With the Battle of Ontario tightening up, Morgan Rielly and the Toronto Maple Leafs are doing their best to remain composed following consecutive missed opportunities to eliminate the Ottawa Senators in their first-round playoff series.
After dropping Game 4 on the road and suffering a 4-0 shutout loss at home in Game 5 on Tuesday night, the Leafs are headed back to the Canadian Tire Centre for Game 6 on Thursday – still holding a 3-2 series lead, but fully aware that the Senators have gained some momentum.
On Wednesday morning, defenseman Morgan Rielly spoke to reporters at the team’s media availability, saying the club is in good spirits ahead of another important game on Thursday.
“Everyone is doing great. I think all the guys have been great. That comes and goes over the course of a season. I think in moments like this or in the past in playoff series, it kind of brings you together,” Rielly explained.
“When you face a little bit of adversity and you hope it brings the best out of people. It's a good challenge. I mean, we expected it to be challenging. No one expected it to be easy. So, again, we're up in a series, and we're in a position where we have a chance to regroup and refocus and go out there and play some good hockey," he added.
Toronto is now 1-13 in elimination games since 2018, a stat that has continued to worsen and seemingly hung over the core group’s playoff narrative. But as the 31-year-old believes, the adversity is having the opposite effect, bringing the Leafs together rather than tearing them apart.
'All I Hear Around Here Is Core, Core Core': Maple Leafs' Craig Berube Wants Whole-Team Contribution Ahead of Game 6 Against SenatorsThe Toronto Maple Leafs core players may be feeling a bit of pressure after the Ottawa Senators kept the entire club off the scoresheet in a 4-0 win in Game 5 of their best-of-seven series.
Regardless, a regroup is necessary after two straight losses in potential elimination games. Despite outshooting the Senators 27-19 in Game 5, the Leafs failed to generate many high-quality chances as they were blanked on home ice.
They’ve now been outscored 8-3 across the last two games and haven’t scored a power-play goal since Game 3, going 0-for-7 over the last two contests. To make matters worse, they’ve allowed a short-handed goal in each of the last two games as a lack of execution has arisen on special teams.
“Lots of areas (to improve). Breakouts, forechecks, the whole thing, just about managing the game. I always say, at the tip of the spear, it's execution. And then from there, it goes into being competitive, structure and whatnot. But I think it's just about executing. I think that the D have our areas of focus, gaps, breakouts, all that stuff, all those cliches, and the forwards kind of have their areas. So it's important that we just look at everything and, I mean, use today as a day to kind of refocus, regroup, and just get ready to play some hockey,” said Rielly.
‘We’ve Got To Be More Direct’: Maple Leafs’ Power Play Stalls, Surrender Another Short-Handed Goal As Special Teams Struggle In Game 5 LossThe Toronto Maple Leafs’ special teams were a struggle in their Game 5 loss to the Ottawa Senators on Tuesday night.
For a team long criticized for its inability to close out in crunch time, the pressure is mounting.
Yet, one area that’s led the charge is Toronto’s defensive corps. As a defensive unit, the Leafs ranked last in goals from defensemen in the regular season, but in the playoffs, they have stepped up and produced offensively throughout the series with five goals from Rielly (2), Oliver Ekman-Larsson (2), and Simon Benoit (1). Though the offense has dried up in the moment, Rielly harped on rediscovering that success heading into Game 6.
“I think if you look at our group and how we want to generate offense as D we want to get pucks in, we want to get opportunities off rebounds. Again, when I talk about execution off breakouts, that often leads to carrying the puck up the middle of the ice. So, there are lots of areas that we've got to improve on. Creating offense would be one,” said Rielly. “So for us, we have all the faith in the world and our guys and our structure. And, I mean, like I said, we're going to use today to refocus and just be ready to play tomorrow.”
'That's An Easy Decision For Me': Maple Leafs Miss 4-Minute Overtime Power Play, Squander Chance to Sweep SenatorsKANATA, Ont. — The Toronto Maple Leafs were afforded a golden opportunity to complete a four-game sweep of the Ottawa Senators on Saturday.
The former first-round pick expects the Canadian Tire Centre to be “rocking” on Thursday, with the Senators having a chance to even the series and send the game to a winner-take-all Game 7.
And for good reason.
Ottawa is playing like a team with nothing to lose. In their first postseason appearance since 2017, the Senators have clawed their way back with opportunistic hockey, and they’ve now beaten Toronto five times in eight meetings this season, including a regular-season sweep. Despite their lack of playoff experience, they’ve had the Leafs’ number.
