Fifty-four wins. One hundred and fifteen points. Sixty goals and a new franchise record for Auston Matthews. By many measurements, 2021-22 was a historically good season for the Toronto Maple Leafs.
And to celebrate these many achievements, they get… a date with the back-to-back Stanley Cup Champions with everything on the line.
The Tampa Bay Lightning have a rare opportunity for some historic feats of their own. Should they complete the championship three-peat, they’d be the first NHL franchise since the New York Islanders dynasty of 40 years ago to win the Cup three straight years. (The Islanders, of course, won it four times to usher in the 1980s.)
Remarkably, this is the first time these Atlantic foes will meet in the playoffs. And if there’s one word to describe this series, it’s offence. This should be fun.
HEAD-TO-HEAD RECORD
Maple Leafs: 2-2-0
Lightning: 2-1-1
THE BREAKDOWN
Over the course of 82 games, the Maple Leafs put together the most dominant season in the franchise’s 105-year history, racking up a plus-60 goal differential, putting on a masterclass in power-play performance, and playing the most complete hockey we’ve seen from this core.
13 Toronto Maple Leafs set career highs in points this season: Auston Matthews, Mitchell Marner, William Nylander, Michael Bunting, Alexander Kerfoot, Pierre Engvall, Ilya Mikheyev, David Kämpf, Timothy Liljegren, Justin Holl, Rasmus Sandin, Ilya Lyubushkin, and Nick Abruzzese.
And yet, even before the puck dropped to open the season, it’s been clear that the success of this team won’t really begin to be measured until game No. 83. If you love (or hate) the Leafs, you already know the recent record – five straight playoff berths, five straight first-round exits, and a particularly painful series collapse against the Canadiens last spring that still hasn’t lost its sting.
That their path to playoff redemption now goes through the champs feels like an almost cruel joke from the hockey gods, but Leafs head coach Sheldon Keefe insists they prefer it this way.
“They have elite players at all positions, great depth, great experience,” Keefe said of the Lightning Friday night. “It’s a great challenge.
“When I look at our group, I think, the harder, the better. That's what we need.”
If their regular-season series this year is any indication, we’re in for goals in this matchup. Many, many goals. Four meetings yielded a combined 28 markers, with Tampa outscoring Toronto 16-12. A pair of April meetings saw them exchange blowouts, while their regular-season series finale saw them exchange blows as things got mighty chippy – surely, a sign of emotions to come.
Compare their cores, and you’ll see a lot of similarities: Sharp shooters up front with a skill-heavy top six depth that does not go unnnoticed, a blue line led by a blue-chip skater with the ability to quarterback the power-play, and a goalie that can get hot.
Both teams were big buyers at the trade deadline, their respective approaches making clear their playoff priorities – the Maple Leafs prioritized the blue line with the acquisition of Mark Giordano, who brings more veteran know-how to this group, while the Lightning found a pair of forwards in Nick Paul and Brandon Hagel to fill the void left by last year’s clutch checking line of Yanni Gourde, Barclay Goodrow, and Blake Coleman.
ADVANCED STATS
(5-on-5 totals via Natural Stat Trick)
REGULAR SEASON TEAM STATS
Maple Leafs X-Factor: Depth scoring
It goes without saying that for the Leafs to get past the champs, they need top scorers Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner to lead the way. The duo combined for just one goal between them last spring against the Canadiens, and a similar effort this year would surely result in a short series.
But superstar scorers won’t be what separates the Leafs and Lightning, considering Tampa’s own stable of elite goal-scorers. The difference will need to come down to depth – and in that regard, Toronto has really stepped things up.
Breakout seasons for players like Pierre Engvall, Ilya Mikheyev, and David Kampf have allowed Keefe to fill out a solid bottom-six that’s tough to play against – a season-long mission for Toronto brass – while the emergence of Michael Bunting on the top line has been a game-changer when it comes to the line combos at Keefe’s disposal.
Lightning X-Factor: Andrei Vasilevskiy
Goaltending has been a massive talking point in Toronto, with concerns about whether Jack Campbell can be the man to backstop this team through a long post-season run – and if he’ll be able to stay healthy enough to try. Over in Tampa, however, no one questions the man in the blue paint.
There is no better goaltender when it comes to the playoffs than Vasilevskiy. Between 2020’s Cup Final series and Tampa’s run to repeat as champs last year, the netminder registered five straight shutouts in series-clinching games. Over the past two springs combined, he registered an otherworldly 1.90 goals against average. If he picks up that pace again, Toronto could really be in trouble.
BROADCAST DETAILS
Monday, May 2: at Toronto, 7:30 p.m. ET (Sportsnet/CBC) Wednesday, May 4: at Toronto, 7:30 p.m ET (Sportsnet/CBC) Friday, May 6: at Tampa Bay, 7:30 p.m. ET (Sportsnet/CBC) Sunday, May 8: at Tampa Bay, 7 p.m. ET (Sportsnet/CBC) *Tuesday, May 10: at Toronto *Thursday, May 12: at Tampa Bay *Saturday, May 14: at Toronto
One round of watching 2022 NFL Draft live streams online in, and we've had more than a few surprises. Here's how to watch the rest of the picks.
