HIGHLIGHTS
- The Toronto Maple Leafs have advanced to the Eastern Conference semifinals
- The Atlantic Division winners knocked out the Senators in six games on Thursday
- Read on for the full story
Despite nearly blowing a 3-0 series lead, the Toronto Maple Leafs made amends on Thursday night in Game 6 against the Ottawa Senators on the road. The Atlantic Division champions ran out with a 4-2 win and also won the series 4-2.
Toronto brought their best in Game 6 at the Canadian Tire Centre. William Nylander led the way with two goals and an assist, while Auston Matthews and Max Pacioretty also found the back of the net. Anthony Stolarz made 21 saves in goal.
The Maple Leafs now move on to face the defending Stanley Cup winners, the Florida Panthers. The Cats took down the Tampa Bay Lightning in five games. Head coach Craig Berube knows the task ahead will not be easy:
“They’re obviously the Stanley Cup Champs, so they’re a very good team,” Berube said, via NHL.com. “They’ve got a lot of good pieces, they’re hard to play against. You know, I could keep going on and on, but it’s not the time right now.”
The Leafs will have home ice advantage in the best-of-seven series. Florida was the third seed in the Atlantic during the regular season. Stolarz echoed Berube’s sentiment, making it clear that no matchup at this point in the postseason is going to be anything less than a dogfight:
“It’s going to be hard. You know, at this stage of the season, every game, every series is going to be hard,” Stolarz said. “We’re down to the final bit of teams here, so everyone wants the same goal. Everyone wants that Stanley Cup. So, teams are going to lay it on the line.”
Nylander led the charge in Round One for the Maple Leafs with nine points. Matthews also contributed seven points.
The season series between Florida and Toronto went in favor of the Panthers, who were 3-1-0 in four meetings. They also eliminated the Leafs in the 2023 playoffs in five games before losing in the Stanley Cup Finals to the Vegas Golden Knights.
