Ilya Samsonov stopped all 17 shots he faced in two periods against the Canadiens.

All eyes were on Ilya Samsonov in his first pre-season game of the year for the Maple Leafs when they took on Montreal Friday.

Toronto defeated the Canadiens 2-1 and while Samsonov's game was the main talking point, there were a number of other players who stood out for Toronto. 

Here are some observations from game one of their back-to-back this weekend against Montreal.

Samsonov's calmness is on display

The 26-year-old didn't have a very busy night in terms of shot rate. However, when the Canadiens did get their chances, a few of them made Samsonov work.

What stood out to me, though, was his calmness in those situations. He always seemed to make himself big and didn't need to move much to make the saves. That could benefit him in terms of the wear and tear throughout this upcoming season.

But as I should note, it is only pre-season. The NHL regular season is an entirely different game. Another note: Samsonov's mask looks very good.

Matthew Knies' impressive all-around game 

Knies was once again showing his confidence at the NHL level. His puck protection is strong, using his body to shield the puck in tight spaces. The consistency in that area will allow him to be a full-time NHLer for an entire season.

The 20-year-old even got more time on the penalty kill and even scored on it. His ability to be strong at both ends of the rink is quite impressive for someone who's barely gotten a sniff of NHL action.

Credit to Fraser Minten on this play, too, as he creates the turnover to set up Knies for the goal. His two-way game once again looked impressive.

Other observations

- Speaking of the penalty kill, Noah Gregor spent some time there on Friday. He cut off a few passes through the slot and used his speed to his advantage.

- Nick Robertson continues to get his chances to find the back of the net but still hasn't been able to convert. I'm not too worried about that as his shot is special. I think when he scores one, the floodgates will open.

Both he and Gregor swapped spots in Toronto's lineup midway through Friday's game. Gregor finished the game with Ryan Reaves and David Kampf while Robertson ended the campaign with Tyler Bertuzzi and Pontus Holmberg.

- Timothy Liljegren wore an 'A' in another pre-season game. Maple Leafs head coach Sheldon Keefe told the media on Friday that Liljegren's teammates (from the leadership group) want to see him step up and take a bigger role, as well as have a voice in the leadership group.

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- Reaves made a few strong defensive plays for Toronto. His line, which also featured David Kampf and Nick Robertson had a number of offensive chances. When Gregor moved to the line, the trio was also very effective.

- Mikko Kokkonen has impressed me a lot this pre-season. The 22-year-old spent time with the Marlies and Newfoundland Growlers last year but looks like a different player this season. Kokkonen got on the board in the second period for the Maple Leafs.

It seems as though he's found his confidence at both ends of the rink. And that's very positive news for a prospect who I thought might be further down the depth chart when watching him last year.

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