Auston Matthews makes honest admission about Maple Leafs’ penalty kill without Mitch Marner (Source: Imagn)

The Toronto Maple Leafs have had a mixed start to their 2025-26 season. With a 3-3-1 record, they sit fourth in the Atlantic Division. The team has played well in stretches, beating the Rangers, Predators, and Canadiens, but losses to the Devils, Kraken, and Red Wings show their inconsistency.

Currently, the Maple Leafs are scoring an average of 3.43 goals per game. However, their net is porous, allowing 3.57, which points to their defensive issues. Their power play is running at 12.5%, while the penalty kill stands at 78.9%.

Auston Matthews recently spoke about one of the biggest changes for the Leafs this season, playing without Mitch Marner. Speaking with Jonas Siegel of The Athletic, Matthews admitted that killing penalties feels different now.

“(Penalty killing) with him was relatively – I don’t know if ‘easy’ is the right word,” Matthews said.

He explained that because Marner had done it for so long, it was simple for Matthews to follow Marner’s lead.

Marner’s move to the Vegas Golden Knights in July ended his journey in Toronto with Matthews. He and Marner had been important players leading the Maple Leafss’ offense for years, often playing on their penalty kill. Back in August, Matthews talked about how much he valued Marner as both a teammate and a friend.

“We’ll obviously miss him,” he said, via Sportsnet. “He’s a great friend, great teammate. That’s kind of the business side of it, that’s tough. But obviously wish him nothing but the best… we’ll just keep it moving.”

As captain, Matthews has had to guide the team through this change. Last season was his first with the “C” on his jersey. He missed 15 games because of injuries and finished with 33 goals and 78 points in 67 games. It was a drop from his 69 goal season before that. He still led the team in goals and had 11 points in 13 playoff games, but his scoring slowed down in the second round against Florida.

This season, Matthews has started solidly with four goals and two assists in seven games. He has a +3 rating and averages around 22 minutes of ice time per game.

Mitch Marner was also one of the best for Maple Leafs at forcing turnovers and reading plays

On TSN’s Overdrive, former Maple Leafs winger Jeff O’Neill shared his thoughts on how much the team misses Mitch Marner.

“It feels like three Mitch Marners have left,” O’Neill said, noting how hard it has been for Toronto to replace him.

Marner’s role on defense and the penalty kill made a big difference last season. This year, the Maple Leafs have struggled to stay organized without him and have allowed more goals. O’Neill added,

“There is simply not enough people playing well enough,” showing his concern about the team’s effort.

Although Auston Matthews and William Nylander continue to produce on offense, Marner’s all around game is something Toronto hasn’t been able to replace yet.