![]() Outside, the swarm of fans were going bonkers. When Rielly opened the scoring at 5:46 of the first period to give Toronto a 1-0 lead, the noise level inside the rink was the loudest it's been all year. ![]() Maple Leafs coach Sheldon Keefe has repeatedly stated that this team, this series, this vibe, feels "different" for a franchise that has lost its opening series in six consecutive years and hasn't advanced since 2004.Īnd there has been a cautious buy-in from the skeptical fan base, from those gathered outside the arena to watch the game on a big screen at Maple Leafs Square, to the 19,663 shoehorned inside Scotiabank Arena who started rocking the joint when the teams took the ice for warmups. The 29-year-old had four assists in Game 2, scored the overtime goal in Game 3, forced overtime with a late goal in Game 4, and opened the scoring in Game 5.Īnd yet, even he has no answer on what it takes to close out this series. Rielly has arguably been Toronto's best player in this series. "Always," the Maple Leafs defenseman replied. To that end, Reilly was asked if he wondered what it would take to win one of these elimination games. Where is the killer instinct that is key for successful runs in the Stanley Cup Playoffs? Fair enough.īut the fact remains that group of four players is now 0-10 in those situations. Of course, their core players of today - forwards Auston Matthews, Mitchell Marner, William Nylander and defenseman Morgan Rielly - did not play in that Boston series. Since losing Game 7 to the Boston Bruins in their 2013 Eastern Conference First Round, they are 0-11 in games in which they had the opportunity to eliminate an opponent. ET TBS, SN, CBC, TVAS, BSSUN), they'll eliminate the Lightning and it will be a moot point.īut dig deeper, and there is plenty of reason for concern for the Maple Leafs and their beleaguered fan base. Should they win Game 6 at Amalie Arena in Tampa on Saturday (7 p.m. And they still have home-ice advantage for Game 7, which would be played, if necessary, here at Scotiabank Arena on Monday.
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