Maple Leafs' Unheralded 7th D-Man Leads NHL In Preseason Scoring

Who's the NHL's scoring leader after a few days of preseason action? Connor McDavid? Connor Bedard even? Nope. But it is a 'Conor'—with one 'n': Toronto Maple Leafs' defenseman-on-the-bubble Conor Timmins.

After an incredible four-point night Wednesday, Timmins now how six points in two exhibition games.

"Unbelievable... It's fun to see one of the guys feeling it like that."

Yes, Conor is leading the NHL preseason scoring race.

That would be Timmins, of course. Six points in two nights for the Maple Leafs defenceman on the bubble: https://t.co/NE4G6Zjvb8 pic.twitter.com/sxuugXpw0j
— luke fox (@lukefoxjukebox) September 28, 2023

"Unbelievable," said teammate Sam Lafferty, per Luke Fox of Sportsnet. "A lot of fun to watch. You could see he was feeling it out there. The goal was really nice, but that assist he had was pretty spectacular. It's fun to see one of the guys feeling it like that."

Timmins notched two goals and two assists in the Leafs' 5-2 win over the Buffalo Sabres, including this beauty of a rush and a dish:

Kyle Clifford, but this is ALL Conor Timmins 🚨 pic.twitter.com/o8fEk3RKMM
— Omar (@TicTacTOmar) September 28, 2023

But maybe it shouldn't come as a total shock. The 25-year-old former second-round pick actually picked up 14 points in 25 games for the Leafs last season in third-pairing minutes, after coming over from the Arizona Coyotes. As a pending restricted free agent at the time, he signed a two-year, $2.2M extension with the Leafs after the trade.

Unless there's an unexpected development at camp, or a significant injury, Timmins likely still sits on the outside looking in at the top-six Toronto defence chart.

But a few more performances like these last two, and it'll be hard to keep him off the team.

Photo: Dan Hamilton-USA TODAY Sports