The Max Domi that Toronto needs and incoming Fraser Minten decision: Monday Morning Leafs Report

Max Domi broke some droughts Sunday night.

He registered his first goal of the season (in his 23rd game) and his first points of any kind in nearly two months, ending a 16-game drought.

The guy who ranked fifth in the NHL in five-on-five assists last season with more than Mitch Marner , Mikko Rantanen and Artemi Panarin , among many other stars got his first such assist since that Oct.

21 game against Tampa Bay with a helper on a goal from another struggling Leaf, Nick Robertson.

Advertisement Domi could have had even more.

He played hard.

He played smart.

His line, with Robertson and Bobby McMann , hummed with speed, energy and determination.

It was easily Domis best game all year.

It feels good, trust me, Leafs coach Craig Berube said of how Domi was feeling after the 5-3 win over Buffalo .

Hes not happy that he hasnt produced or scored.

And we need him to.

But we need him to play that style of game that he played tonight.

Thats the difference for me.

And by style of game, Berube meant Domi was way more engaged.

It was the Domi the Leafs need.

This team has been starving for offence from the bottom half of its lineup.

It needs Domi to be the driver of it (if hes not playing in the top six, like he finished last season).

The Leafs are paying him to do just that.

Domi is quietly the Leafs fifth highest-paid forward trailing only the big four of Auston Matthews, William Nylander , John Tavares and Marner with an average annual value of $3.75 million on the four-year deal he signed just before the start of free agency this summer.

Its primarily with offence that he can provide value on that contract.

(The other part is his energy and enthusiasm, the engagement Berube is talking about.) Up until Sunday night, save for an early six-game flourish, it hadnt been there.

And the more the dry spell went on, the more uninvolved Domi was on all fronts, energy and enthusiasm especially.

With six points in his first 22 games, Domi had the same production on a per-game basis (0.27) as Chris Tanev .

The Leafs were generating fewer shots, scoring chances and goals with him on the ice from last season, partly a product of Berubes system but also a product of Domis sluggish play.

As it stands now, hes on pace for only three goals and 26 points, a far cry from the nine and 47 he delivered last season.

Advertisement Theres more there.

The Leafs need it.

Points 1.

The most successful third line for the Leafs last season was probably Domi between Robertson and Calle Jarnkrok .

There were shades of that (the speed especially) in the newly combined trio of McMann, Domi and Robertson.

It would be a big deal for the Leafs if that group became a real thing.

That line was excellent tonight for us and we needed them to be, Berube said.

2.

Domi was the biggest driver of Robertsons offence last season six of his 13 five-on-five goals were set up by Domi.

3.

Nylander, Matthews and Marner got a long look together against the Sabres.

The trio is up to about 22 minutes this season at five-on-five, uniting mostly when Berube is looking for a spark.

The Leafs havent scored yet in those minutes, but they have dominated: Shot attempts: 49-19 Scoring chances: 24-7 Expected goals: 66 percent The results for those three together were ...

well, bad last season: In about 47 minutes dotted throughout the year, the Leafs were outscored 6-5 and won only 39 percent of expected goals.

It would be intriguing to see what a longer run for the three stars would look like.

Its never been explored for more than a game or two here and there over the years.

4.

The Leafs finished with 41 shots on 78 attempts against Buffalo, which will make Berube happy.

Hes been pining for more shots and attempts at the net.

Shot attempts are huge in this league, he said recently.

You gotta get pucks to the net.

You gotta get people to the net.

Those 78 attempts are the fourth most in a Leafs game all season.

Toronto ranks 18th in shot attempt rate.

5.

Another related priority for Berube: We talk about two at the net all the time.

The Leafs coach said it was crucial for outnumbering opponents.

Theyre gonna have two at the net most of the time defensively, so we gotta have numbers there, Berube said.

Its important to have numbers inside for rebounds and things like that.

So many goals are scored on tips and rebounds and broken plays around the net.

