TORONTO (AP) — Michael Bunting scored twice as the Maple Leafs defeated the Montreal Canadiens 5-1 on Saturday night in the Toronto debuts for Ryan O’Reilly and Noel Acciari.
The forwards were acquired from the St. Louis Blues in a blockbuster three-team trade late Friday — and were in the action just over 20 hours later.
Pierre Engvall, William Nylander and David Kampf scored for Toronto. Joseph Woll made 29 saves. Auston Matthews and Rasmus Sandin each picked up two assists.
Josh Anderson scored 42 seconds into the second period for Montreal, which got 37 stops from Jake Allen.
Down 1-0 in the second period, Bunting took a pass from Matthews on a power play and scored his 17th before Engvall made it 2-1 when he fired a shot Allen could only get a piece of for his 12th.
Bunting added his second of the night with 1:40 left in the period off a Calle Jarnkrok feed that saw O’Reilly pick up an assist.
Nylander stretched the lead to 4-1 four minutes into the third with his team-leading 31st goal following some great work down low from Matthews.
Kampf rounded out the scoring late with his fifth of the season, and first in 28 games.
Dealt to the Leafs along with Acciari for four draft picks — including Toronto’s 2023 first-round selection — in a swap that included Minnesota for salary cap purposes, O’Reilly, who won the Stanley Cup and Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP with St. Louis in 2019, started on a line between John Tavares and Mitchell Marner.
CAPTAIN’S LOG
O’Reilly joins defenseman Mark Giordano as a former NHL captain in Toronto’s locker room alongside Tavares.
“I don’t think you can ever have enough,” Tavares said Saturday morning of leadership. “Being the captain doesn’t mean you have all the answers. You need different people to lead in different ways.”
NO SUBTRACTIONS
Giordano was glad the Leafs didn’t lose anyone off their roster in the trade.
“The first thing that goes through your mind is, ‘Who did we lose?’” he said. “Everyone in here has been a big part of our success.”
HOMETOWN FEEL
O’Reilly joining the Leafs means almost half of Toronto’s roster is comprised of players from southern Ontario.
“It does give you some perspective on the passion for this team,” said Tavares, who grew up in nearby Oakville. “We’ve got a great opportunity.”
UP NEXT
Canadiens: At New Jersey Devils on Tuesday in the third game of a four-game trip.
Maple Leafs: At Chicago Blackhawks on Sunday.
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