TORONTO -- On a night that was supposed to be about the NHL's two 19-year-old franchise saviors, the duel behind the benches stole the show.
The first-ever NHL encounter between Connor McDavid and Auston Matthews saw both young superstars held without a point, while head coaches Todd McLellan of the Edmonton Oilers and Mike Babcock of the Toronto Maple Leafs matched wits in spectacular fashion.
Babcock, with the last line change, matched up Nazem Kadri on McDavid and all the Leafs center did was shut down McDavid while also scoring twice, including the OT winner as he fought off the Oilers captain to score in a 3-2 win at Air Canada Centre.
McLellan certainly did his best to spring McDavid loose by double-shifting him a number of times -- I mean, you rarely see that in the NHL nowadays -- including a whopping 14 shifts and 8:07 minutes in the opening period alone. Why not, when your franchise player is playing his first-ever NHL game in his hometown before friends and family? Feed him some candy early on.
But Babcock, who had McLellan on his staff with the Detroit Red Wings when both won a Stanley Cup together in 2008, felt that decision from his old protege helped out the Leafs.
"[That's] a lot of minutes -- I don't care who you are," Babcock said to raised eyebrows postgame. "That helped us because Naz had only played five minutes, because he didn't penalty kill, so he was allowed to be fresher. So I thought Naz had a good game for us tonight."
To which I followed up and asked the Leafs head coach: Are you suggesting McDavid tired out?
"Well, you jam a guy out there every shift, and like three in a row, stuff like that, hard to have the same pop, man," responded Babcock.
McDavid, who ended up playing 22:46, said he had no problem at all with all the double-shifts and insists he didn't tire out.
"No, no. If you keep your shifts short and all that, I feel like I'm in pretty good shape," said McDavid. "I feel like I can do that. It is what it is."
The Matthews-McDavid rematch is Nov. 29 in Edmonton, and here's a prediction: Don't bet McDavid and Matthews will be held without a point in that one.
They certainly had their chances Tuesday night, McDavid's blazing speed threatening a few times on those dangerous rushes from the outside. I'm not sure how any defensemen in the league can skate backward fast enough to close that gap when No. 97 is blaring at you from that angle.
Matthews, playing on a line with rookie of the month William Nylander and Zach Hyman, had a number of Grade A chances while putting up six shots.
"I think as a line this was one of our best games of the year," said Matthews, held without a point for a fourth straight game. "We were definitely in possession of the puck a lot, creating a lot of opportunities. They just didn't go in tonight, but I think it's really positive here heading into our next game."
While Matthews and McDavid didn't produce on the scoresheet, they both left quite an impression on former NHL center Ray Ferraro, who worked ice level between the benches on the TSN telecast in Canada.
"One thing that I saw watching them is that they're way more competitive, like feisty, than people might think," said Ferraro. "It's almost like when we first saw [Sidney Crosby], we all got wowed about his skill; and then you're like, they're a little nasty, too. Both of them have got a little bit of an edge that I don't think I knew until I saw them closely. They're super-fiery competitive, even though they're not breaking sticks all over the nice. I could see that clear."
The star on this night, however? That would be Kadri. And you better believe that hearing all of this pregame hype about the kid superstars motivated Kadri, the 26-year-old very much wanting to prove on this kind of stage and with this kind of assignment that he's still a relevant player, too.
"Of course, I mean, I'm not here just to kind of be a role player," said Kadri. "I want to help this team win and I want to do everything I can to help these guys win, and in doing that help the young kids and pave the road and set a good example by doing things right and showing what it takes to be a professional."
He frustrated McDavid, finishing a hard check on him to open the third period. Kadri was in his kitchen all night long.
"He's a good player, he played me hard," McDavid said of Kadri. "Good for him."
"A lot of credit goes to Naz and his line, who did a great job limiting their chances and making it hard on them," Matthews said of McDavid's line being shut down.
A little fear can fuel a great performance.
"You don't want him to walk all over you and he's certainly a player who's able to do that," Kadri said of McDavid. "He can embarrass you when he has time and space, so I just tried to limit that from him and just stay on top of him as much as I could tonight."