Knee Jerk Reaction: Matthews, Domi, new-look 1st line storm the Capitals

1. The second night of a back-to-back on the road often constitutes what we know as a ‘schedule loss’ — and few would’ve been too upset if the Toronto Maple Leafs collectively showed up in second gear. No matter. Toronto instead responded with one of its best performances of the 2024 calendar year, throttling the Washington Capitals 7-3 on Wednesday night.

TJ Brodie was rendered a healthy scratch before the game and Conor Timmins entered the lineup. Brodie’s nominal partner, Morgan Rielly, was paired with Jake McCabe and looked relatively unencumbered against a Capitals team that failed to register much of a threat, save for their generational captain, of course.

Auston Matthews set the tone early. Playing on a new-look first line alongside Bobby McMann and Max Domi for the majority of the first period, Matthews scored 16 seconds into the contest as McMann hounded the Capitals’ defense — making a strong case for extended top-six minutes, got the puck over to Max Domi, who in turn found Matthews. Matthews and Domi submitted tour-de-force performances, the latter recording a career-high four assists, while McMann registered a goal and an assist. Tyler Bertuzzi rejoined Matthews and Domi midway through the first period after being inexplicably benched, and notched an insurance goal late in the third period.

As for Matthews, well, he simply makes the spectacular seem routine and this is a reminder not take No. 34’s brilliance for granted.