Canadiens Top Maple Leafs 4–2 at Scotiabank Arena

Tavares and Nylander score, but Montreal special teams prove the difference

TORONTO —  The Toronto Maple Leafs closed their home portion of the preseason week with a 4–2 loss to the Montreal Canadiens on Saturday night at Scotiabank Arena. Montreal converted twice on the power play and added two even-strength goals to split their preseason set with Toronto.

Alex Newhook opened the scoring for Montreal midway through the first period, finishing a feed from Alexandre Carrier and Zachary Bolduc. In the second, Riley Kidney doubled the lead with a power-play marker before Leafs captain John Tavares cut the deficit to 2–1 on a man-advantage of his own. Lane Hutson’s late second-period goal restored the Canadiens’ two-goal cushion heading into the intermission.

Don’t** https://t.co/gYasM3SNCJ pic.twitter.com/LAsJueUkRZ

— Toronto Maple Leafs (@MapleLeafs) September 28, 2025

Sean Farrell extended the lead to 4–1 in the third with an even-strength tally at 9:21. Toronto’s William Nylander connected at 16:07 from Tavares and Morgan Rielly to close the scoring.

Anthony Stolarz made 18 saves through 40 minutes for Toronto before Artur Akhtyamov finished the game with 11 saves in relief. Kaapo Kähkönen earned the win for Montreal, turning aside 21 of 23 shots.

Tavares, who recorded a goal and an assist, was named the Leafs’ third star. Montreal’s Farrell and Newhook claimed first and second stars respectively.

What It Means

Toronto falls to 2–2 in preseason play and will look to regroup as camp shifts toward final roster cuts. The Leafs’ power play showed signs of rhythm, while defensive discipline and penalty-killing remain areas to tighten up before the regular season.

🏒 Game Summary

• Final Score: Montreal 4 – Toronto 2

• Venue: Scotiabank Arena, Toronto

• Shots on Goal: Montreal 29 | Toronto 23

• Power Plays: Montreal 2-for-3 | Toronto 1-for-3

• Three Stars: 1. Sean Farrell (MTL) 2. Alex Newhook (MTL) 3. John Tavares (TOR)

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