Leafs RD2GM4: Do or Die

Leafs O'Reilly #90 and Matthews #34 in practice
Leafs O'Reilly #90 and Matthews #34 in practice Photo: Maple Leafs Twitter

After three games that haven’t gone to plan for the Leafs, they now find themselves on the brink of elimination. If there were ever a “Do or Die” game, it would be tonight, as a loss means an exit from the 2023 NHL Playoffs. The Leafs have been the team driving more of the offense throughout this series, but they’ve had trouble converting on their chances, while the Panthers have been able to capitalize on Leafs’ mistakes and, ultimately, their own chances as well. The Leafs will look for a strong effort tonight throughout the lineup and hope to solve Bobrovsky, who suddenly looks like a good goalie again.

Leafs Projected Lineup

Panthers Projected Lineup

Forwards

Verhaeghe – Barkov – Duclair

Cousins – Bennett – Tkachuk

Luostarinen – Lundell – Reinhart

White – Staal – Dalpe

Defense

Forsling – Ekblad

Staal – Montour

Mahura – Gudas

Goalies

Bobrovsky

Lyon

Three Things to Look Out For

Woll

Woll found himself playing in relief of Samsonov in game 3, but not due to Samsonov letting in goals and being pulled. After a collision between Schenn and Samsonov, he was injured and unfit to continue the rest of the game. Woll stepped in and played a decent game, but the team wasn’t able to provide offense to help him out all that much. His read on the Overtime goal was a bit slow, but ultimately, it was a decent outing for Woll. If the Leafs want to win tonight, they will likely need Woll to play a solid game tonight as he gets the start between the pipes. Now that Woll has had time to prepare for the start look for him to be a calming presence tonight and hopefully help lead the Leafs to see another day.

Matthews/Marner

Matthews and Marner have been receiving a lot of criticism since round 2 started, and that’s largely because they’ve struggled to convert their chances. It seems like something is off with them, and they can’t buy a goal, but that needs to change if the Leafs want a chance in this series. Ultimately Marner and Matthews both played a big part in getting us through the regular season and into Round 2 and deserve credit for that. Still, ultimately if they’re not producing, the 2nd round will be as far as the Leafs can go. Let’s hope that by putting Jarnkrok with the two, they’ll be able to replicate some of the success they’ve had earlier in the season.

O’Reilly

O’Reilly was brought to Toronto to help push the Leafs past the hump, and he certainly did that, playing a large part in getting them to the second round, but like Matthews and Marner, he has seen fewer results lately himself. O’Reilly, nicknamed “The Factor,” hasn’t been near as much of a factor as he needs to be for this team in the second round, and actually made a crucial mistake last game late that Woll had to bail him out on. Look for O’Reilly to bounce back tonight and have a better game as he looks to once again be “The Factor.”

Tonight’s game starts at 7:00 PM EST on Sportsnet!

Thanks for reading! Feel free to follow me on Twitter @nathan_bondy.

2-0? In THIS Economy? Leafs Late Night

WELCOME BACK TO LEAFS LATE NIGHT! Presented by Inside The RinkRoscoe / Biehner – Shots vs Results- Knock On Wood- Domi's Legacy- Roscoe Rant- Stolarz vs GriegNEW MERCH IS AVAILABLE!JOIN OUR DISCORD!Remember to follow us on Twitter @LeafsLateNight & IG @LeafsLateNightCheck out Mike, Josh, and Nathan's articles on the Leafs + many more! insidetherink.comHow to support us and our sponsors:TicketmasterColumbia Sports ApparelESPN+ SubscriptionFanaticsDraft Kings – CODE ITR
  1. 2-0? In THIS Economy?
  2. The Battle of Ontario: Remastered Edition
  3. Saint Joseph Woll
  4. Vanquishing Rivals of Yesteryear
  5. Lawesome-Tawesome

Discover more from Inside The Rink

Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.

Leave a Reply

Montreal Canadiens Re-Sign Jakub Dobes

The Montreal Canadiens have re-signed goaltender Jakub Dobes to a two-year, one-way contract with an AAV of $965,000. This deal carries him through the 2026-27 season. Dobes played in 30 games last season, splitting his time between the Laval Rocket and Montreal Canadiens. He began the season in Laval, where he went 9-3-1 with a […]

Read More
Steve Yzerman, General Manager of the Detroit Red Wings

Yzerman: This Red Wings Team ‘Can Take a Step’

The Detroit Red Wings currently have $12.09 million in salary cap space after the team acquired goaltender John Gibson from the Anaheim Ducks and acquired free agent left-winger James van Riemsdyk recently. According to general manager Steve Yzerman, the team will likely stand pat right now despite having this amount of cap space. The fact […]

Read More
Tanner Jeannot of the Los Angeles Kings

Player Profile: Tanner Jeannot

Tanner Jeannot was born on May 29, 1997, in Estevan, Saskatchewan. The left-shooting forward played for three seasons with the Estevan Bruins from 2010-13. In his first two seasons with the U15 club, Jeannot scored 29 goals and collected 18 assists in 42 games and five goals and three assists in ten postseason games. Jeannot […]

Read More