On Sunday night, the Toronto Maple Leafs lost yet another game seven to bow out of the playoffs with a 6-1 loss at home to the Florida Panthers. It was the second game in a row that ended 6-1 for the visitors at Scotiabank Arena. What has this got to do with the Montreal Canadiens? The Leafs’ recent history presents a cautionary tale that the Habs’ brass must take notice of.

Anyone who looks at this Leafs roster, even the most fervent Canadiens fans, has to admit that this is a fantastically talented team. Their Core Four or even Core Five, including Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner, William Nylander, John Tavares, and Morgan Reilly, should be winners on paper. Year after year, they rack up a considerable amount of points.

Canadiens: The Grades Are In – Patrik Laine
Canadiens: Potential Right-Shot Defenseman Target
Canadiens: The Grades Are In – Juraj Slafkovsky

Matthews has had two 100-point seasons in the last four seasons, and it would have been more had he stayed healthy. Marner only passed the 100-point mark once in the previous three seasons, but in two other seasons, he came agonizingly close with 99 and 97 points. Nylander has not had a season below 80 points in the last four campaigns. As for Tavares, who was stripped of the captaincy last offseason, he’s had 76, 80, 65, and 74 points in the previous four years. Meanwhile, blueliner Reilly has had 68, 41, 58, and 41 points in those same four years.

What does that tell us? Well, it tells us that talent alone is not enough. Some players will help you win in the regular season, and some will help you win in the postseason. The Leafs, led by Brendan Shanahan, loaded up on the first and forgot about the second. Even when he tried to bring on experienced guys, like Joe Thornton and Patrik Marleau, he didn’t go for guys who have won when it matters most. Neither has raised the Stanley Cup.

While it’s fair to say that young players need to learn to win, that learning curve has to spike at a certain point; it cannot take years to do this. Year after year of heartache and defeat has had this group petrified of pressure and game sevens. They just cannot perform when the heat is on and there’s no tomorrow. The Canadiens, just like the Boston Bruins so often and the Panthers recently, took advantage of that in 2021. The Leafs have lost their last six game seven, and in most cases, they weren’t close games.

That 2021 Canadiens’ edition wasn’t as talented as the Leafs, and its franchise cornerstones, Carey Price and Shea Weber, had never won the biggest prize of them all, but Corey Perry and Eric Staal had. Those players allow you to go far in the playoffs—the guys who have already learned how to win and handle the pressure of do-or-die games.

No matter how talented your young core is, it will need some veteran leadership who has done that. I know Anthony Stolarz won the Cup, but he won it as the Panthers’ backup last season, and he’s a goalie; that’s a whole other story. For a second year in a row, the Edmonton Oilers have made the conference final and happen to have Perry in their lineup. Sure, he only put up 30 points in the regular season, but he’s got seven points in just 11 games in the postseason. As talented as Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl are, they, too, need the experience of a proven winner and someone who will perform when the stakes are high. Leafs torture in chief Brad Marchand is also that kind of player; the former Boston Bruins captain has now beaten the Leafs five times in game seven.

At this stage of the Canadiens’ rebuild, it may be too early to worry about that (although Sam Bennett would tick that box). Still, when this young core is ready to contend, they’ll need experienced winners along for the ride, and I have no doubt GM Kent Hughes watched the Leafs’ repeated debacles and took notes.

Canadiens stories, analysis, breaking news, and more! Tap the star to add us to your favorites on Google News, never to miss a story.  

Follow Karine on X @KarineHains Bluesky @karinehains.bsky.social and Threads @karinehains.

Bookmark The Hockey News Canadiens' page for all the news and happenings around the Canadiens.

The Chicago Blackhawks traded Seth Jones to the Florida Panthers earlier this season. Spencer Knight was the focal point of Chicago’s return, which they are very happy with. 

The Panthers have to be satisfied with what they’ve gotten out of Jones so far, too. Instead of being the number one guy as he was in Chicago, he is succeeding by playing a tad bit lower in the lineup. 

Jones has specifically been great for Florida in the playoffs. On Sunday night, they played Game Seven of their second round matchup against the Toronto Maple Leafs. There, Jones played one of the best games of his NHL career. 

In the first period, there was no scoring but Florida carried the play. It was in the second, however, that the defending Stanley Cup champions did what they do best. 

It was Seth Jones who gave them a 1-0 lead in the game. Evan Rodrigues made a great play to send Jones in on the rush as a defenseman, and he didn’t miss with a beautifully placed shot. 

That was the start of a three-goal frame that gave the Panthers a 3-0 lead. On the third goal, Jones made a brilliant play to avoid being flagged for offside on his zone entry ahead of the puck going in the net. Once he was safely in, he made a play that led to Jonah Gadjovich scoring. 

Before the second period ended, Jones almost had his second goal and third point on a nice power move that he made to the net, but the goal was waved off. The 3-0 lead remained through the next intermission. 

Former Blackhawk Max Domi made it interesting by scoring one 2:07 into the third period. 47 seconds after that, though, the Panthers took the wind right back out of the building again by making it 4-1. Sam Reinhart and Brad Marchand (ENG) made the score 6-1, which ultimately became the final. 

Seth Jones and his huge game helped the Panthers eliminate the Toronto Maple Leafs. The organization is now in the Eastern Conference Finals for the third year in a row. 

With Mitch Marner and John Tavares being pending unrestricted free agents, there is going to be some change in Toronto. With the way things went for them in game seven, there is no way they run it back. This could impact the off-season for Chicago, as well as many other teams around the league. 

Next up for Jones and the Panthers is another team that the Blackhawks were part of a trade with this year. Taylor Hall and the Carolina Hurricanes will host Florida in game one on Tuesday night in Raleigh. That game can be seen on TNT or streamed on MAX. 

Visit The Hockey News Chicago Blackhawks team site to stay updated on the latest news, game-day coverage, player features, and more.