2022 NFL Draft live stream: Date, start time
NFL Draft dates: Thursday (April 28) through Saturday (April 30) NFL Draft times: 7 p.m. ET today (Friday), 12 p.m. ET on Saturday. Channels: ESPN, ABC and the NFL Network ► U.S. —Sling (ESPN and NFL Network) and fubo (all three channels) ► Watch anywhere — Try ExpressVPN 100% risk free
Breaking news: ESPN is reporting that the Titans are planning to trade WR A.J. Brown to the Eagles. At #13, the Eagles picked Jordan Davis-DT, Georgia. Detroit picked Jameson Wilson-WE out of Alabama. The 11th pick is now going to New Orleans: Chris Olave-WR from Ohio State. The Jets picked Garrett Wilson-WR of Ohio State. The Seattle Seahawks took Charles Cross-OT of Mississippi State. Atlanta's pick is Drake London-WR out of USC.
Before them, at #3, Houston picked is Derek Stingley Jr.-CB of LSU. For Detroit's pick, they took Aidan Hutchinson-DE out of Michigan. The Jaguars' first pick was Travon Walker-DE from Georgia. Also, The NY Giants are no longer picking up Daniel Jones' 5th year option. Sounds like the G-Men are shopping for QBs tonight.
Trying to figure out what channel you should watch it on? ESPN will have Mike Greenberg as host, and assisted by Mel Kiper Jr., Louis Riddick, Booger McFarland and Chris Mortensen. Over on ABC there's Reece Davis assisted by Kirk Herbstreit, Desmond Howard, Todd McShay, Jesse Palmer, Sam Ponder and Robert Griffin III. Sunday will see a combined group on both networks, with Davis, Kiper, McShay, Mortensen and Riddick. The NFL Network has Rich Eisen supported by Charles Davis, Daniel Jeremiah, David Shaw, Kurt Warner and others.
Here's how to watch NFL Draft 2022 wherever you are.
How to watch the 2022 NFL Draft live stream from anywhere on Earth
Don't worry if you're out of the country, because you can keep using the streaming services you already pay for to watch an NFL Draft 2022 live stream anywhere in the world. With the help of a virtual private network (VPN), you can watch all three days of the draft, without being thwarted by geo-fenced restrictions.
Our pick for the best VPN is ExpressVPN. Not only does it deliver fast internet speeds, but it's also incredibly simply to use. It also works on practically any device, from iOS and Android to streaming devices such as the Amazon Fire TV Stick and Apple TV and game consoles like PlayStation 4 and Xbox One.
How to watch 2022 NFL Draft live streams in the US
(Image credit: Shutterstock)
Folks in America have a pretty good shot of watching the NFL Draft 2022 live stream on the channel of their choice — or at least one that doesn't cost much to get. Since the 2022 NFL Draft is on ABC, ESPN and the NFL Network, it's available on almost every service, including Sling TV, YouTube TV, Fubo TV and DirecTV Stream.
Of these options, we recommend Sling TVand Fubo TV. Sling gives you a couple of options for catching the NFL Draft 2022 live stream: if you sign up to Sling Orange, you can watch the Draft on ESPN, whereas if you go for Sling Blue you can tune in to the NFL Network's coverage. Blue and Orange packages cost $35 a month, or you can get them together for $50 a month.
Fubo is our other recommendation here because it has ABC, which Sling (our pick for the best cable TV alternative and one of the best streaming services) doesn't. That said, it's likely going to provide a broader analysis than ESPN or the NFL Network.
How to watch 2022 NFL Draft live streams online in the UK
(Image credit: Shutterstock)
Our friends across the pond will watch the draft on Sky Sports, which brings back Sky Sports NFL (replacing Sky Sports Action on channel 407 for the occasion). All three days of the draft will air live.
How to watch 2022 NFL Draft live streams online in Canada
(Image credit: Shutterstock)
Canadians have multiple options for how to watch the NFL Draft 2022 live stream online. For round 1, you can check out TSN, which is available via TSN.ca and the TSN app.
Thursday's round 1 coverage will be at 8 p.m. ET (with pre-show coverage starting at 7 p.m.) on TSN1.
For the rest of the rounds (which aren't in the TSN schedule), ABC affiliates in Canada will also broadcast the draft, and Canadians with the NFL Network can also watch there.
How to watch 2022 NFL Draft live streams online in Australia
(Image credit: Shutterstock)
ESPN, via Foxteland Kayo Sports will let you watch the NFL Draft live streams — for every single pick. Kayo offers new subscribers a 14-day free trial, while one-month subscriptions start at $25.
You can also use one of the best VPN services to follow the action from your home country even when you're elsewhere.
LONDON (AP) — Tennis great Boris Becker was sentenced to 2 1/2 years in prison on Friday for illicitly transferring large amounts of money and hiding assets after he was declared bankrupt.
The three-time Wimbledon champion was convicted earlier this month on four charges under the Insolvency Act and had faced a maximum sentence of seven years in prison.
Judge Deborah Taylor announced the sentence after hearing arguments from both the prosecutor and Becker's attorney.
