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The puck off Jack Sanderson’s stick appeared to get him somewhere on his right arm.

William Nylander had given pc28¹ÙÍøa 2-0 lead in the second period before Ottawa pushed back to eventually even the score in the third. Max Pacioretty then buried the winner for the Leafs a few minutes later. 

Laughton, however, was singled out by captain Auston Matthews in the locker room celebration after that shot block led to Nylander’s second goal into an empty net to seal a 4-2 final.

“Very grateful for you guys,” Laughton said on a team-produced video that included deleted expletives. “Let’s keep this thing going.”

Acquired from the Philadelphia Flyers at the NHL’s March trade deadline, Laughton took awhile to get going in Toronto. But the gritty centre from nearby Oakville, Ont., is showing why general manager Brad Treliving brought him in as the club turns its attention to the Florida Panthers.

“I feel super fortunate,” Laughton said ahead of Game 1 against the defending Stanley Cup champions at Scotiabank Arena. “Coming home, and to come to a team like this, to have a chance at this point my career … being in this market brings out the best in you. 

“You embrace it.”

His homecoming, however, didn’t get off to the best start.

The 30-year-old Laughton, who isn’t necessarily counted on for scoring, had one goal and one assist through 18 games for the team he supported growing up.

Life off the ice was hectic. There were a lot of people from his past coming out of the woodwork — he also looked far from a finished product some nights trying to grasp a new system — before the 20th overall pick in 2012 finally steadied himself down the stretch on Toronto’s fourth line between Steven Lorentz and Calle Jarnkrok.

“A guy that knows his role,” Matthews said. “Not trying to be somebody he’s not.”

The six-foot-one, 191-pound Laughton, also a key member of a penalty kill that held Ottawa to three power-play goals, said “getting out of my own head” was key in solidifying the transition.

“I was overthinking everything,” he said after almost 13 years with the Flyers. ”(Lorentz and Jarnkrok) have helped me in just going out and playing simple and getting to our role right away.”

Leafs centre John Tavares said Laughton, signed through next season with a salary cap hit of US$3 million, is too good to struggle for long stretches.

“The comfort level sets in and your role and identity within the team comes to fruition,” said the fellow Oakville product. “He’s already become a big part of the room.”

Laughton spent his first month in pc28¹ÙÍøat a hotel before wife Chloe and the couple’s first child, a son named Reed born back in the fall, joined in him. A settled home life is something he also credits with getting comfortable.

“It takes time sometimes with guys when you make trades,” Leafs head coach Craig Berube said. “It doesn’t happen overnight … he’s definitely a big part of our success.”

Laughton played lacrosse growing up, including for a number of teams coached by the brother of Leafs president Brendan Shanahan. Laughton’s mom recently dug up a picture of the pair when Shanahan, then an NHL forward, came to a practice or game.

“Small world,” said Laughton, who guessed the shot was roughly 25 years old.

Now suiting up for another Shanahan with a much bigger prize at the end of the post-season marathon, he said getting recognized for his Game 6 shot block was a special moment.

“We get contributions from all over the lineup,” Laughton added of his most painful NHL assist. “We’re going to need a lot more.”

“He’s someone we brought over for this exact reason,” pc28¹ÙÍøgoaltender Anthony Stolarz added. “The rest is history.”

Laughton attended a Battle of Ontario playoff game in the early 2000s with his dad. They couldn’t recall the exact year, but the memories are there. He’s now making new ones on the other side of the glass.

There’s also still pinch-yourself element Laughton hasn’t quite been able to shake.

“You drive into the rink here,” he said. “It’s a weird feeling to come home and you’ve got family around. It’s really cool.” 

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 5, 2025.