Much more significant than the wins, though, was the recipe that started coming together in the process. A third line emerged. The second line is a real threat, led by a 15-game point streak to start the season from William Nylander. For one game against Vancouver, even the fourth line showed signs of life.
On defense, Jake McCabe returned, and while there are still issues on the blue line, his return alongside the surprisingly strong play of William Lagesson and Simon Benoit has at least somewhat settled the situation down.
This Leafs team has traditionally started slow, but after losing to Ottawa, Sheldon Keefe was right to point out, “This is different than some of the things we have gone through in the past.