Opportunity earned, lesson learned.
With his team clinging to a one-goal lead late in Sunday's Centennial Classic, Toronto Maple Leafs head coach Mike Babcock gave Auston Matthews, Zach Hyman, and Connor Brown the chance to help close things out.
Detroit's Anthony Mantha scored at 19:58 in the third period to send the game to overtime after Matthews lost the faceoff and Hyman later failed to clear the puck, but Babcock stood by the decision to deploy the young trio in that situation.
Here's what he had to say after the game:
If you're (Nazem Kadri) and you're (Leo Komarov) and you're sitting on the bench and the coach is playing those other guys instead of you, at that time you're saying what's he doing, because I'm giving them the opportunity. (Matthews' line) got two goals in the third. I'm giving them a chance to shut out the game. But they're right, too, why don't I just put the veteran guys out, because they've got to learn. We had an opportunity here in a big game and we gave them that opportunity.
In the end, Matthews made up for it with an overtime goal on which Brown drew the secondary assist.
The Leafs' group of budding star forwards will continue to be leaned upon at both ends of the ice, and the Centennial Classic experience will no doubt be looked upon as both a star performance and teaching moment.
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