Travis Green went up on the podium after a 6-2 defeat in match 1 and was quick to emphasize that his team was the best club at five in an analytically.
Two days later, after another difficult result for his team, the Ottawa senators coach was again optimistic about how his team had checked the game for long sections of the 3-2 defeat of match 2.
“We are probably deserving a better spell tonight,” said Green, adding: “I really liked the way we played tonight.”
On the one hand, you can see where it comes from. He trains outsiders and his young charges had a lot of washer in this series. Ottawa attempted 148 shots for two games to lead the NHL qualifying series from the start, and they limited Toronto at only 45 shots while generating 61 of their own.
Senators are ahead of essentially all the underlying figures – score chances, expected goals, high chances of danger – but they are late on the rings in the net and win on the board.
As a general rule, you would call it difficult and wait for a team in this situation to continue at home in match 3, perhaps the evening of the series before she returned to Toronto in a week. And it could happen.
But the fact is that the Leafs have done so all the season. That’s who they are. They were exceeded 47 times this season-and they went 33-12-2 in these matches, a rate of 119 points, the best brand in the NHL in this category. They were actually better in the games when they abandoned more.
Part of this is that they really did not continue the excellence of Corsi all year round. Instead, they scored first fairly regularly, pushed into the head by the point halfway in many games, had a great power game and goalkeepers, and were able to hang on to victories again and again.
It was not always pretty. He does not always look lasting or tactically wise. But it is undeniable that it is a formula that has worked now for seven months, because they won a season of 108 points and two other victories here to start the playoffs.
The senators have succeeded more like the Leafs in both games so far. It is not necessarily a bad thing. (Dan Hamilton / Imagn Images)
Hockey Craig Berube has very little resembled Sheldon Keefe Hockey, in terms of gain in style. And we saw a lot of reasons why in match 2, when the Leafs had trouble breaking the washer with control or generating many things for long sections of the night. This allowed Ottawa to repel in the match, overcoming a first 2-0 hole to finally link things late when there was bad communication near Toronto goal which turned into a tip game Adam Gaudette in front of five minutes to play.
Normally, spitting an advance of two goals and playing as bad as the leafs during the second period would be a prolonged concern. But Berube did not panic. He hardly seemed to change his approach, in particular by putting Max Domi at the start of overtime, even if he had struggled to manage the washer in the regulations.
And the coach was awarded a big game for three minutes in the additional frame, Domi delivering the winner, Top Corner.
Apart from the raised issues, it looked a lot like many other Leafs victories this season.
Subsequently, Berube recognized that the second period of his team was not ideal. But he was also satisfied with the way they had played: another solid performance by Netminder Anthony Stolarz, timely goals from his stars and strong box-outs in front of the net of his hard nose D.
The coach went to his local dinner and had ordered “the usual”, in other words.
“The first period was really good,” said Berube. “I really liked our departure. We went out by playing on our toes, arrived at our pre-monuble, we were aggressive, we had a good lead, the power game returned. Second period, I thought it was the best team. We did not make games. In a way, we seemed to protect the head a little and move it forward and move it forward and move to the offensive zone enough.
“The third period was good. We were in good condition. The goal was the first blow that we abandoned in the third period, so we played in the right way and did the right things. It was a mistake and errors happened. But we stayed with her and ended up obtaining victory.”
Berube did not raise his shoulders on the media podium after having delivered these last lines, but he could have. His tone, as usual, was calm and collected. He even made a joke – on the big goals in the playoff series which he had scored during his career (“I’m a couple”) – and added that even if the periods of the game were “frustrating”, driving was part of the plan.
This is explained, this is how you win in the playoffs.
“As a coach, we ask our players to be composed,” said Berube. “I must also be composed. Tell them about things, try to motivate them a little on the bench, make them reactivate, make them skate.”
Blocked plans, game 2:
Toronto – 32
Ottawa – 6– Luke Fox (@lukefoxjukebox) April 23, 2025
The previous problems of the leafs in the playoffs are well documented at this stage, and a large part of the problem over the years is that they have played strong and have lost their way with online games. Throughout this season and so far in this series, they faced the character of their coach, the coach of 3,149 penalty-minute who was much more a coach of puff players than a workman in front in 1 in Toronto.
This did wonders, on the ice and outside, where even through difficult stretches, the leafs were much more relaxed and controlled.
The real test of all this will be when the series goes to its inflection point in the elimination games. It is, as Mitch Marner said after the match, “will become even more difficult.” Until now, however, the Leafs have played their identity and took the first lead from the 2-0 franchise in a 23-year eliminatory series.
And this identity is, without a doubt, that of the man behind the bench.
(Top photo of Auston Matthews: Dan Hamilton / Imagn Images)
