Mitch Marner executed one of his hallmark maneuvers, giving the Maple Leafs an early lead.
With his club missing another defenceman, its most versatile player stepped in on the back end.
Marner scored a highlight-reel assist to Matthew Knies before adopting a blue-line position when Mark Giordano
sustained a head injury in Toronto’s 4-2 victory over Arizona on Thursday, the Coyotes’ 14th consecutive loss.
“We needed him,” Leafs head coach Sheldon Keefe remarked about Marner. “Good that Mitch was able to chip in.”
He did more than that.
In the first period, the star winger stole Logan Cooley’s pass and moved in on a breakaway, but instead of shooting or
making a move on Coyotes goaltender Connor Ingram, he fed the hard-charging Knies with a no-look, between-the-
legs dish, allowing the rookie to score his 11th.
“I was screaming at him to take it on his own,” said Knies, who also contributed an assist. “Made eye contact. I had
no idea he was going to go against my word like that.
“He’s got a pretty good hockey brain.”
With Timothy Liljegren (undisclosed injury) missing for the second straight game, the Leafs were forced to dress six
left-shot defencemen. Giordano was injured earlier in the period when he collided with the boards on a rush
opportunity.
“Just going where I’m asked,” said the 26-year-old, who has previously been assigned to the back end. “Trying to find
plays and try not to make mistakes.”
Keefe, who had Marner on defense for much of the second period and parts of the third, believes it takes a special
player to make that transition.
“He’s comfortable being the last guy back and having the puck,” that’s what he stated. “You can have some of the
most skilled players in the world, but being the last guy back is a different animal.”
Auston Matthews scored his NHL-leading 53rd goal, and Tyler Bertuzzi also scored for Toronto (34-17-8). Joseph
Woll made 30 saves in his return from a lengthy injury hiatus. William Nylander added an empty netter and two
assists.
“I’ve really been missing playing,” said Woll, who has been out since December 7 due to a severe ankle injury. “To be
able to play at our home building and to get a win like that was pretty nice.”
