Auston Matthews’ skate blade mishap highlights Maple Leafs’ teamwork (Source: Imagn)

Auston Matthews had an unusual moment during Saturday’s game, as he lost his right skate blade. The Toronto Maple Leafs forward was stuck deep in the zone and couldn’t move. Luckily, his teammate Jake McCabe quickly stepped in to help Matthews get back to the bench.

McCabe grabbed Matthews by the hand and started pulling him across the ice like a tow truck. After reaching the blue line, McCabe began pushing Matthews toward the red line. From there, Matthews shuffled toward the bench on one skate, sliding and pushing himself forward.

Defenseman Conor Timmins extended his stick to help Matthews, and three teammates pulled him the rest of the way. Together, they pulled him off the ice, showing great teamwork in an unusual situation.

Speaking about the moment during a post-game press conference, Auston Matthews shared his thoughts.

“I was a little bit mixed up. Luckily, Caber was there to get me back to the bench,” Matthews said. “I knew the blade came out. I just didn’t know what to do after that. So, good learning experience probably.”

Auston Matthews: "I was a little bit mixed up. Luckily, Caber was there to get me back to the bench…. I knew the blade came out. I just didn't know what to do after that. So, good learning experience probably." https://t.co/fOHW610KGH

— luke fox (@lukefoxjukebox) December 15, 2024

Auston Matthews’ skate blade incident showed how the Maple Leafs’ are coming together to overcome challenges in unexpected situations.

Auston Matthews and the Leafs lost to Detroit

The Detroit Red Wings beat the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-2, with Jeff Petry scoring his first two goals this season. Berube had already highlighted the Red Wings defense at pregame media availability.

(5:45) “Yeah, I mean, they got a lot of s𝓀𝒾𝓁𝓁, right, and you know, a good mixture of older and younger talent.” Berube said, “And, you know, they got some, uh, with Moritz Seider, Simon Edvinsson, Big D… The way I look at it’s—dangerous.”

Petry opened the scoring at 9:07 in the first period with a point shot through traffic. Mitch Marner tied it later, but the goal was overturned for offside after a challenge.

Auston Matthews made it 1-1 in the second period with a power-play goal from Marner’s pass. With that, he scored 50 regular-season goals in a calendar year for the fourth time and second year in a row. No other Maple Leafs player has done so more than once. Following this, Moritz Seider scored at 19:42 to put Detroit 2-1 ahead after a turnover by Matthews.

Matthew Knies tied it 2-2 at 1:07 in the third period, tipping in Marner’s shot. Petry scored again 44 seconds later, putting Detroit 3-2 ahead with a rebound goal. Ville Husso made 24 saves, while Lucas Raymond scored into the empty net at 19:58 to secure the win.