The Toronto Marlies skated onto fresh ice at Coca-Cola Coliseum in early October with a newfound confidence. Led out of the player tunnel by captain Logan Shaw with head coach John Gruden and his staff calling the shots on the bench, the 2024-25 American Hockey League (AHL) regular season got off to literally the perfect start.
Comeback wins were a theme throughout the month, occurring in five of six games. As a result of that grit, the Marlies remain the only undefeated team across the AHL (6-0). This matches their franchise record from 2019-20 for consecutive wins to start a season.
A proud Gruden championed the team’s roster depth and ability to reconfigure when their backs are against the boards, while Shaw highlighted comebacks as a testament to the team’s development. That blooming maturity led to a notable career achievement for goaltender Dennis Hildeby, who earned his NHL debut with the Toronto Maple Leafs on October 10.
“[The comebacks] are a sign of a team that cares about winning and cares about understanding the situation,” said Gruden. “At the end of the day, just to see the response is huge. It’s something we’ll continue to monitor. But the result at the end is great and we had some good showings for our team.”
Two visits from the San Diego Gulls saw Toronto’s offence dig deep in front of the net. The Marlies won their thrilling home opener 4-3, inspired by three unanswered goals from three different skaters in the second period before Nick Abruzzese won the game. The players returned to the rink a day later to record a second win over the visitors, dominating the ice 4-1.
Roni Hirvonen and new signing Alex Nylander were standouts from both games, each registering a combined two goals and one assist. Rookie Jacob Quillan scored the first of the season for the Marlies and his first professional goal, while veteran Shaw registered a total of five assists across both games.
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“I just have to play my game, help my team to get better and I was playing with two really good players, Shawsy and Abruzzese,” said Nylander on his first Marlies goal.
“Part of it is that we start with a good beginning and now we just have to keep building off that and keep trying to get better every day.”
“Great group of guys here, they get you comfortable right away and you fit in well here. It’s been easy. I’m just trying to keep getting my game going and be ready every game.”
The Marlies then took their winning streak on the road and beat the Rochester Americans 4-2 before returning to Toronto. Cédric Paré’s first-ever goal for the team ignited the comeback as rookie goaltender Artur Akhtyamov recorded his second consecutive win.
Back at Coca-Cola Coliseum, the Americans were again ousted by a Marlies revival courtesy of record-chaser Alex Steeves. After scoring the game-winner on the road in Rochester, the 24-year-old repeated that feat this time in a 3-2 home victory and moved up Toronto’s all-time points standings. Steeves is currently 10 back of the franchise record (Kris Newbury, 158).
“Ever since I met him four years ago, he’s been a hard-working guy. He’s honest, he does everything the right way, he takes care of his body,” reflected teammate Joseph Blandisi on Steeves.
“He’s not afraid to get in the dirty areas. You know he has a shot like a cannon but he’s also not afraid to score those goals in tight and the ones you need to take a beating to go get.”
“When you get a player like that, that can fire on all cylinders like that, with a mature personality that he has, he’s going to be a pro for a long time.”
October’s next two home games saw the Marlies rally twice more. Toronto finally opened the scoring on the ice this time against the Utica Comets via Paré. Another two skaters found the back of the net for Gruden’s team en route to a 4-0 victory. It was the first game of the season where the Marlies recorded a shutout as Akhtyamov stopped all 17 shots faced.
A visit from rivals the Belleville Senators rounded out the stretch of games, and once again, the Marlies bent but didn’t break. Toronto came from behind to win a dramatic shootout 4-3 to make it six wins from six games.
Shaw scored a shorthanded goal before Abruzzese tied the game 27 seconds into the third period. Akhtyamov then saved all three efforts in the shootout and the captain registered the game-deciding goal as the third skater. It was Toronto’s first home shootout win since January 2023.
“I’ve liked everything from every line. What everyone is seeing is it’s someone different every night and that’s a luxury that we have as coaches,” said Gruden.
“We’re comfortable putting any line out in any situation, putting any defencemen out. Right now, things are clicking. We can still get better in some areas, but at the end of the day, to play three-in-three like that this early in the year is good to see.”
ALL-STAR STATS
A total of 11 Marlies players were celebrated by the AHL for their standout performances on the ice. Shaw (one first star, one second star), Akhtyamov (one first star, one third star) and Paré (two second stars) led the way for the team with more than one selection so far.
Additionally, the Marlies have 10 different goal scorers six games into the season, 17 players with at least one point and 24 skaters have hit the ice. Toronto also has a 100 per cent success rate on the penalty kill.
Season leaders:
Goals: 5 (A. Nylander)
Assists: 7 (L. Shaw)
Points: 8 (L. Shaw)
PPG: 3 (A. Nylander)
Shots: 26 (A. Nylander)
+/-: +6 (T. Miller, M. Rifai)
PIMS: 8 (A. Steeves)
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MARLIES MIC’D UP
Captain Shaw on promising team dynamics: “We have a great group of guys. It’s fun to come to the rink every day and we know what to expect from each other. They’ve done a great job, the organization, by bringing in good people.”
“Obviously, they’re skilled and talented and work hard, but it helps a lot when everyone comes to the rink with a positive attitude and wants the best for each other. It’s easier to push and cheer for each other when everyone is pulling the rope in the right and same direction.”
“The turnover from two years ago, to last year, to this year, we set our own foundation here from management down to coaches to players. We just demand the same thing, we want work ethic every night. The rest will come. We have a talented team, so as long as we outwork the opposition, then we should have a good chance to win.”
Head coach Gruden on impressive goaltending: They’re so driven. They don’t like getting scored on, they don’t like getting scored on in practice, they don’t like getting scored on in a game. They’re ultra-competitive and they’re athletic. It’s good for our shooters because they have to go against them in practice. Also knowing that they’re in net, it’s going to give us a pretty good chance to [be] in hockey games and give ourselves a chance to win. It’s pretty exciting.
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