Gridin scores twice as Flames beat Maple Leafs 5-2 for fourth straight win

By Vancouver Television Sports Desk

CALGARY — The Calgary Flames earned a 5-2 win over the Toronto Maple Leafs at Scotiabank Saddledome on Monday, securing their fourth consecutive victory. Matvei Gridin produced a major share of the offence with two goals and an assist, helping Calgary improve to a 5-6-0 record while moving through 4-0-0 play on their current four-game homestand.

Calgary’s scoring opened early in the first period when Gridin scored at 10:05. He snapped a shot from just below the left face-off dot into the top corner over Sergei Bobrovsky’s blocker to give the Flames a 1-0 lead.

The Flames added to the advantage less than two minutes later as Mikael Backlund scored at 11:50 in his return after missing the previous two games with an upper-body injury. Backlund took a cross-ice pass from Matt Coronato and finished from the left circle on a shot that beat Bobrovsky over his blocker. The goal marked Backlund’s 609th career point, tying Johnny Gaudreau for fifth place on the Flames’ all-time list.

Gridin then pushed Calgary further ahead by scoring again early in the second period. At 25 seconds into the frame, he made it 3-0 with another shot from the left circle, this time beating Bobrovsky over the glove side.

Toronto responded in the second period with a goal at 12:54. Easton Cowan redirected a slap pass from Troy Stecher past Devin Cooley to cut the Flames lead to 3-1.

In the third period, Toronto narrowed the gap. William Nylander scored at 6:06 when he took a cross-crease pass from Jack Roslovic and lifted a shot past a diving Cooley to make it 3-2.

Calgary responded late with empty-net goals to seal the outcome. Joel Farabee scored an empty-net goal at 18:35, and Martin Pospisil added another at 19:21 for the final 5-2 margin.

Devin Cooley made 26 saves to earn the win, starting his fourth consecutive start. For Toronto, Bobrovsky made 30 saves, including in a milestone start: the league goaltender was making his 800th NHL start.

The game included several individual developments for both teams. Auston Matthews recorded his 800th career point with an assist for Toronto, described in the NHL recap as 437 goals and 363 assists. The point total marked the fastest in franchise history for the Maple Leafs to reach 800, in 703 games.

Toronto also faced injury concerns during the contest. Kirill Marchenko left the game with a lower-body injury in the second period and did not return after being hit by Yegor Sharangovich and falling awkwardly to the ice. Marchenko played one more 14-second shift before departing.

Calgary’s players also contributed beyond Gridin’s production. Matt Coronato and Simon Nemec each added two assists, while Cooley anchored the win for Calgary.

With the victory, the Flames extended their current momentum against a Maple Leafs team that had been riding a four-game winning streak entering the matchup. The result leaves Toronto still seeking to regain control after taking multiple scoring chances throughout the evening but ultimately being outscored late as Calgary closed with two empty-net goals.