Game Story: Well if you were hopeful for MLSE (Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment Partnership) (hashtag#LeafsForever) tonight, I applaud you. Coverage with Alec Nava (who has ECF on Tues.) and Ian Genge here as we all speculate (like you) what’s next. The fans deserve better.
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Florida Panthers (hashtag#TimeToHunt) National Hockey League (NHL) Turner (Turner Broadcasting System, Inc) Sportsnet hashtag#stanleycup hashtag#playoffs
Toronto Maple Leafs (52-26-4, 4-2) HC: Craig Berube Top Performers: Mitchell Marner (27-75-102 +18), William Nylander (45-39-84 +10), Auston Matthews 67 GP, (33-45-78 +11), John Tavares 75 GP, (38-36-74 +10) Matthew Knies (29-29-58 +7), Morgan Rielly (7-34-41 –8), Bobby McMann (20-14-34 +12), Max Domi (8-25-33 +5)
Watch? If Nicholas Robertson or Max Pacioretty play postseason minutes, as they can be extra offense.
Top Defensive Pairings: Christopher Tanev (3-15-18 +31), Jake McCabe (2-21-23 +23), Simon Benoit (1-9-10+12), O-E-L.
Initial Thoughts: Toronto topped the “Battle of Ontario” and leveled out the Ottawa Senators (4-2). This will be their toughest test until the Stanley Cup Finals, should they get there. If the Maple Leafs can solve the Panthers forecheck and move the puck quickly, I like the chance for a longer series. But can Stolarz (former goalie of FLA) play well against his former team? I think Woll could play in this series.
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Florida Panthers: (47-31-4, 4-1) HC: Paul Maurice Top Performers: Sam Reinhart (39-42-81 +6), Aleksander Barkov 67 GP (20-51-71), Matthew Tkachuk 52 GP (22-35-57 –3), Carter Verhaeghe (20-33-53 –14), Sam Bennett (25-26-51 -15, Anton Lundell (17-28-45 +17)
Top Defensive Pairings: Aaron Ekblad 56 GP (3-30-33 +11), Gustav Forsling (11-20-31 +33), Niko Mikkola (6-16-22 +12), Nate Schmidt (5-14-19 +4)
Initial Thoughts: With both my Stanley Cup Finals pick now out, I see the survivors advancing. That’s a FLA-DAL final. Too deep and relentless. Take all of the regular season stats and toss them. Add in Seth Jones, Brad Marchand (who knows TOR well) with that core group and I see no weakness. But my outward thought… if Bobrovsky struggles, does FLA even have a backup they can count on?
Goaltending Matchup: Anthony Stolarz (34 GP, 21-8-3, 2.14 GAA, .926 SV, 4 SO); Joseph Woll (42 GP, 27-14-1, 2.73 GAA, .909 SV, 1 SO) vs. Sergei Bobrovsky (54 GP, 33-19-2, 2.44 GAA, .906 SV, 5 SO)
Series Summary:
Game 1: TOR wins 5-4: Had the injury to Stolarz… and FLA did have a comeback effort, but they got the win. Nylander (2), Reilly, Tanev, Knies.
Game 2: TOR wins 4-3: Patches, Nylander, Domi and Marner. Woll 25 of 28. Bobrovsky 16 of 20. Barkov, Marchand, Lundell.
Game 3: FLA wins 5-4 (OT) Uh oh. This was the Panthers attack in the second period we have been waiting to see. Reinhart, Verhaeghe and Gadjovich in the second. Tavares (2) and Knies. Rielly in the third, but Marchand through the screen and scores. Bobrovsky 27 of 31 in the win. Woll 31 of 35 in the loss.
Game 4: FLA wins 2-0. Verhaeghe and Bennett score. Bobrovsky 23 of 23 in the shutout. Woll was outstanding in the loss as he saved 35 of 37 in the loss.
Game 5: FLA wins 6-1. Pontus and Jarnkrok are out. Robertson and Kampf are in. E-Rod out. Jesper Bovquist on the first line. This 6-1 loss and the depth scoring shows Florida domination. It’s officially the worst game this trio has ever had to call. Bobrovsky phenomenal as he stops 31 of 32. Woll pulled as he stops 20 of 25. Not his fault whatsoever.
Game 6: TOR wins 2-0. Third period goals and a rebound for the Maple Leafs. Outstanding. Matthews scores his first goal of his career in the second round. Patches adds a tally. Bobrovsky just 15 of 17 in the loss. Takes a nasty hit against the left post as his head bounced back with a Bennett collision. Woll stops all 22 shots he faced.
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