'Great Move By Him': Matthew Knies Scores Maple Leafs' Game-Winner Against Panthers Showcasing NHL Growth This Season

Knies has seven more games to score four goals, bringing him to the 30-goal mark for the first time in his NHL career.

When Matthew Knies saw Mitch Marner with the puck in the Toronto Maple Leafs' zone, he raised his stick, gesturing that he wanted the pass. Sure enough, Marner floated the puck through two Florida Panthers players to spring Knies for a breakaway.

The 22-year-old drove left, then right, before putting the puck off the post, off of Sergei Bobrovsky, and into the back of the net. Knies's 26th goal of the season put the Maple Leafs up 3-1 over the Panthers, who would get a second but not a third and fall to Toronto 3-2.

"I saw some space behind their D. I was screaming for it from Mitch, and he made an incredible pass," Knies said after Wednesday's win.

"It was honestly lucky it landed right on my stick. I was trying to kind of bat it out of the air but it perfectly landed on there, and I saw he was going for a poke check and I tried to go five-hole to be honest, but fortunately it went in."

Knies has now scored five game-winning goals this season, tying him with Bobby McMann for fourth spot on the Maple Leafs. The forward is also close to doubling his goal total from last season, which was 15.

He scored his 15th goal this year on Jan. 5 against the Philadelphia Flyers — game 40 of the season. However, Wednesday's goal showcased how much Knies' game has grown over this year.

The 6-foot-3, 227-pound forward used his strong hockey IQ to put himself in a good spot before utilizing his strength and footspeed to break away from 6-foot-6 defenseman Niko Mikkola.

"Just saw Kniesy breaking to the middle. I kind of just gave it a second or two to develop to try to really get behind that D man, and just tried to make a pass towards him that would go through the one stick and land on his," Marner said, describing his pass to Knies.

"And, luckily enough it worked out and a great move by him."

The goal was big in more ways than one. Of course, it was the game-winner, but the tally also positioned Toronto even further ahead. Ultimately, the Panthers couldn't claw their way back, and the Maple Leafs clinched a playoff spot with a win.

And Knies, who's played just 154 NHL games, was a massive part of it.

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