TORONTO — As with life and your Grade 2 teacher, this might not be fair.
But what remains of this series, only two or three games, will have a lasting impact on the legacies of Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner as Toronto Maple Leafs.
The Florida Panthers have their rings. William Nylander and John Tavares and Morgan Rielly have hung numbers on the board.
And so, while the faceoff percentages and sticks on the PK and 5-on-5 fancy stats have all been good for the two most important Leafs of the past nine years, Matthews and/or Marner are due for a moment.
Because no fan will remember a strong backcheck or a nifty stick lift if the superstars with letters on their chests and tens of millions in the bank don’t show up offensively in this critical best-of-three — or, at least, if the supporting cast can carry them through to Round 3 and buy more lives.
“Big goal’s coming,” coach Craig Berube predicted, when talking to reporters about his captain. “That’s the way you’ve got to think about it. And who knows when it’s going to happen? But just focus on playing the game.”
The game was less than flattering to Matthew Knies’ linemates in Sunrise.
Marner has one shot in the past three games, albeit Game 2’s winner from distance.
Shooter extraordinaire Matthews is tied for 64th in playoff goals (two) and has not put a puck past Sergei Bobrovsky in nine post-season matches.
M and M could use a capital-M Moment. And they won’t be split up unless their coach gets extra desperate.
“It’s not all about scoring for me, and for them,” Berube said. “They’ve been a great pair for a long time.”
Time for Matthews’ greatness to bloom in springtime, though.
“Well, he’s just gotta keep playing,” Berube encouraged. “He does a lot of other things in the game that really dictate things and does a great job with a lot of other areas of the game. He’s just got to keep focusing on that. He’s going to get his looks and just stick with what he’s doing and don’t get too frustrated with anything because it’s not just about scoring goals. He’s got a lot of other stuff he does extremely well for us.
“Yeah, we’d like him to score, and so would he. It’s not easy to score in a playoffs, you know. So, I’m not overly worried about it.”
Matthews does rank top-10 in playoff assists (eight) and insists chances are presenting themselves.
“I’ve just got to do a better job of bearing down on some of them. But I think for the most part, throughout the four games, we’ve been winning shifts, generating chances against tough matchups,” Matthews said. “I want to score. But continue to get these opportunities and just capitalize and go from there.”
Berube gently said Marner, who went shot-free in Games 3 and 4, “could just be a little bit more direct” with putting imperfect pucks on net instead of trying to upgrade the shot against a swarming defence.
“He’s a passer first,” Berube said of the seven-time 20-goal man. “But we need him to shoot pucks too.”
Marner did not speak after Sunday’s loss despite a request. He did speak to reporters Tuesday.
When asked how he was feeling about his game, he said “fine.”
Marner explained that instead of looking for his own shots, he has been trying to find teammates’ sticks down low.
To be fair, Matthews and Marner have been fine — and there is still runway this week to upgrade that assessment.
To knock off the champs, to create some magic.
Two wins from becoming the Team to Beat in the East. Two losses from another blown series lead.
What a pressure cooker an opportunity.
Because no one throws parades for fine.
Kämpf time?
Berube has some game-time decisions ahead of Wednesday night, none of which are related to injury or illness.
Toronto’s bottom six, which was sturdy against Ottawa, hasn’t made much of an impact in this series.
Although the coach ran Tuesday’s practice with the identical lines to Game 4, he is not preaching the stick-with-it, they-deserve-it message that he uses when he’s not making changes.
That David Kämpf and Bobby McMann both skipped Toronto’s optional morning skate was unusual. Calle Järnkrok left the ice at the same time as black aces like Alex Steeves and Ryan Reaves.
McMann is mired in a 21-game goal drought.
Kämpf has been healthy for weeks but hasn’t played since April 2, when he got injured in a home game against (checks notes) the Panthers. Shooter Nick Robertson is also champing at the bit to get in.
The coach has been up front about his lineup all post-season long. Now, he’s keeping his cards tight.
This is the first flash of gamesmanship from Berube.
Stolarz skates, but this is Woll’s net
A pleasant development Tuesday to know that Anthony Stolarz was back on the ice for 30 minutes’ worth of drills, even if the goaltender did not participate in team practice.
Berube assured that Stolarz is “doing much better” but did not provide a timeline for return.
“You obviously want to see your whole team healthy. Good little morale boost. We had a little goalie clinic going on,” Joseph Woll said. “Lotta tendies out there.”
As great as Stolarz was in the Ottawa series, rushing him back from a head injury is not ideal. The most important stretch of Woll’s career continues.
The 26-year-old was awesome in Game 4, less so in Game 3, and he has convinced himself that nerves are a good thing.
“Doing anything worth doing there’s a little bit of fear. I think that’s healthy,” Woll said. “We feel as good as ever. We’re going to stick to our process.”
And, yes, buddy Knies has shown the goalie some of the “Wonder Woll” karaoke floating around the interwebs.
“Nice little ring to it,” smiled the part-time pianist.
So, is Woll a big Oasis guy?
“I like ‘Wonderwall.’”
Cifu suspension
The NHL suspended Doug Cifu from team and league involvement after the outspoken Panthers minority owner sent a burst of offensive messages on social media Sunday night in the wake of his club’s Game 4 win.
“Two days ago, I posted regrettable and inflammatory comments on social media. My behaviour does not reflect the standards of the Florida Panthers organization and the Viola family. I sincerely apologize to all those affected by my comments. I am committed to working with the NHL to amend my actions,” Cifu said in statement to Florida Hockey Now.
Cifu is to meet with the league to discuss the matter.
Something for the nerds!
Digging into the underlying numbers through four games, the Panthers are tilting the ice significantly at even strength. Game 5’s visitors lead notably in shot attempts (259-162), shots on net (107-86), scoring chances (128-68), high-danger chances (53-3) and expected goals (11.6-7.1), according to NaturalStatTrick.com.
That the actual goals at evens are deadlocked (11-11) means the Maple Leafs are getting more saves, shooting more accurately and getting a little more puck luck (they have the PDO advantage) in the series so far.
One-Timers: Berube on William Nylander getting chirped by Matthew Tkachuk: “88? He probably didn’t even hear him. He doesn’t hear me.” … The Panthers’ power play (21.4 per cent) holds an edge over the Maple Leafs’ PP (13.3 per cent) in this series, even though Toronto was superior with the man advantage in the regular season. … Max Domi on getting fined for boarding Aleksander Barkov at the end of Game 4: “Just looking forward to the next game, bud.” … Oliver Ekman-Larsson missed Tuesday’s practice due to illness but was back at morning skate Wednesday. He’ll play. … Toronto is 4-1 on home ice and can earn five home wins in a single playoff year for the first time since 2004.
Maple Leafs projected Game 5 lineup vs. Florida Panthers:
Knies – Matthews – MarnerPacioretty – Tavares – NylanderDomi – Kämpf – HolmbergLorentz – Laughton – Robertson
Rielly – CarloMcCabe – TanevBenoit – Ekman-Larsson
Woll startsMurray
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