If you dont have numbers there, youre not gonna get the puck, theyre gonna get the puck.

6.

Philippe Myers shot looks heavy and is.

Myers entered Sundays game with a top of 96.7 miles per hour, which ranks in the NHLs 90th percentile.

7.

Shooting a fair bit less this season: Domi.

Hes landed under four shots on goal per 60 minutes at five-on-five, which would be easily the lowest mark of his career and one of the lower outputs for any regularly used NHL forward this season.

Last season, that number was up over seven.

Advertisement 8.

Max Pacioretty has scored four goals this season, matching his total in the 47 games he played last season for Washington .

9.

Robertson registered his first assist of the season on Domis goal against the Sabres.

10.

What may have spurred the Leafs tweaking their defensive pairs on Sunday night? Poor results from the No.

2 pairing of Morgan Rielly and Oliver Ekman-Larsson , perhaps? The duo hasnt exactly worked great so far this season (and thats with Tanev and Jake McCabe absorbing the toughest minutes and defensive responsibility): Possession: 45 percent Goals-for percentage: 47 percent Expected goals-for percentage: 49 percent In focus: What comes next for Fraser Minten With David Kampf seemingly around the corner from a return, making for a fully healthy forward group (minus Jarnkrok), the Leafs may have to make a decision soon on whether Fraser Minten ought to stick around with the NHL club or head back down to the Marlies for more seasoning.

The arrow seems to be pointing toward the latter.

Minten was a healthy scratch for the first time all season Sunday night.

His line struggled mightily the day prior in Detroit.

For a 20-year-old with hardly any experience, Minten has done about as well as the team could have hoped.

Still, the underlying numbers suggest hes not ready for a full-time role in the NHL just yet: The Leafs are winning only 38 percent of shot attempts, 33 percent of scoring chances and 41 percent of expected goals in his minutes.

Berube hasnt exactly sheltered Minten, whos lined up for more faceoffs in the defensive zone than offensive zone.

And until recently, when he was joined by McMann and Domi, Minten had a so-so cast of linemates.

Hes also chipped in more offensively than most others in the bottom six, played physically and done OK for a young guy in the faceoff circle (45 percent).

A long run with the Marlies is still probably the best thing for him at this point: a chance for him to play huge minutes power play, penalty kill, etc.

and perhaps develop enough to become an option for the Leafs in the spring.

Minten missed training camp with a high ankle sprain and suited up in only five games with the Marlies before he rejoined the Leafs.

Those five games are the sum of his AHL experience.

Advertisement Stock Watch It was beginning to look like Robertsons place with the Leafs might be in jeopardy.

Hed been scratched in four straight games before rejoining the lineup Sunday night.

His production in the first 23 games this season: two goals, zero assists.

Then his performance against the Sabres saw him make a crafty pass to set up Domis first goal and also score himself on a bit of tic-tac-toe from his linemates.

He also drew his 10th penalty.

(Hes no longer the team leader in that department.

That honour belongs to ...

Pontus Holmberg , with 12.) He was a healthy scratch for only the third time on Sunday.

Myers played well enough when the Leafs were without McCabe that any slippage from Timmins threatens his spot in the lineup.

Things I Think I Think Anthony Stolarz s injury is a reminder of the fragility of the Leafs crease (until proved otherwise).

Stolarz was injured in the first period of his 17th start of the season, in the midst of the busiest stretch of his NHL (and professional) career.

His career high for starts in an NHL season is 24.

Joseph Woll , meanwhile, missed the first seven games of the season to injury.

Both have played exceptionally well so far.

But the reality is that both Stolarz at age 30, Woll at 26 still have yet to prove they can both perform and, crucially, stay healthy over the course of a full NHL season.

Which makes for a fragile, if still promising, crease.

Stats and research courtesy of Natural Stat Trick, Hockey Reference and Evolving Hockey (Top photo of Max Domi celebrating his goal: Nick Turchiaro / Imagn Images).

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