“They're playing great. They're playing hard. It's been a close series the whole way through. Again, that's what we expected,” said Rielly. “It's pretty much par for the course. Both teams are competing. Both teams are doing their best to execute. It's been tight. It's been very competitive.”
'I Don't Think There's Any Panic': "Maple Leafs Miss Another Series-Closing Opportunity in Frightening Déjà Vu'It was that familiar feeling of tension that Toronto Maple Leafs fans at Scotiabank Arena have felt before. The crowd went silent when Dylan Cozens finished off a 2-on-1 opportunity to give the Ottawa Senators a 2-0 lead midway through the third period in Game 5. Reality set in, when Tim Stutzle and Brady Tkachuk scored empty-net goals to defeat Toronto 4-0 and force a Game 6 at Canadian Tire Centre in Ottawa on Thursday.
Toronto's locker room includes players with championship pedigree, including head coach Craig Berube and former Florida Panthers additions in Anthony Stolarz, Steven Lorentz, and Ekman-Larsson. Rielly, who has three points (2G, 1A) in five games this series, says their presence has helped steady the group as the players “lean on each other” in these moments.
“It's nice to have experience. In times like this, you're just trying to lean on each other,” Rielly explained. “It's fun, though. I mean, this is why you play. It can be nerve-wracking at times, but that's where the joy comes in, and it's very competitive, and you're doing what you love, and the stakes are high. So we're going to try to enjoy it and really come together and play well.”
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Vegas Golden Knights forwards Jack Eichel and Mark Stone finally introduced themselves into the series in Game 5, but the true headliner was video assistant coach Dave Rogowski detecting a possible offside on a Minnesota Wild goal.
With just over a minute remaining in regulation, Ryan Hartman went in on a rush, beating Alex Pietrangelo and Ivan Barbashev to score the go-ahead goal. The NHL immediately reviewed the goal for a kicking motion but determined there was no kick. The time it took to review the goal allowed Rogowski and the Golden Knights to determine it was worth a shot to challenge the goal for offside.
Fortunately for the Golden Knights, Gustav Nyquist entered the zone a fraction too early, causing the goal to be erased and allowing the game to head to overtime. Brett Howden scored his third of the series 4:05 into the overtime frame to give the Golden Knights a 3-2 series lead.
Following the game, all the talk was about Rogowski.
"He's looking at it, he shows you one angle and says you should challenge it. He gives us a recommendation of percentage-wise," said HC Bruce Cassidy. "I mean, there's a minute left in the game, you're probably going to challenge no matter how close it is unless it's blatantly onside... It was a great pickup by him and it saved our ass."
The nerves were high on the bench after the Wild thought they had scored, as it appeared the Golden Knights would be heading back to Minnesota for Game 6 with their season on the line. Similarly, to every player or coach, the process quickly began for Rogowski after the goal was scored.
"Our video coach, Rogo, he's looking at probably both things, but then he realizes they're going to look at the kicking motion," said Cassidy. "That's a league rule. There are certain things that get looked at no matter what. So now he's looking at if there's goaltender interference and then goes back to the offside."
If the Golden Knights had lost the challenge, they would have been given a minor penalty, likely diminishing any possibility of mounting a comeback. Everyone on the staff agreed that it was that the probability of the goal being called back was 100%.
Stanley Cups aren't won because of one player or person in the organization. It's a group effort that requires every person to do their job to the best of their ability. The Golden Knights displayed that perfectly in their Tuesday night Game 5 victory.
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Golden Knights Beat Minnesota, 3-2, In Wild Overtime Finish To Take 3-2 Series LeadLAS VEGAS -- Brett Howden scored his third goal of the playoffs 4:05 into overtime to lift the Vegas Golden Knights to a 3-2 win over the Minnesota Wild, and a 3-2 series lead in the opening round of the Western Conference playoffs.L
Wild Backup Goalie Marc-Andre Fleury Returns To The Net Against Golden Knights, Loses In OvertimeLAS VEGAS -- Minnesota backup goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury returned the ice at T-Mobile Arena to oppose the Golden Knights, as Wild starting goalie Filip Gustavsson didn't return to the game due to illness, per the team. 
This past season was one to remember for the Columbus Blue Jackets. They fell just short of a playoff spot, but in the face of adversity, they battled hard and had the entire hockey world pulling for them.
