"Maple Leafs Defeat Blackhawks with Auston Matthews' Goal: NHL Recap"

Auston Matthews found the back of the net for the first time since returning from an injury, leading the Toronto Maple Leafs to a 4-1 victory over the Chicago Blackhawks on Monday night.

John Tavares, Fraser Minten, and Matthew Knies also contributed goals for the Maple Leafs, who are now on a two-game winning streak. Anthony Stolarz made 27 saves in the win.

Matthews broke the scoreless tie with his sixth goal of the season at 15:35 of the first period. This was his first goal since missing nine games due to an upper-body injury. He also recorded two assists in his return on Saturday in a 5-3 win against the Tampa Bay Lightning.

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Lukas Reichel scored the lone goal for the Blackhawks, who have now lost three consecutive games. Chicago's goaltender Arvid Soderblom stopped 18 shots.

Devils 5, Rangers 1

Jack Hughes scored two goals in the second period to help lead the New Jersey Devils to an easy win over the New York Rangers. Jesper Bratt also had a strong performance, scoring a goal and tallying three assists. The Devils have now scored at least five goals in 11 of their first 28 games. Hughes recorded his 22nd career multi-goal game, with four of those coming against the Rangers.

Jacob Markstrom made a season-high 38 saves and was supported by a strong defensive effort, with 27 blocked shots. The Devils have now won 12 of their last 17 games. Chris Kreider scored the lone goal for the Rangers on a power play, but it wasn't enough to overcome their sixth loss in seven games.

Stars 2, Utah Hockey Club 1

Casey DeSmith made 34 saves to help the Dallas Stars secure a win against the Utah Hockey Club in Salt Lake City. Evgenii Dadonov and Jamie Benn each scored a goal in the second period for the Stars, who have now won three consecutive games.

Nick Schmaltz scored his third goal in the past two games for Utah, but it wasn't enough to overcome the strong performance from Dallas. Karel Vejmelka made 19 saves for Utah, who are still looking to win back-to-back games for the first time since starting the season 3-0-0.