The 54-year-old German was found to have transferred hundreds of thousands of pounds (dollars) after his June 2017 bankruptcy from his business account to other accounts, including those of his ex-wife Barbara and estranged wife Sharlely “Lilly” Becker.
Becker was also convicted of failing to declare a property in Germany and hiding an 825,000 euro ($871,000) bank loan and shares in a tech firm.
The jury at Southwark Crown Court in London acquitted him on 20 other counts, including charges that he failed to hand over his many awards, including two Wimbledon trophies and an Olympic gold medal.
Becker, wearing a striped tie in Wimbledon’s purple and green colors, walked into the courthouse hand in hand with girlfriend Lilian de Carvalho Monteiro.
The six-time Grand Slam champion has denied all the charges, saying he had cooperated with trustees tasked with securing his assets — even offering up his wedding ring — and had acted on expert advice.
At Friday's sentencing hearing, prosecutor Rebecca Chalkley said Becker had acted “deliberately and dishonestly” and that he was “still seeking to blame others."
Defense attorney Jonathan Laidlaw argued for leniency, saying his client hadn't spent money on a “lavish lifestyle” but rather on child support, rent and legal and business expenses. Becker, he told the court, has experienced “public humiliation” and has no future earnings potential.
Becker’s bankruptcy stemmed from a 4.6 million euro ($5 million) loan from a private bank in 2013, as well as about $1.6 million borrowed from a British businessman the year after, according to testimony at the trial.
During the trial Becker, said his $50 million career earnings had been swallowed up by payments for an “expensive divorce” and debts when he lost large chunks of his income after retirement.
Becker rose to stardom in 1985 at the age of 17 when he became the first unseeded player to win the Wimbledon singles title and later rose to the No. 1 ranking. He has lived in Britain since 2012.
The Montreal Canadiens secured the top odds in next month's NHL Draft lottery on Wednesday despite snapping a nine-game losing streak.
The Canadiens, who defeated the New York Rangers 4-3, clinched last place in the NHL as the Arizona Coyotes defeated the Dallas Stars in overtime later in the night. The Canadiens could still match the Coyotes at 55 points, but have two less regulation/overtime wins than Arizona.
The Montreal Canadiens clinch last place in the NHL 294 days after being in the Stanley Cup Final. pic.twitter.com/FYJe0DeMKE
Montreal - the draft's host city this year - will have an 18.5 per cent chance of selecting first overall in July's draft and can fall no further than to the third overall selection. The Coyotes are locked in to 31st in the league standings and will have a 13.5 per cent chance of winning the draft lottery.
The Seattle Kraken currently sit third-last in the standings but could pass the Philadelphia Flyers over their final two games. One of those two clubs will have an 11.5 per cent chance in the lottery, while the team that finishes 29th in the standings will enter with a 9.5 per cent of winning the top pick.
Under the new rules for this season, no team can move up more than 10 selections and only the top two picks will be decided by the draft lottery.
Kingston Frontenac centre Shane Wright sat atop TSN Hockey Insider Bob McKenzie's mid-season draft ranking, with nine of 10 scouts surveyed ranking the Burlington, Ont., native first overall. Russian winger Ivan Miroshnichenko was the only other prospect to receive a first-place vote.
In today’s links, Arizona helps out the Habs, Price’s visit to the doctor could be cause for concern, Habs look to end the season on a high note, Schueneman heads to Laval for the playoffs, and are the Wild hot enough to go all the way?
The Vegas Golden Knights will see their season end earlier than they have come to expect, and with the disappointment could bring forth some interesting decisions.
Before losing 4-3 in a shootout to the Chicago Blackhawks, the Golden Knights' fate was sealed after the Dallas Stars earned a point in regulation which allowed them to clinch the final berth to the Stanley Cup Playoffs. It is the first time since entering the league in 2017 that Vegas failed to reach the post-season.
For a team that was one of the top contenders in the Western Conference, it didn't take long for the disappointment to sink for the players and head coach Pete DeBoer.
"I'm surprised. I'm disappointed. I'm at the front of the line for responsibility," DeBoer told reporters after the game. "There’s a lot of expectations on this team. It's not an easy thing, and it doesn't feel good for anybody right now."
The Golden Knights had a tough hill to climb if they were going to reach the playoffs and the players know that failing to meet expectations could lead to some changes. This is a team that hasn't been afraid of making big shakeups in hopes of keeping themselves in contention.
“A lot of decisions will be at this point kind of out of the players’ control, but you got to expect when a team underperforms the way we have this year, all bets are off,” Max Pacioretty told Ben Gotz of the Las Vegas Review-Journal. “We know we have what it takes in this room to win. There’s still no excuse for the position we’re in right now.”
Injuries were a big story for the Golden Knights this season as they lost close to 500 man-games this season, especially to core players like Pacioretty, captain Mark Stone, Alec Martinez, starting goaltender Robin Lehner and blockbuster acquisition Jack Eichel.
Another wrinkle that Vegas will have to deal with is the fact that they project to be roughly $1.3 million over the salary cap and will once again have to find a way to keep owner Bill Foley's championship ambitions going.
Nashville Predators head coach John Hynes did not provide an update on Juuse Saros' status after the star goaltender left Tuesday's game against the Calgary Flames with an apparent injury.
