DETROIT – Although they ultimately fell to the Carolina Hurricanes at Lenovo Center less than 24 hours ago, the Detroit Red Wings showed a more structured third period and are focused on bringing that effort into Sunday night’s Original Six rivalry game against the Toronto Maple Leafs at Little Caesars Arena.

This story was originally published by Athlon Sports on Dec 27, 2025, where it first appeared in the NHL section. Add Athlon Sports as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

The Toronto Maple Leafs have been anything but a consistent club this season, the second season under head coach Craig Berube and the first season in nearly a decade without forward Mitch Marner, who is now with the Vegas Golden Knights.

Auston Matthews’ struggles have fueled trade speculation as the Maple Leafs sit at the bottom of the Atlantic Division.

Welcome back to another NHL Predictions. Each day, our writers here at Last Word on Hockey look at the games and give in-depth analysis. Our team breaks down the key matchups, storylines, and stats, then makes predictions based on how they might play out.

The Leafs' power play attacked the Senators' penalty kill like a fiddle, darting the puck through them with newfound ease.

Toronto made a staff decision by announcing the firing of a Maple Leafs coach on Monday amid growing struggles.

Senators forward Claude Giroux has been playing in the NHL for quite some time now as he is 37 years old and is still going strong. And when he gets set to take