Easton Cowan, Anthony Stolarz push Maple Leafs past Islanders 2-1

The Toronto Maple Leafs defeated the New York Islanders 2-1 in a game held in Toronto on Wednesday night. Easton Cowan scored a goal and provided an assist for the Maple Leafs. Colton Sissons also found the back of the net for Toronto, while Emil Heineman scored for New York.

Anthony Stolarz made 26 saves for the Maple Leafs, while Ilya Sorokin stopped 24 shots for the Islanders. In their season opener on Tuesday, the Maple Leafs were defeated 3-2 by the Montreal Canadiens. The Islanders participated in their first match of the 2026-27 season.

New York Islanders had more energy and dominated early, but Sissons redirected his first goal for Toronto at the 7:14 of the first period off a Nick Paul setup. Cowan scored the rebound on a power-play shot at 11:55. Stolarz remained flawless after the break, including a crucial save with his right glove on Anthony Duclair in the final period.

With the Islanders shorthanded, Heineman scored just 5:51 left in regulation to end the shutout attempt. For the Maple Leafs, Stolarz was limited to 26 games last season due to injury. The 32-year-old went 10-10-3 with a .893 save percentage and a 3.28 goals-against average. On the Islanders' side, defensive end Matthew Schaefer scored 23 goals in his rookie campaign and needs two more to surpass Bobby Orr's record for the second most by a teenage blueliner in NHL history.

Cowan contributed 18 points (eight goals, ten assists) in 22 playoff games for Toronto's AHL affiliate, the Toronto Marlies, during their push to capture the Calder Cup championship title in 2024.