Saros looked to be limping as he skated off of the ice and headed to the dressing room with 6:32 remaining in the third period.
"I don't have any update on him," Hynes told reporters after the game. "He's still getting evaluated. I haven't talked to the trainer or anything yet, so we'll probably have more on that tomorrow."
David Rittich came on in relief and gave up the game-tying goal from Matthew Tkachuk with a second left on the clock in regulation and conceded the winner in overtime as Elias Lindholm found the back of the net as Calgary completed a 5-4 comeback victory.
Saros, who played in his first All-Star Game this season, has posted a career-high 38 wins during the 2021-22 campaign as well as a 2.64 goals-against average and .918 save percentage.
Nashville (44-29-7) has clinched a playoff berth and has two regular-season games remaining.
The Predators are tied with the Dallas Stars in the Western Conference wild-card standings with 95 points each.
The young Dallas superstar had 33 points and 13 rebounds while also being thrown to the court on a hard foul that led to Hassan Whiteside's ejection as the Mavericks routed the Jazz 102-77 on Monday night for a 3-2 lead in their first-round series.
Doncic made his series debut in Game 4 at Utah, when the Jazz scored the last five points in the final 31 seconds for a one-point win that evened the series. He never let Game 5 get close.
``For his second game, it looks like he's been playing this whole series,'' coach Jason Kidd said. ``His conditioning, his effort on the defensive end. As we talk about rebounding, he's one of the best for us and he did that tonight.''
After the first four games were decided by eight points or less, Utah never had a chance after a nearly six-minute scoreless drought in the second quarter that fueled a 22-4 Dallas run on the way to a 52-36 halftime lead.
Game 6 is Thursday night in Salt Lake City, with the Jazz regaining their formidable home-court edge, but facing the long odds of just 18% of teams winning a series after dropping the fifth game when the teams split the first four.
The Mavericks haven't advanced in the postseason since winning the 2011 championship. Utah is in the playoffs for the sixth consecutive year, but has yet to get past the second round in that stretch.
Jordan Clarkson scored 20 points and Rudy Gobert added 17 points and 11 rebounds in the lowest-scoring game for the Jazz since they lost by 50 at Dallas (118-68) on Nov. 14, 2018. They were 3 of 30 from 3-point range (10%) and shot 38% overall.
Donovan Mitchell, who averaged 30 points in the first four games, scored just nine and missed all seven of his 3-pointers before leaving with a left hamstring injury in the fourth quarter. He will get an MRI on Tuesday.
``They've scrambled extremely hard,'' said Mitchell, who is shooting 20% from 3-point range after being well over 40% the past two playoff years. ``It's a lot to continuously run teams off the line, and they've done a good job of it. They've made us uncomfortable.''
Doncic had already matched Utah's entire output in the third quarter with 19 points when he returned midway through the fourth. Whiteside challenged an attempted dunk and flung Doncic to the court after they got tangled up.
Whiteside was assessed two technical fouls after shoving Dorian Finney-Smith and going nose-to-nose with Reggie Bullock as coaches from both sides frantically tried to keep players separated. Finney-Smith and Bullock also got technicals, and Bullock was ejected because it was his second of the game.
``It was nothing,'' Doncic said. ``It's playoffs, man. There's going to be always attention, but it was nothing. I tried to dunk it. Wasn't successful. These things happen in the playoffs.''
Jalen Brunson, who carried most of the offensive load for Dallas when Doncic was sidelined, scored 24 points. Finney-Smith added 13, and Dwight Powell got the crowd going early with all eight of his points on 4-of-4 shooting in the first.
Doncic, his left calf covered in a black wrap under white leggings, kept a raucous crowd rolling with several nifty moves and high-arcing 3-pointers.
The first highlight came late in the first half when Doncic drove all the way to the rim with Gobert guarding him, stopped and faked the 7-foot-1 center several times before turning his back to the basket and spinning a reverse layup off the glass and in as Gobert fouled him.
The exclamation point was in the third quarter, when Doncic hit consecutive 3s for a 74-46 lead, doing a shimmy in front of the fans to his left after the second one went in. The 23-year-old sensation swished another 3 for a 79-46 lead right after blocking Clarkson's shot from deep.
DEJA VU ALL OVER AGAIN
It's the second year in a row for the Mavericks to have a 3-2 lead in the first round. They couldn't finish off the Los Angeles Clippers at home in Game 6 last season, losing the series in Game 7 at LA.
``I don't even remember that,'' Finney-Smith said before smiling. ``I don't even remember last year. Nah, but we put ourselves in a great spot. We've just got to handle our business in Utah.''
TIP-INS
Jazz: After dominating the boards in the first two games, Utah has slowly surrendered its edge as the series has progressed. The Mavs outrebounded them 49-40. ... Bojan Bogdanovic, who scored 26 and 25 points in the first two games in Dallas, was 0 of 9 from the field and scored just two.
Mavericks: The 77 points were the first allowed by Dallas this season. ... G Frank Ntilikina was available for the first time in the series after being out with a non-COVID-19 illness. He didn't play.
This is going to be quick. I have squash in half an hour. I didn’t think I’d get to see the end of the game before having to leave.