There was a lot to like. Zach Werenski is finally getting the recognition he deserves, landing as a finalist for the Norris Trophy. Both Kirill Marchenko and Adam Fantilli accomplished something that hadn’t been done in Columbus since 2015-16—each hit the 30-goal mark and had dominant seasons.
Fantilli & Marchenko Achieve Rare Feat Not Seen Since 2015-16When Adam Fantilli scored his 30th goal of the season the other night, it was a feat of its own. It was his first time hitting the 30-goal mark and only the ninth time a player has done so in Columbus Blue Jackets history — the 17th occurrence overall.
The Blue Jackets also had a record-tying five players hit 20 goals this year. Werenski, Fantilli, and Marchenko were joined by Kent Johnson and Dmitri Voronkov in reaching that mark.
They were just one goal away from making it six, but Sean Monahan missed time due to injury and finished the season with 19.
Regardless, it’s another sign of progress in what turned out to be a fun and challenging season in Columbus.
Columbus Blue Jackets Prospect Luca Marrelli Ties 59 Year Old Oshawa RecordColumbus Blue Jackets draft pick Luca Marrelli tied a record last night for the Oshawa Generals. One that has stood for 59 years.
2025 NHL Draft Lottery Odds/Date Set The NHL has announced that the NHL Draft Lottery will be on May 5th at the NHL Network’s Secaucus, N.J., studio.
Tampa Bay Lightning look to crawl back into series with Florida Panthers after falling into 3-1 series hole
The Battle of Florida may be headed for an earlier than expected close as the Panthers have taken a commanding 3-1 series lead over the Lightning heading back to Tampa Bay.
The Bolts will need to make adjustments if they want to stay alive in the series and will get the advantage of Florida's Aaron Ekblad being suspended for two games after elbowing Tampa's Brandon Hagel.
For bettors, this matchup provides a chance to capitalize on some of our recent strong trends, like our 30-15 record on our last 45 picks, including perfect records during Game 1 and 4 of the Maple Leafs-Senators series.
All betting lines are from FanDuel Sportsbook and are subject to change. Hockey is a difficult sport to predict so please gamble responsibly.
More NHL: Battle of Ontario Betting Guide: Best Bets, Strategies and Futures for Maple Leafs versus Senators
Scoring hasn't been an issue in this series with the six or more goals in three of the four games so far. Tampa goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy has been roughed up at times with six goals allowed in game one and three allowed in game four.
He will need to be great if the Bolts want to edge this one out and that's why I'm calling for an unexpected under game. The Lightning will play a classic playoff shutdown games where teams on the brink of elimination allowed very few goals like the Senators shutting out the Maple Leafs in game five this past Tuesday.
More NHL:New Leak Reveals Utah Hockey Club New Team Name
Tampa will need to bring offence of their own and I expect it to come from the league's top point man in Nikita Kucherov. The Russian winger finished the season with 121 points and has continued his red hot play into the postseason but has yet to score in this series.
His 37 goals this season placed him tied for 13th with Montreal's Cole Caufield and fellow Russian winger Artemi Panarin. He can score at an elite level and just hasn't yet. He is listed with best odds to score in this one at +160 and should be taken.
His linemates Brayden Point and Jake Guentzel have benefited greatly from playing with a talent like Kucherov and have both out up solid numbers. Point has just two goals this series and I expect him to get on the board with a dish to Kucherov for his goal.
More NHL: Where Will Vancouver Canucks Head Coach Rick Tocchet Go Next?
In the end, it came down to more than just money for Vancouver Canucks coach Rick Tocchet.
The Canucks said they were prepared to make Tocchet the team’s highest-paid coach ever on a long-term extension, but the 61-year-old declined that offer on Tuesday, citing personal reasons.
As team president Jim Rutherford pointed out when he spoke to the local media on Tuesday afternoon, the Canucks have not historically been a team that hangs onto its coaches for long periods of time — even before the carousel started spinning at breakneck speed throughout the NHL over the last few years.
Until last week, Rutherford was confident that Tocchet would return. He said Tuesday he hadn’t put much thought into a candidate list yet but expected his phone to start ringing imminently.
While he won two Stanley Cups in Pittsburgh with Mike Sullivan, who became available on Monday, Rutherford said the former assistant to John Tortorella with the Canucks is aiming to stay out east, so he’s not an option to return.
