5 takeaways from Leafs-Blackhawks: McCabe-Tanev flawless, Robertson, depth scoring shine again

During the second night of a back-to-back, the Toronto Maple Leafs may have solved one of its glaring flaws, cruising to a 5-2 victory over the Chicago Blackhawks.

Toronto has lacked depth scoring all season, but Nick Robertson led the charge with two goals, Jake McCabe and Chris Tanev added singles, while Pontus Holmberg punctuated the win with an empty-netter, his third goal of the weekend. Holmberg is now up to five goals on the season, and we’d be remiss if we didn’t point out a stellar showing from Max Domi, who recorded two assists and was constantly generating offensive chances.

As a result of the victory, the Maple Leafs sit atop the Atlantic Division with a one-point lead over the defending champion Florida Panthers with a game in hand.

Here are five takeaways from the Maple Leafs’ victory over the Blackhawks

• Jake McCabe and Chris Tanev operate as the Maple Leafs’ shutdown pairing, but it was a flawless performance from the team’s top defenders. McCabe and Tanev each scored during the game and they easily erased any Blackhawks threats throughout the game, with both players controlling 92 percent of the expected goals in all situations via Natural Stat Trick. McCabe also added five shot blocks and looked a cut above the competition. You didn’t need to rely on the stat charts to quantify their impact, as they were making sound exits, getting pucks to the net constantly, while controlling possession for the Maple Leafs. McCabe and Tanev aren’t expected to score, but for a team that has generated the fewest goals from their defence corps all season, it certainly feels like a bonus. McCabe-Tanev were on the ice for three Toronto goals, zero against, in a flawless performance Sunday.
• Nick Robertson and Max Domi were Toronto’s best forwards throughout the game. Robertson scored twice, led all players with five shots, and narrowly missed a hat-trick as TJ Brodie cleared a trickling puck off the line. Domi was active off the rush, he was looking for his teammates, while getting pucks to the net and was playing with the confidence that he’s seemingly lost for large stretches of the season.  It wasn’t a flawless performance from the third line, featuring Bobby McMann. Domi got crossed over by Frank Nazar, which led to a Philipp Kurashev goal at the end of the second period, directly off the faceoff stemming from Robertson’s second goal of the contest. One blemish can be excused in what was an otherwise terrific night from the line, as Robertson and Domi should build off this weekend stretch entering Tuesday’s game against the Boston Bruins.
• It was another understated performance from Toronto’s top line, but Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner both played under 20 minutes, which is clever work from head coach Craig Berube. Matthews was terrific defensively, using his huge frame to break up plays, and he won a draw cleanly to Tanev, who fired the puck over to McCabe on his goal from the point. It wasn’t the scintillating offensive performance we’ve come to expect, but Toronto’s top scoring line outshot Chicago 6-3 and did more than enough while relying on its superior true talent.
• For the second consecutive game, Alex Steeves made a strong case for his permanent inclusion on the fourth line. Steeves didn’t score, but he’s found instant chemistry with David Kampf and Steven Lorentz, particularly in the offensive zone. You can’t imagine Berube throwing Ryan Reaves or Connor Dewar back into the lineup or Steeves based on current form, as he added three hits in just over 10 minutes of ice time. Toronto’s depth scoring is coming into focus and Steeves has added a new wrinkle to the fourth line throughout the weekend.
• Pontus Holmberg, prior to the 4 Nations Face-Off break: two goals. Pontus Holmberg, after Sunday’s win: five goals! Holmberg has unlocked the totality of his game alongside John Tavares and William Nylander. We don’t want to be consumed by small sample theatre, especially given the calibre of his current linemates, but Holmberg is making the most of it, setting up a golden chance for Nylander early in the game, that the superstar winger rang off the bar. Holmberg has been Toronto’s best player at drawing penalties and over the weekend, he’s found real utility within the top-six. Now it’s just a matter of further consistency, which will be tested on the road this week.