Now that the Leafs' best player has embraced the meme, it's clearly not going away anytime soon, and based on Marner's new cover photo on his own Twitter profile, he's getting on board himself.
Do or die for a chance to play for the Stanley Cup. It doesn't get much better than that.
Pittsburgh hosts Ottawa in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Final on Thursday night. The Penguins are trying to make it to back-to-back Stanley Cup Finals in their quest to repeat, while the Senators are looking to make their second final in club history (and win the franchise's first Cup).
Here's where things stand after six games:
Team
GF
GA
SF
SA
SV%
PP%
PK%
FOW%
Penguins
14
11
200
168
.935
27.8% (5-for-18)
94.4% (17-for-18)
49.4%
Senators
11
14
168
200
.930
5.5% (1-for-18)
72.2% (13-for-18)
50.6%
What do you think?
Puck drop is shortly after 8 p.m. ET. You can watch the game on CBC in the north and NBCSN in the U.S.
The St. Louis Blues named Darryl Sydor an assistant coach Wednesday, reuniting the former NHL defenseman with the Blues head coach, with whom he worked for five seasons as an assistant coach with the Minnesota Wild.
It's a three-year deal for Sydor, who was an assistant with the Blues' former AHL affiliate, the Chicago Wolves, last season.
Last week, the Blues opted not to renew the contracts of three assistants - Ray Bennett, Steve Thomas, and Rick Wilson - as well as that of goalie development coach Ty Conklin.
Yeo was promoted from associate to head coach in February, replacing the fired Ken Hitchcock, who later resurfaced with the Dallas Stars.
The club has signed the former player to a two-year contract to serve as a pro scout, as well as to assist in player development with the Coyotes' prospects.
"Craig was a smart, hard-working player with an incredible passion for the game," said general manager John Chayka. "We're confident that he will bring those same qualities to the Coyotes in his new role and that he will be an invaluable asset to our organization. We look forward to Craig helping us in several areas and are excited that he is staying with the club."
Cunningham's playing career was cut short as a result of a cardiac emergency prior to a Tucson Roadrunners (AHL) game on Nov. 19, 2016. Part of his left leg was subsequently amputated in order to ensure a full recovery.
"I'm very excited to begin the next chapter of my life with the Coyotes," said Cunningham. "I'm very grateful to John Chayka, (coach) Dave Tippett, the Coyotes and Roadrunners organizations, and all of the great fans across Arizona for the incredible support I've received over the past year. I'm looking forward to helping the Coyotes and I can't wait to get started in my new role."
Cunningham appeared in 63 NHL games as a member of the Coyotes and Boston Bruins.
Guy Boucher's Senators have become known for the successful, yet stale, 1-3-1 defensive scheme, a style of play that will be in full effect as Ottawa attempts to advance to the Stanley Cup Final for the first time since 2007.
It's an Ottawa Senators supporter's worst nightmare: Game 7.
Tuesday was great; also bittersweet. The Sens refused to begin their offseason, forcing a deciding game in the Eastern Conference Final versus the Penguins in Pittsburgh. All that's on the line is the chance to play for the Stanley Cup. So, everything.
However, for Ottawa to advance and depose the defending champs, it must exorcise some major win-or-go-home demons. Thursday night will be the sixth Game 7 in franchise history, and the Senators are still searching for win No. 1. It's going to be agony - but hopefully the good kind, in the end.
Now, a couple of sentences from "Outline," an incredible novel by Rachel Cusk, come to mind:
It remains your truth, whatever has happened. Don't be afraid to look at it.
It's your history, Sens fans. It's made you who you are. You've got to own it. Let's take a walk down Game 7 memory lane.
And think of this way: Ottawa's due.
2012 vs. Rangers
It's been five years since the Senators bowed out of the postseason in seven games.
In 2012, in Paul MacLean's first season behind the bench, the Senators failed to convert a 3-2 series lead on home ice in the first round, instead heading back to Manhattan to play Game 7 against the New York Rangers.
While Craig Anderson made up for his terrible Game 6, stopping 27-of-29 shots, Henrik Lundqvist was opposite him. And you never want to be facing Henrik freakin' Lundqvist in a do-or-die game.
New York took a 2-1 decision, despite Ottawa's 55.3 possession advantage. It was classic Rangers hockey.
The Senators were down 3-2 in the series but forced Game 7 in Toronto, winning Game 6 in double overtime on Mike Fisher's winner. Yeah, this was a long time ago.
This one still hurts, though, a lot, because it was The Patrik Lalime Game (or The Joe Nieuwendyk Game, if you're from Toronto).
Already down 1-0 early, Nieuwendyk beat Lalime with the softest of soft wrist shots from the left wing. You could have stopped it.