Bo Bichette picked a perfect moment to come out of his slump. Tie game, eighth inning, bases loaded (Espinal, Zimmer (bunt single) and Springer all singled to load the bases), and Bo goes the other way for a grand slam. Before that, he was 0 for 3 with a strikeout and the talk in the GameThread was moving him down in the order.
May I say that putting the pitcher you just called up, only because you had pitchers that couldn’t come into Canada, into a tie game in the eighth inning seems....I’m not sure the right word. Either stupid or hopeful.
All our runs came on home runs. Lourdes Gurriel, in the fifth, and Matt Chapman, in the seventh, had solo shots.
Nathan Eovaldi was very good for the Red Sox. He gave up just 5 hits, and no walks, in 7 innings. Tyler Danish wasn’t good.
Jose Berrios didn’t look good at the start of the game. He gave up two rockets in the first inning, hit at 104.9 and 103.3, but both caught. He seemed to be having trouble finding the zone, and when he did, that ball was hit hard. But Tapia, Springer and Zimmer are an outstanding outfield. George Springer made a fantastic catch, going back and towards left field on a well-hit fly ball.
As the game went along, Berrios got better. He went 7 innings, allowed 5 hits, 1 walk with 4 strikeouts. Unfortunately, two hits came to start up the eighth inning, and he was pulled.
Adam Cimber came in. The Red Sox had Kevin Plawecki bunt the runners to second and third. An Enrique Hernandez single and an Alex Verdugo sac fly scored the runners and tied the game.
Thankfully Bo untied it in the bottom of the inning.
Julian Merryweather pitched the ninth, giving up one hit but then shut things down.
Jays of the Day: Berrios (.277 WPA), and Bo (.111). I thought Bo’s number would be higher, but he could have helped the team with a hit earlier in the game.
NEW YORK -- Jayson Tatum was stunned, yet certain. He disagreed with his sixth foul but had no doubt the Boston Celtics, with their rock-solid defense, would hold on without their scoring star.
``Couldn't believe it at all, but I think that's what we're built for,'' Tatum said.
They might be built for a championship.
Tatum scored 29 points, Jaylen Brown had 22 and the Celtics completed a four-game sweep of the Brooklyn Nets, becoming the first team to reach the second round of the playoffs with a 116-112 victory Monday night.
Marcus Smart added 20 points and 11 assists for the No. 2-seeded Celtics, who made easy work of what was thought could be a tough series. Boston will wait for the winner of the series between Milwaukee and Chicago, where the defending champion Bucks hold a 3-1 lead.
The Celtics showed no fear of the Nets, who with Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving didn't have the profile of the typical low seed. Boston won on the final day of the regular season instead of losing to fall down the standings and avoid the matchup.
Turns out, there was no reason to worry.
``It's funny to us, because we don't duck and dodge anybody,'' Smart said. ``We knew what we were going to come in here and do.''
Durant had 39 points, nine assists and seven rebounds, breaking free after the Celtics had defended him well in the first three games. But he couldn't get the Nets the win they needed to extend what instead goes down as a massive failure of a season.
Expected to be an NBA Finals contender, the Nets needed a strong finish just to grab the No. 7 seed.
Seth Curry scored 23 points for the Nets. Irving, whose unavailability for home games much of the season because he isn't vaccinated against the coronavirus contributed to the Nets performing so far below expectations, had 20 points.
``A lot of stuff that may factor into why we lose, but they were just a better team,'' Durant said.
The Celtics were under .500 at the midpoint of their season but went 31-10 from there, with Tatum emerging as the potent scorer on one of the NBA's best defensive teams.
That defense limited Durant to just 19-for-52 shooting with 17 turnovers through the first three games and made it tough for him, even as he finally got more shots to drop Monday. He was only 13 of 31 from the field, 3 for 11 behind the arc.
He lost in the first round for the first time since 2010 with Oklahoma City, the first playoff series of his career. He had won nine straight first-round series.
Tatum had 12 points in the third quarter and the Celtics opened a 90-75 lead in the closing seconds of the period. But he went to the bench with a fifth foul with 8:17 remaining and the Nets made a push that got them within three points about three minutes later.
Tatum fouled out with the Celtics leading by six with 2:48 to play. Irving made a 3-pointer and Durant scored to cut it to 109-108 with 1:28 remaining. But after a basket by Brown, Durant could only make one free throw and the Celtics rushed down the floor, with Al Horford putting back Smart's miss to make it 113-109 with 13 seconds left.
With Durant, Irving and James Harden, the Nets began the season as a team that looked potent enough to win their first NBA title. But Irving didn't play at all to begin the season, and not long after he came back playing road games only, Harden became unhappy and the Nets dealt him to Philadelphia in a trade for Ben Simmons.
The Nets hoped they could have Simmons make his debut for them in Game 4, but he was ruled out Sunday with more pain in his back that has troubled him since not long after arriving in a midseason trade with Philadelphia.
Irving said his emotions were ``disappointment, a little sadness, because we didn't play as well as a team as we wanted to.''
The Nets were down only 45-44 with 3:29 to play in the second quarter. But Grant Williams made three 3-pointers from then until the end of the half, with the final one giving Boston a 58-50 lead.
