Auston Matthews ended his points drought at the start of the season by scoring his first goal and adding two assists as Toronto’s captain in the Maple Leafs’ 6-2 win over the Los Angeles Kings on Wednesday night.
Matthews made it 2-0 midway through the first period after recovering from a missed shot and then beating David Rittich with a wrist shot.
Last season, Matthews led the NHL in goals with 69. He also assisted on two power-play goals, helping the Maple Leafs secure their third straight win after starting the season with a 1-0 loss at Montreal.
Bobby McMann scored twice in the first period, which saw the Maple Leafs net three goals. Morgan Rielly, William Nylander, and John Tavares also scored, while Anthony Stolarz saved 32 shots. Mitch Marner contributed with three assists.
Toronto ended their 0-for-11 power play start to the season when Nylander scored against Copley to make it 5-0 late in the second period.
In the third period, Alex Turcotte and Kevin Fiala scored for Los Angeles.
Los Angeles fell to 1-1-2 during their season-opening seven-game trip due to arena renovations. They will play again on Thursday night in Montreal.
With a focus on strong defense under new coach Craig Berube, Toronto has allowed only seven goals in four games.Toronto quickly chased Rittich, scoring four goals on their first 14 shots. Pheonix Copley allowed two goals on 12 shots while in relief.
Matthews became the fourth player in Maple Leafs history to score 200 goals at home, joining Darryl Sittler (231), Dave Keon (225), and Mats Sundin (217).
