It’s now or never for the Maple Leafs ahead of Game 6
The Toronto Maple Leafs are in a familiar spot, though one that could spell the end for this version of the team.
Game 6 of the Atlantic Division Final sees the Florida Panthers with the opportunity to eliminate the team that finished atop the division during the regular season. After falling behind 2-0 in the series, the defending Stanley Cup champions roared back with three wins in a row, including a 6-1 shellacking at Scotiabank Arena in Game 5, leading to many in Leafs Nation verbally displaying their displeasure of the team’s performance in a seemingly must-win game.
If things don’t go their way on Friday night and the team suffers another debilitating end to their season, this could spell the end of the “Core Four.” Many wonder what the front office will do if this version of the Leafs are unable to make a deep run in the postseason, as this team has only won two playoff series since coming together in 2016.
On Friday’s edition of Daily Faceoff LIVE, Frank Seravalli and Tyler Yaremchuk explain why Game 6 could be the breaking point for this group of Leafs.
Tyler Yaremchuk: I’ll give Leafs fans some hope here. I did my research. Over the last three playoffs, the Leafs have been beaten by four or more goals three times. Every single time, they bounce back with a win. Sometimes, the momentum doesn’t carry over.
Frank Seravalli: It definitely doesn’t. The Leafs have also not lost four games in a row all season long. So there’s that too. Does this team find a way to get off the mat? They’ve been embarrassed in the most epic way possible. I think they’re certainly in this position where they’re all looking around the room thinking, “Who’s it going to be? Who’s going to be the guy that steps up and is able to carry our team?” Can they collectively all do that at the same time? You listened to Brad Marchand this morning and he said, if [Game 5 was] a close game, maybe it’s a different feeling. He goes, that’s a powerful thing losing by that many goals that they’re expecting the Leafs to be hungry, that they’re not going to be an easy out tonight.
You can watch the full segment and entire episode here…