And while the goal is to get the Canucks back into contention — and convince Quinn Hughes there’s plenty of reason to stick around — extensive NHL experience is not necessarily a prerequisite for the Vancouver job.
“They have to understand that playing in Vancouver, travel can be tough at times,” Rutherford said. “Can they manage the schedule when we practise, when we travel, all those things? You have to have some experience. You have to have leadership qualities. You have to have a good structure and system that the players can lean to when they're not playing well. Those will be some of the things that we're going to look for.”
Here are two names that Rutherford said are up for consideration and some others who could fit that script.
The 60-year-old is on the market after a brutal season with the New York Rangers. But he won a Cup under Rutherford with the Carolina Hurricanes back in 2006, so the familiarity is there.
Laviolette has spent most of his coaching career on the East Coast, but he also worked in Nashville. Would the Massachusetts native consider the white-hot spotlight of a Canadian market for the first time in his career?
Coach Rick Tocchet Explains Why He's Leaving The Vancouver CanucksVancouver Canucks coach Rick Tocchet decided not to return to the team for next season.
In his first year behind the bench with the AHL's Abbotsford Canucks, Malhotra served up the hottest streak in the history of any Vancouver team affiliate down the stretch and now has his team into the second round of the Calder Cup playoffs.
A seventh-overall pick in the 1998 NHL draft who established a reputation as a responsible two-way center and faceoff ace, Malhotra played 159 of his 991 career NHL games with the Canucks.
Malhotra also has seven years of experience as an NHL coach — three seasons under Travis Green in Vancouver, and four under Sheldon Keefe in Toronto.
“Based on the job he did (in Abbotsford) and the experience he has in the league, he will certainly be on the short list,” Rutherford said.
Abbotsford’s previous bench boss is also young, articulate and collected 205 games of NHL experience with the Chicago Blackhawks when he was elevated after Joel Quenneville’s shock firing in 2018.
Looking for more opportunity at the NHL level, he signed on as Keefe’s assistant with the New Jersey Devils for 2024-25 — which means his season ended on Tuesday night.
Organizations usually won’t stand in the way of assistants interviewing for head-coaching jobs. Could Colliton return to the West Coast? And could that Devils connection possibly help untangle the knotty Hughes brothers situation that now lingers in the background of every organizational decision?
After guiding Sweden to back-to-back gold medals at the 2017 and 2018 World Championships, Gronborg had major momentum to become the first Swede with an NHL head-coaching job. But it didn’t happen.
Gronborg went to Switzerland, then Finland, and Anders Sorensen earned the honor when the Blackhawks tapped him as the interim replacement for Luke Richardson earlier this season.
The Canucks have had a strong Swedish connection for decades. With Patrik Allvin overseeing a crucial mission to get Elias Pettersson back to being his best self, Gronborg could help. Before joining the Canucks, Pettersson was part of that gold-winning 2018 squad at worlds.
How Bad Can It Get For The Vancouver Canucks?Imagine you’re a Vancouver Canucks fan at the end of the 2023-24 season.
Let’s be clear: this is a massive long shot.
The two-time world junior gold medalist with Team USA and two-time Frozen Four champ with the University of Denver has a sparkling resume. But the 35-year-old has made it clear he’s not looking to leave the Pioneers unless it’s for an exceptional opportunity. That means solid compensation, stability for his young family and a real chance to win.
Carle is already rumored to have turned down the Blackhawks. Even though he was born in Alaska and might appreciate the rugged geography around Vancouver, the scrutiny and criticism that comes with playing in a Canadian market is probably not especially appealing.
Two other NCAA coaches are currently carrying some buzz for NHL jobs: Pat Ferschweiler from the Frozen Four-champion Western Michigan Broncos and two-time Cup winner Jay Pandolfo, who coaches Canucks prospects Tom Willander and Aiden Celebrini in the strong Boston University program.
When Rutherford arrived in Vancouver late in 2021, he quickly broke down gender barriers by hiring Emilie Castonguay and Cammi Granato as assistant GMs. Both are still with the team, and the Canucks’ player development and scouting has improved under Granato’s watch.
So don’t rule out the possibility that Rutherford could bring in the NHL’s first woman coach — especially after seeing Campbell work her magic against his team as an assistant with the Seattle Kraken this season.
The Kraken are also coach-hunting after cutting ties with Dan Bylsma, so that could be a more natural fit. But don’t rule out the prospect of Campbell interviewing in Vancouver.
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