When humanity is threatened only the super powered might of the Toronto Maple Leafs can be counted on to save the day. The  Leafs have undergone a major overhaul. Probably the most significant change is the squadron based tactics that head coach Mike Babcock and GM Kyle Dubas have decided to deploy on the mean Toronto streets. Today we follow Otter Squad: The centers.

Auston Matthews and Dylan Larkin smash through the wall of the burning building together. The assassin inside opens fire on the two young heroes, forcing them to split up and take cover. The assassin empties her clip, then pours out the remnants of a bottle of liquor on her victim and sprints to the door. Dylan hurls one of his twin katana’s at the door and it sticks in the wood, quivering by the assassins hand. Her first yank does not free the blade, but she pulls harder and turns to face the Toronto Maple Leaf and the Detroit Red Wing.

“Hey there little heroes.” She stands in easy ready stance. “You’re not gonna like what happens next.” With alarming speed the assassin attacks.

She cuts quickly at Dylan on her right and blends the move into a stab at Auston on her left. Dylan steps back to avoid the cut and Auston sweeps a block across his body with his short sword. He pushes the assassin’s blade and slices at her neck. Dylan steps forward and stabs at her heart.

The assassin twists impossibly, leaping between the heroes blades and lashing out with her feet to land kicks on both their chins. As the Leaf and the Red Wing stagger back the assassin rolls through her landing and gets up running. She crosses the room and jumps toward the hole in the wall. Austons energy beam catches the assassin in the shoulder, flinging her into the wall. She hits the floor hard and doesn’t move.

“You promised you wouldn’t do that.” Dylan complains.

“Sorry.” Auston says. “I really didn’t want to chase her.”

Dylan moves to retrieve his sword and puts his fingers to the assassins neck. “Well we definitely won’t have to chase her, she’s dead.”

“Damn.” Auston says. “She was our lead. Well let’s get out of here.”

As fire trucks speed toward the burning building the heroes leave it. They already cleared all the civilians before they surprised the assassin. She had been one of two dozen killers hired to take out high value targets in the Detroit community. Civil leaders, activists, captains of industry, all targeted by a single brutal enemy. None of the assassins had been caught yet.

The heroes are silent as the walk along a rooftop. Nazem Kadri steps up out of the shadows with Jon Tavares close behind him.

“Any luck?” Naz asks. Auston shakes his head. Naz kicks an air handling unit, denting the steel. “Mother flipping flapper! This sucks! We have no idea who sent these killers out into the city. What do we do now?”

“Now, little Leaf, you die!” A dozen assassins drop out of the sky onto the roof and rush the heroes. Their leader is a giant of a man, at least eight feet tall. On his fists he wears claws, on his face a steel mask shaped as a dragon. “You all die!” The assassins rush forward.

The giant assassin explodes in a shower of blood. The remaining killers are ripped to shreds by a hail of bullets. Naz, Auston, Jon and Dylan turn, stunned, to see Ron Hainsey on his Toronto Maple Leaf mag-lift hover platform. Smoke billows from the authentic Napoleonic cannon that Ron has welded onto the platform and from the two SCAR assault rifles the defenseman wields.

“Wait what?” Ron says into his communicator. “Oh, you said to leave one alive? I thought you said to leave no one alive. Sorry, I’ll do better next time coach”