TIP-INS
Celtics: Boston swept its first-round series for the third time in four years. The Celtics beat Indiana in four games in 2019 and Philadelphia in 2020 at Walt Disney World. They lost 4-1 in the first round to the Nets last season. ? Williams scored 14 points and Horford had 13.
Nets: Bruce Brown scored just two points after having 26 and 23 in the previous two games, the first time he had consecutive 20-point games in his career. ? Nic Claxton scored 13 points. He was 6 for 6 from the field but 1 for 11 at the free throw line, missing his first 10 before making the last one when the Celtics fouled him intentionally.
SIMMONS SITUATION
Coach Steve Nash said he didn't want to speak for Simmons, but acknowledged there was a mental side beyond the physical problems he is facing. Simmons cited mental health concerns as a reason he sought to leave Philadelphia and didn't suit up for the 76ers this season.
``I think Ben has addressed that there is a mental component with what he's going through, but how much and where he's at with that is not for me to speak about,'' Nash said. ``But as far as an organization, we're really pushing to support Ben in any way we can to help him improve physically and get back on the court, and then the mental side of that is part and parcel. They're not separate, they're not something that we don't want to deal with. We want to help if he needs help in any aspect of his life and his game.''
The Toronto Maple Leafs got Auston Matthews back in the lineup tonight, but they were unable to snap the Florida Panthers’ (now) 13-game winning streak, dropping a tight game by a score of 3-2 in overtime.
The Leafs re-inserted Matthews into the lineup but quickly lost Michael Bunting to an injury during the contest. Despite losing their top-line LW early on, the Leafs played a strong game, out-chancing/shooting the Panthers and building a 2-0 lead on goals from Mitch Marner and Justin Holl.
Florida’s fearsome offense clawed back in the second period before the brilliance of Sergei Bobrovsky pushed the game to overtime, where Brandon Montour’s winner beat Jack Campbell.
Your game in 10:
1. Tonight’s game got off to a pretty quick start. Not long after we were informed that the HNIC broadcast was delayed due to technical troubles — the Panthers TV broadcast was plugged in temporarily — TJ Brodie intelligently shot a puck off the end boards from the neutral zone and it bounced straight to Mitch Marner, who hammered a shot by Sergei Bobrovsky:
This was not a particularly great goal for Sergei Bobrovsky allow, although it’s another example of Marner’s improved shooting ability. Now up to 35 goals on the season, he continues to obliterate his previous career-high.
It was a hot start for the Leafs, who kept the momentum with a couple more chances pretty quickly after. William Nylander set up Kyle Clifford for a chance but Bobrovsky stood tall:
I thought Clifford and Wayne Simmonds had a solid first period offensively, creating several scoring chances at 5v5 in the game in limited ice time. Those grizzled veterans have had much more jump in the past couple of weeks on the offensive end, which is nice to see.
Unfortunately for tonight, defense was also a problem for them, and they didn’t play much after the first period.
2. The Leafs added a second goal in the first period as they continued to keep the foot on the gas. Florida generated a few looks on Jack Campbell in the opening 20, including a deflected knuckle-puck that rang off the crossbar early, but they didn’t register a shot on goal until the midway point.
Overall, the Leafs were the better team in the first and they scored a second goal as a result of their efforts. Justin Holl sent a diagonal pass into the crease, looking for Pierre Engvall, and it deflected in off the skate of Radko Gudas.
It was a smart play from Holl to put the puck in a dangerous area, and the Puck Luck Gods rewarded him with a goal. Credit to David Kämpf on the play as well for bringing the puck up in transition, establishing possession in the offensive zone, and finding Holl:
Kämpf picked up a primary assist there, his 15th of the season and his 26th point of the year, which is a career-high.
3. One reason for the Maple Leafs’ success in the opening frame may have been their concerted effort to make the game a more dump-and-chase, forechecking-based game. The last meeting of these two teams — the 7-6 Panthers victory in OT back in early April — was an all-out track meet, which is the sort of game the Panthers relish.
Few teams in the league are built to keep up with them, and while I’d argue that the Leafs are pretty well equipped for it, you don’t want the opponent to dictate their preferred style of play. Florida’s absurdly-deep forward group and smooth-skating defensemen mean they thrive in those conditions, and the Leafs were better off getting the Panthers out of their comfort zone.
That’s more or less what they did in the first period, limiting rush chances against, chipping the puck in, and remaining content to play a much more methodical and controlled possession game than last time. The frenetic, heart-stopping pace of the previous meeting was absent for much of this one, although there were still plenty of chances off the cycle for both teams, with the occasional rush mixed in. Overall, the more defensively-sound approach paid dividends for the Leafs.
Another element I liked throughout the game — and first noticed in the opening 20 minutes — were the active defensive sticks of the Maple Leafs. Whether it was forwards backchecking, or defensemen stepping up to challenge shooters, the Leafs routinely got their sticks in the way to block shots or take pucks away. In some cases, like this one from Marner in the third period, it was their bodies, too:
The defensive buy-in from the whole team tonight was superb. As a result, the Panthers didn’t often slice through the Leafs defense and shots on Campbell tended to come from further out.
