Matthews pushed it to 3-0 at 4:01. Knies cut through the slot and fought off Niko Mikkola before swinging a pass back to the Maple Leafs captain, who shot past Bobrovsky’s right pad from the slot. The goal extended Matthews’ point streak to five games (seven goals, four assists).

Earlier this season, as the Toronto Maple Leafs kept losing, they looked slow. Not tired and not necessarily overmatched. Just… slow. Pucks died on their sticks.

Matthew Schaefer scored twice, including at 4:11 of overtime, and the New York Islanders beat the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-3.

Maple Leafs captain Auston Matthews will return to the lineup Thursday after missing one game with a lower-body injury. He will center the top line with Matthew Knies and Max Domi. Matthews will also skate on the first power-play unit.