Matthews has 5-point night as Maple Leafs knock off Capitals

Auston Matthews finished with two goals and five points as the Toronto Maple Leafs beat the Washington Capitals 7-3 on Wednesday night.

Matthews was dominant, finishing with two goals and three assists, while Domi had four assists for the Maple Leafs. It’s Domi’s first four-point game as a member of the blue and white.

Matthews now has a league-leading 57 goals this season.

William Nylander, Jake McCabe, Bobby McMann and Tyler Bertuzzi also scored for Toronto. Captain John Tavares and Nylander each finished with a goal and two assists.

Capitals star and hockey legend Alex Ovechkin scored two goals, his 22nd and 23rd of the year. He’s now 49 goals shy of Wayne Gretzky for the most in NHL history (894).

Goalie Joseph Woll stopped 18 of 21 shots to pick up the win, his first since Feb. 29. Charlie Lindgren was saddled with the loss, giving up all seven goals.

Maple Leafs head coach Sheldon Keefe tweaked his lines pre-game, opting to sit defenceman T.J. Brodie for the first time this season in favour of Conor Timmins. Forward Noah Gregor returned to action, with Ryan Reaves missing the game due to an eye injury. The changes also saw Domi and Bertuzzi promoted to play alongside Matthews on the first line.

Mitch Marner missed his fifth-straight game with a lower-body injury. Defenceman Ilya Lyubushkin also remained out with an illness.

It’s a much-needed win for the Maple Leafs following an unlucky and uninspired effort in a 4-3 loss to the Philadelphia Flyers on Tuesday night.

Toronto will have a few days off before hosting Connor McDavid and the Edmonton Oilers at Scotiabank Arena on Saturday night.