If you want to know how the Leafs held the NHL’s most explosive offense to 2.11 expected goals in nearly 55 minutes at 5v5 tonight (the Panthers entered tonight averaging 3.29 xGF/60 minutes at 5v5 per Evolving Hockey), it was a schematic effort to slow the game down to cut down on rush chances against as well as a team-wide effort to be in sound defensive positioning and use active sticks to deny passes and shots.
4. The Leafs received two power-play opportunities in this game, both of which came in the stretch of the game from the tail end of the first period to the early second. The first power play didn’t last terribly long before Auston Matthews was hit with a marginal hooking call, but the Leafs still generated two good chances, one of which was this slip pass from AM34 to John Tavares:
Bobrovsky also stopped a Mitch Marner rebound blast upstairs not long after.
The Leafs’ second power play produced a good look for William Nylander out front after a great dig on the forecheck from Tavares before Auston Matthews fired two shots from just inside the circle. Neither went in:
While Toronto didn’t score a PPG in this game, the process looked pretty good. The Leafs generated three scoring chances and two high-danger looks in just over three minutes of PP time per Natural Stat Trick. No major complaints.
5. The second period was not as sharp for the Leafs, who were perhaps a little too passive. They were still trying to slow the game down, but they took a little of the edge off offensively, opening the door for the dangerous Panthers offense to claw back into the game.
Justin Holl slid down the wall in the offensive zone to keep the play alive, but he quickly turned it over. Mason Marchment broke out into the neutral zone and attacked William Nylander, who was playing defense in support of Holl. Nylander’s defensive attempt was, um… not great:
Nylander has to get a piece of Marchment’s body if he’s not going to get any of the puck. Instead, he was basically a traffic cone on the play.
Jack Campbell used a smart poke check to relieve the immediate pressure, but it went right to Aleksander Barkov, who wired it home. Not a lot the goaltender could do on that one.
6. There’s been a lot of focus on the power play recently, which I don’t have major issues with; they scored PPGs in three straight games entering tonight. As I noted earlier, the process looks good.
What I would argue isn’t getting enough attention is the penalty kill. After the Panthers went to their second PP in the later stages of the second period, it didn’t take long at all for the puck to find the back of the net. The Panthers won the opening draw, fed it around to Claude Giroux at the point, and he blasted it through everybody:
Duclair has a picture-perfect screen on Campbell, and Mark Giordano and Alex Kerfoot are also essentially in the same line of vision, making it something of a triple screen on the Toronto netminder. Again, there isn’t much you can expect a goalie to do in those circumstances.
Florida was 1/2 on the PP on the evening, dropping the Leafs’ PK to 27/37 in the month of April, which is just a 73% efficiency. When we account for the Leafs starting the month 4/4 on the kill, they are 23 for their last 33, which is below 70%.
The power kill element of the PK continues to function as the Leafs are still generating offensive looks shorthanded, but too many goals are going in the back of the net. What’s interesting about the PK’s struggles is that they are isolated, with seven of the 10 goals allowed shorthanded in the month of April coming against two teams: Florida and Tampa. The Panthers scored three against the Leafs in the last meeting and one tonight, while the Lightning converted on three power plays on Thursday night.
Last playoffs was a pretty clear example of how the Tampa PP can kill opponents. Still hanging in the memory bank is 2019, when the Leafs ceded seven PPGs on 16 opportunities to Boston.
Considering the path to the Eastern Conference Finals is likely Tampa/Boston followed by Florida, it’s hard to overstate how crucial the PK will be in the playoffs. Right now, it is not getting it done against those calibre of teams. This is one of the storylines I will be monitoring in the final three games.
7. The third period was a strong response from the Maple Leafs after a less than satisfactory second. The Leafs gave up a few looks to the Panthers, but they were firmly the better team. Simply put, the only reason Toronto didn’t win this game in the third was Sergei Bobrovsky.
The Leafs owned the scoring chances 15-9, the high-danger chances 8-3, and the expected goals 1.53-0.73 in the third period, per Natural Stat Trick. They continued to do a good job of slowing down Florida while creating chances for themselves the other way, although the game did open up for a couple minutes with around seven minutes to play.
With Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner joined by William Nylander on the top line, they created oodles of chances. Here was another great one for Matthews:
I thought Matthews looked quite good in his return to the lineup; he was perhaps not totally himself — he usually scores goals — but he didn’t seem obviously hampered by an ailment for most of the game.
John Tavares got a great look on Bobrovsky in the third thanks to a terrific set up starting with Morgan Rielly that was continued by Pierre Engvall and Ilya Mikheyev:
Bobrovsky finished the game with +2.73 goals saved above expected in Evolving Hockey’s numbers and deserves a big pat on the back from his Panthers teammates.
8. The game went in to 3v3 OT, a setting where the Leafs have been mostly pedestrian and the Panthers have been world-beaters. That trend continued tonight.
