Maple Leafs got the goaltending they needed in Game 4 – but not much else against Panthers
SUNRISE – If everything went right for the Toronto Maple Leafs, they would have been headed back to Pearson Airport with a spot in the final four.
Instead, the Florida Panthers won two straight, and it’s a tie series.
That’s what everyone expected heading into this series. The defending Cup champs against the top seed in the Atlantic. Nobody expected it to be an easy series – but with the way Toronto outperformed Florida in the first two games, and how Florida started Game 3, it looked like the impossible was possible.
Instead, Toronto had one of its poorest performances of the playoffs. Say what you want about the first-period penalties – argue the Bobby McMann one at your leisure. But Toronto was seriously undisciplined, and Joseph Woll was forced to bail them out. This could have easily been a 5-0 hockey game if it wasn’t for his heroics.
But when the game started to even out, Toronto still couldn’t muster much. They eight shots at the halfway point of the game. The Leafs started to have more sustained pressure as the second period wore on. But they rarely got two shots off in succession on Sergei Bobrovsky, who did give his fair share of juicy rebounds back.
The Panthers’ blueline deserves full credit – they made Toronto’s life absolutely miserable in high-danger areas. The eye test told you that. The numbers did, too: Florida had a 68.8 expected goals-for percentage in the first, 78.62 in the second. The final ended up being 68.59 to 31.41, according to Natural Stat Trick – truly, a one-sided affair.
As for Toronto’s positives, they had a strong penalty kill. Florida fumbled a few too many passes in the attacking zone, but the Leafs took away the scoring lanes. Given how dangerous Florida’s power play has been in the postseason, Toronto’s PK kept the team in it the whole night. The penalty kill on the Oliver Ekman-Larsson penalty in the third period was as perfect as it gets. Florida went 1-for-6 on the power play – that could have easily swung things in Toronto’s favor.
And then there’s Woll. That was easily his best performance of the playoffs, keeping Toronto in a game where they trailed by over 20 shots for a significant segment. Woll rarely plays two poor games in a row, and he was easily the team’s MVP on Sunday.
It wasn’t a perfect game for the Panthers by any means. Aleksander Barkov and Matthew Tkachuk need to be better. Seth Jones was mistake-prone. Aaron Ekblad hasn’t been as physically dominant as we know he can be. But as a whole, it was as complete of an effort as we’ve seen from this group since winning Game 5 against Tampa Bay.
The Panthers have won a boatload of games by just shutting teams down and limiting shot quality. They also don’t need you to make mistakes to exploit you. They’re damn good on their own. But they took Toronto’s gifts, and now momentum’s back in their court as the series shifts back to Toronto. The Panthers have won three of their home games this postseason, and they’re guaranteed one more – with the potential to finish a four-game comeback and move on.
Florida also loves physical games. Sam Bennett had eight hits, and Eetu Luostarinen had six. Max Pacioretty also had eight, and Knies had six – but it felt like Florida did a better job of wearing Toronto out in the Leafs’ zone.
Some of Toronto’s issues persist. Auston Matthews continues to have minimal effect on the scoresheet. William Nylander had a quiet two games. Toronto’s defense has had too many brainfarts. Mitch Marner had no shots for his second game in a row, and Bobby McMann and Max Pacioretty also came up empty-handed. Combine that altogether, and it’s easy to see why it’s a tied series.
Both teams will get a few nights off before reconvening in Toronto on Wednesday. Given the intensity of the final few minutes in Game 4, it’s going to be a wild night at Scotiabank Arena. One team’s flying high – the other is wondering what could have been. It’s a brand new series.
That’s playoff hockey, baby.
SPONSORED BY bet365