Nation Sites
The Nation Network
The LeafsNation has no direct affiliation to the Toronto Maple Leafs, Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment, NHL, or NHLPA
Second round recap and looking ahead to the third round: Who scored the goal of the season for Toronto?

Photo credit: John E. Sokolowski-USA TODAY Sports
By Joseph Zita
Jun 2, 2023, 12:50 EDTUpdated: Jun 2, 2023, 12:48 EDT
It’s been three weeks since I created the goal of the season bracket and it’s been almost two weeks since I tweeted out the first poll of the first matchup from round one for our followers to vote on.
We are now down to the final four, and we will continue the same process in the third round and, of course, the fourth round (finals) once we determine the two winners of the two newest matchups.
From the original 16 goals we started with, we are now down to only three players – John Tavares, Mitch Marner x2, and William Nylander.
Before we start voting on the third round, let’s look at all four previous matchups from round two and see who advanced, who got eliminated and what the third round will now look like.
Matchup one:
Winner: John Tavares vs PHI, November 2, 2022 (69% of the votes)
Loser: William Nylander vs STL, December 27, 2022 (31% of the votes)
Matchup two:
Winner: Mitch Marner vs EDM, March 11, 2023 (85% of the votes)
Loser: John Tavares vs FLA, April 10, 2023 (15% of the votes)
Matchup three:
Winner: Mitch Marner vs NYR, January 25, 2023 (94% of the votes)
Loser: Mitch Marner vs PIT, November 26, 2022 (6% of the votes)
Matchup four:
Winner: William Nylander vs MIN, February 24, 2023 (66% of the votes)
Loser: William Nylander vs FLA, January 17, 2023 (34% of the votes)
Biggest blowout: Matchup three, Marner (vs NYR) January 25, 2023 (94% of the votes) vs Marner (vs FLA) January 17, 2023 (6% of the votes)
Closest matchup: Matchup four, Nylander (vs MIN) February 24, 2023 (66% of the votes) vs Nylander (vs FLA) January 17, 2023 (34% of the votes)
Here is a picture of the updated bracket heading into the third round after all four second-round matchups.

You will have a chance to vote on the third round of matchups tomorrow over on our Twitter account (@TLNdc) with matchup one between John Tavares (vs PHI) on Nov. 2, 2022, vs Mitch Marner (vs EDM) on Mar. 11, 2023.
Recent articles from Joseph Zita
- Maple Leafs’ 3 Stars of the Week: Marner inches closer to 100 points, Woll impresses in both starts
- Maple Leafs’ 3 Stars of the Week: Matthews notches ninth straight 30-goal season, Stolarz extends winning streak
- Checking in on 5 former Maple Leafs: Samsonov bounces back, Brodie stays a consistent healthy scratch
Breaking News
- Why the Maple Leafs should pursue Rūdolfs Bērzkalns with 3rd-round pick
- Joe Pavelski reflects on Leafs hiring process after interviewing for head coach
- Risky Raddysh, goalie moves, and finding speed: Leaflets
- Marlies’ Artur Akhtyamov named MVP of Calder Cup Playoffs
- Toronto Marlies defeat Chicago Wolves to win Calder Cup for 1st time since 2018