The Leafs played three poor minutes of OT, routinely failing to execute passes and turning it over — a big no-no in a format where possession is so crucial. They nearly allowed the game-winner right off the jump:
Jack Campbell made that stop to keep the Leafs in it, and they did create a decent look for John Tavares and William Nylander, but after both ended up below the goal line, it was a bad recipe going the other way:
I don’t have much of a take about the overtime having gotten to the point where I basically disregard 3v3. It is a completely different game from playoff hockey, and while it helps Florida in the standings to be 13-2 in OT this season (that’s not a typo), I don’t think it means much of anything for May. Likewise, the Leafs’ 6-6 record in OT doesn’t impact my evaluation of the squad at all knowing there will likely not be a single minute of 3v3 played in the playoffs by any team.
All of that said, should the Leafs find themselves in 3v3 again in the final three games, I think it’s time to question John Tavares‘ effectiveness in overtime. He has more skill than a lot of other forwards on the team, but his skating ability doesn’t excel in the extra open ice. He has been on the ice for both of the Panthers’ game-winners against the Leafs in OT this year.
When the team has Mikheyev, Engvall, Kerfoot, and Blackwell — several of whom are scoring at career-high rates this season — I don’t think Tavares is always one of the best options after Matthews-Marner. In any event, it’s not going to be a relevant discussion point come playoff time anyway.
9. Despite allowing the OT goal, I felt that Jack Campbell had another solid showing in this game. He was calm, confident, and poised in the crease.
I don’t put either of the first two goals on him. It’s hard to fault a goalie for any 3v3 goal allowed, although you’d have liked him to make that pokecheck. While Campbell graded out negatively in the goals saved above expected numbers for the game, he was +1.11 in Natural Stat Trick’s numbers at 5v5 and was positive overall before the 3v3. Fine by me.
Tonight was an intriguing test for him since Campbell’s only bad performance since returning from injury was against this team when he was inserted mid-game after Erik Källgren exited with an injury in the second period. Campbell allowed four goals on 22 shots in that one — the only outing he’s allowed four goals in since he returned — and that came in less than half-the-game.
I excepted that outing from my analysis of him on Thursday because of the extenuating circumstances, and tonight validated my decision to do so. Given the chance to start the game clean (as opposed to coming in while his team was reeling and coughing up a lead), Campbell was in control of the game. That first stop in OT was a highlight, as was this one in the first period:
Jack Campbell went from seeing no shots to stopping four quality scoring chances pic.twitter.com/UZwQpw4nM3
Campbell is now 6-0-1 in his seven starts since returning from injury, with a .915 SV% and a 2.55 GAA in those outings. He’s looked even sharper over the last three — a .932 in those starts — and he’s posted three-straight games with a .910 SV% or better since a span across the COVID pause in December stretching into January. The Leafs’ starting goaltender seems to be rounding into form just in time for the postseason.
10. Now for the bad news: Michael Bunting exited the game in the first period after an awkward play behind the Panthers’ net:
not sure why Bunting left the game but this was one of the last moments of his shift pic.twitter.com/z9mTikg1Op
Bunting’s right ankle bent awkwardly as he fell, and he was seen shaking his right leg as he skated off the ice. He did not return to the game, causing the Leafs to put Clifford and Simmonds on the shelf and essentially use three lines the rest of the way. After the game, Keefe was asked about Bunting’s status:
Sheldon Keefe says it looks like Michael Bunting will miss some time @TSN_Edge
It’s obviously not what we want to hear. That said, we are now in playoff-mode, where the truth about every injury is treated like a state secret that the coaches have taken an oath to protect.
It seems likely to me that Bunting will miss the remainder of the regular season (just shooting from the hip here). The Leafs have been very cautious with both the Matthews injury and the rehab of Jake Muzzin, and I see no reason to believe they will play Bunting again before the playoffs no matter what his actual injury status. Give him nine days off and see if he’s ready to play Game 1 the first week of May.
The situation sucks, but this is hockey and injuries happen. It’s premature to suggest that Bunting will definitely miss playoff games — and this is not meant to be an exercise of fearing the worst — but the Tampa Bay Lightning won a Stanley Cup two years ago with Steven Stamkos missing nearly the entire playoffs. Great teams overcome such things and this won’t be the only injury the team will face if the Leafs are to make a deep run.
I’d like to see the following lines with Bunting out:
Nylander – Matthews – Marner
Kerfoot – Tavares – Mikheyev
Engvall – Kämpf – Blackwell
Clifford – Spezza – Simmonds
(Abruzzese)
That fourth line probably won’t be great, but if they play 6-8 minutes a night, the old goats might have enough jump to give them a few good shifts here and there.
When Nylander jumped up to the top line tonight, it was dynamite: at 5v5, they owned 97% of the xG and dominated the high-danger chances 7-0. Now, there was an extremely high offensive-zone start rate attached, but even with that little advantage, those are still dominant numbers.
The Leafs would still have a gangbusters top line with this configuration, while Kerfoot/Tavares/Mikheyev have posted good metrics together thus far. The third line would be more defensively-focused, but Engvall and Blackwell can chip in a bit of offense.
It’s not ideal, but I think it will be alright (for now). Mixing Abruzzese or even Nick Robertson is an option, too. There is always Ondrej Kaše if he were ever healthy (who knows about that).
If nothing else, this development highlights how quietly big it was for Kyle Dubas to include Colin Blackwell in the Giordano deal. That extra depth comes in handy at times like these.