Then, with time just about up in the first period, Nieuwendyk did it again, almost from the same spot, this time beating Lalime five-hole, and - yes, right in that moment - ending the Senators' 102-point season.
Those have to be two of the softest goals ever scored in Game 7 history, and to this day, they remain difficult to watch. Lalime was pulled after 20 minutes. He made eight saves. Toronto won 4-1.
2003 vs. Devils
The 2003 Sens won 52 games, and their 113 points were enough to claim the Presidents' Trophy. Despite that success, their magical season came to an end in the Eastern Conference Final in Game 7 at home against the New Jersey Devils (who would go on to win the Cup).
This one hurt so bad because it was, essentially, an overtime loss, with Jeff Friesen scoring the winner in the third period with 2:14 to play. The Senators had erased a 3-1 series deficit to get to this heartbreaking point.
You can blame Lalime all you want, but it was really a defensive breakdown, as two Senators converged on the man with the puck on the rush while Friesen was allowed to go to the net.
One mistake is all it takes in Game 7.
2002 vs. Maple Leafs
Another 3-2 series lead was squandered - this time in the second round - including another blown 2-0 lead in Game 6 on home ice.
This was when Lalime's three-year Game 7 nightmare began: In Toronto, on April 14, 2002, in the first period, when Alexander Mogilny banked the game's opening goal off Sami Salo's skate and through Lalime's legs.
It was the game- and series-winning goal, of course.
The Senators finished with only 19 shots in a 3-0 loss.
Bobby Ryan desperately wanted to go back to Pittsburgh. Not only did he get his wish, he did his part.
The 30-year-old continued his stellar playoffs Tuesday, scoring a much needed power-play goal for Ottawa, which tied Game 6 against the Penguins 1-1. Mike Hoffman would score the winner, forcing a Game 7 in the Eastern Conference Final. And that's all Ryan wanted:
Bobby Ryan: "We bought ourselves two more days together. This team just wants to be around each other."
The Senators have been a team in every sense of the word this season, rallying around each other despite personal challenges faced by Craig Anderson, whose wife was diagnosed with cancer in the fall, and Clarke MacArthur, whose career was thought to be in jeopardy, but who came back and eliminated the Boston Bruins in the first round.
It was a trying season for Ryan, too, the four-time 30-goal scorer finishing with only 13 goals and 12 assists in what was by far the worst statistical season of his career.
But as Ryan wrote last week on The Players' Tribune, this Senators outfit, while not so different from other ones, is actually different. Because it is and always has been about the team, not personal statistics, from day one. Ryan and his numbers are the perfect example.
This has been a fun ride so far, but I think this team still has a lot left in the tank. This is the moment we’ve been preparing for all year, and now that it’s here, we feel ready.
I mean, why not us?
Why not now?
The underdog Sens, doubted all season and all playoffs, are one win away from the Stanley Cup Final. And you know Ryan wants nothing more than to play hockey in June.
Add another name to the list of head coaching candidates in Florida.
San Jose Sharks assistant Bob Boughner will reportedly meet with the Panthers for an interview this week, according to Pierre LeBrun of TSN. The Sharks granted permission to speak to Boughner earlier in May.
Boughner has been with San Jose since 2015, and was part of Pete DeBoer's staff when the team made a Stanley Cup Final appearance last spring.
He previously served as an assistant with the Columbus Blue Jackets in 2010-11, with long stints as head coach of the OHL's Windsor Spitfires from 2006-10 and 2011-15 sandwiching that NHL experience.
Boughner joins Michel Therrien, Todd Reirden, and Jim Montgomery as reported candidates for Florida's vacant position.
Evgeni Malkin believes it's Pittsburgh's turn to bounce back from a tough loss.
After dominating Game 5 to the tune of a 7-0 win over the Ottawa Senators, the Penguins were unable to book a spot in the Stanley Cup Final in Game 6 despite outshooting the opposition by a wide margin.
Malkin was the only Penguin to get the better of Craig Anderson on Tuesday, while recording seven of Pittsburgh's 46 shots in the 2-1 loss. A similar effort should seal the deal in Game 7, according to the Russian center.
"I think we had great game," Malkin said postgame, per Tom Gulitti of NHL.com. "We missed so many great chances. It's a hard game. We played against a good team, and after the last game, they changed and they played better. We know it's a tight game. We'll go back home and win the last one. We play at home. It's a good chance to win."
Malkin's goal was his seventh of the postseason, bringing his point total to 24, most among remaining players and five ahead of second-ranked Sidney Crosby (19).
Marc Methot and Mike Hoffman simultaneously trying to mess with Sidney Crosby. Methot poking him with his stick, Hoffman squirting water pic.twitter.com/zuNyor7DfR
