. But once you get out there in a game at the NHL level, the tempo of the play is a lot quicker. To start, especially early on, I was kind of a little behind.”

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The Leafs demoted Dennis Hildeby to the Toronto Marlies with the return of Stolarz. Hildeby had been providing the Leafs with reliable goaltending.

But given where the Leafs are in the standings, Stolarz has to find a way to get back to his play of last season in a hurry. Toronto can’t afford to lose points as Stolarz tries to find his way.

A FEW POSITIVES

Matthew Knies put aside his lower-body pain to record two assists, including his career-high 30th of the season on Tavares’ goal.

And Laughton has scored in consecutive games, his latest goal coming in the second period when he tucked a backhand past Hill to cap a breakaway.

Laughton wasn’t having it after the game, however.

“It’s nice to score and contribute, but when you don’t get the result, it doesn’t matter,” said Laughton, who has taken more of a commanding voice this season.

“We can’t get down a couple of goals. That’s when teams sit back. You start chasing it. It’s hard to play that way. They’re a good team. They make good plays. You’ve got to stay over top of them, make it hard on them, and we didn’t do that.”

It doesn’t help the Leafs that they don’t have William Nylander, whose skill and dynamics can change the outcome.
Nylander has missed the past four games with a lower-body injury.

“Hopefully , he’ll get on the ice this weekend, that’s what I’m hoping,” Berube said. “But I don’t really have an update when he’s going to play.”

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tkoshan@postmedia.com
X: @koshtorontosun

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Marner triumphant in return as listless Leafs lose to Vegas

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