It appears that scary hours took place last week as the Toronto Maple Leafs cruised to a 4-1 victory over the Seattle Kraken on Halloween. William Nylander scored twice, Matthew Knies opened the scoring, while Auston Matthews closed the game on a clever bank shot off the wall for an empty-netter insurance goal.

Knies said post-game that Matthews told him that he aced geometry, and the first line certainly displayed a ton of chemistry, while Nylander’s line, featuring John Tavares and Max Pacioretty were outstanding for the second consecutive contest.

Here are seven observations from the Maple Leafs‘ 4-1 victory:

2. William Nylander made an excellent case for further playing time, with a two-goal performance Thursday. Nylander was buzzing offensively, he generated a game-high six shots, he was a threat off the rush and as a playmaker, and his linemates constantly benefited from his offensive wizardry. His pathway to greater playing time initially appeared to be his move to centre, but that experiment has been shelved and he’s functioning as one of the NHL’s premier wingers. Thursday’s game was an excellent capsule of Nylander at his best, and it wasn’t a flawless performance either, but the Maple Leafs worked hard in their attempt to force-feed him a hat-trick, and you can overlook a turnover or two when he was elite in all other aspects of the game.

“I think he’s playing great,” Tavares said of Nylander post-game. “He’s producing really well. He’s always pushing to be better and obviously, he wants to be a key contributor in all areas. He’s grown a lot and become a big leader for us in a lot of different ways.”

3. John Tavares has recorded 11 points in 10 games, he’s played well since overcoming an illness which caused him to lose 8-10 pounds, and he’s absolutely cooking opponents alongside Nylander and Max Pacioretty — who delivered seven hits in another standout performance. Tavares delivered a pass from his knees to set up Nylander’s first goal of the contest, and he worked tirelessly, both off the cycle, off the rush and with cutting seam passes, to get the best out of his linemates.

“It’s a little bit of a guess,” Tavares said post-game of his assist to Nylander. “As the play is developing and you get into that spot, you kind of have an idea where guys might be. You just try to put the puck in a good spot and if it doesn’t work out, at least it gives you a good spot to work through the back. The way the play developed, I thought him or (Pacioretty) would have drifted to that side and happy it worked out.”

Tavares’ hockey intelligence and ability to score in high-danger areas have been his key qualities, and they will age well as he enters his mid-30s. Reports of Tavares’ decline have been premature to say the least, and he’s arguably been the architect of the Maple Leafs’ success throughout the past two victories.

“I think there’s a real familiarity at least with me and Willy obviously playing a lot together over the years and then Max being a high-end player, he’s had a great career. We’ve talked about how he’s feeling the best he has in a long time. He’s proven he can play at an elite, elite level. Understands his game really well and thinks the game at a high level, and we’ve been able to play off each other really well and have a good feel for what we do. When you get the instincts, reading off one another, it goes a long way into how he plays and playing quick.”

4. Conor Timmins has seemingly locked down the No. 6 defensive spot for the Maple Leafs, with Timothy Liljegren traded to the Sharks. How long he holds this designation is another matter entirely. He suited up for his 100th NHL career game and it was an uneasy start, with a giveaway to Seattle’s Jaden Schwartz on his opening shift. After a Jared McCann shot on goal, he fumbled an exchange with Simon Benoit, but both errors were unpunished and relatively unnoticed. As Jani Hakanpaa inches closer to return, while the Maple Leafs continue to clear cap space, Timmins will be under the magnifying glass, and producing a 27 percent share of the expected goals at 5-on-5 via Natural Stat Trick was indicative of his sub-par night, on an otherwise strong evening for his team.

5. Toronto’s much-discussed power play will have to be a mandatory focus here until the team snaps out of the slump. No one wants to hear it, but the Maple Leafs had the correct process, with some untimely outcomes. Max Domi rang a shot off the inside of the post in the third period — and was genuinely unlucky to be kept off the scoresheet throughout the contest, Nylander was operating in full force, commanding his unit, and the entries weren’t static, as Matthews attacked with speed on his unit. It was just a matter of some poor shooting luck, on two power play chances. Splitting the Core Four into two separate units appears to be the correct call by Berube. Now it’s just a matter of depositing a goal, as the Maple Leafs have slumped to a cumulative 8.82 percent success rate to begin the year.

6. This isn’t a grand observation, but Jake McCabe has looked downright terrific since signing his five-year extension on Monday. McCabe, Chris Tanev and Morgan Rielly all authored stellar results, McCabe and Tanev constantly won puck battles, erased chances, and facilitated clean, easy zone exits. McCabe and Tanev finished with the best expected-goals shares at 5-on-5 on the Maple Leafs, but you didn’t need the charts to quantify their impact on Thursday night. Berube now has the luxury of using two excellent units, while Benoit rotates the seemingly rotating cast of right-handed partners at the No. 6 spot, and the trio of McCabe, Tanev and Rielly were excellent against a Kraken team that didn’t pose much of a threat, without Brandon Montour or Vince Dunn.

7. Joseph Woll wasn’t tested by a Kraken team that struggled to create high-danger chances, but he shut the door when required and it was a strong response after a shaky first start. Woll and Anthony Stolarz are expected to work in tandem this season, but the latter pulled away during the opening month of the season. Stolarz was thrust into action as the team’s starter, as Woll was placed on injured reserve during opening day. Woll said post-game that a start against his hometown St. Louis Blues would mean a lot to him, and perhaps Berube honours his request as the Maple Leafs are slated to play three games in the next four days.

“A little more comfortable in my second game,” Woll said post-game. “Getting back into the flow of playing. I look forward to continue playing and keep finding that rhythm.”