Apr 8, 2025; Sunrise, Florida, USA; Florida Panthers defenseman Gustav Forsling (42) celebrates with teammates after scoring against the Toronto Maple Leafs during the first period at Amerant Bank Arena. Mandatory Credit: Sam Navarro-Imagn Images
The Toronto Maple Leafs were looking to extend their win streak to five games on Tuesday night in Florida.
Instead, they were served a humbling 3-1 loss by a playoff-ready Panthers team that outworked, outshot, and outmuscled them from the opening puck drop.
“It's always physical. We expect that when we come in here that it's going to be a hard battle. And, yeah, so we knew it was going to be like this. We tried to push back, but I think we didn't do a good enough job,” said forward Matthew Knies after the loss. “I think our physicality... I think we were a little bit soft in some areas and not through the full 60. So, yeah, we're going to have to learn to do that when it comes to playoff time.”
The Leafs knew what was coming — they’ve faced the Panthers enough to understand the level of play required. But that understanding didn’t translate to execution. Despite entering the third period tied 1-1, Toronto was outshot 37-18, outhit 43-29, and lost the faceoff battle 29-13. They also gave the puck away 18 times — more than double Florida’s seven.
“They wanted it more than us,” said head coach Craig Berube post-game. “It starts in a face-off circle. They're 70% tonight. To me, it just comes down to competitiveness and digging in more. They seemed like a more desperate team than us.”
“We need to respond (tomorrow). We've got to be better than we were tonight, that's for sure,” he added.
Knies furthered his point, noting that the Leafs lacked ‘juice,’ and were slow to puck races – failing to play simple hockey. If not for the steady presence of Joseph Woll, who made 34 saves and kept the Leafs in the game far longer than they probably deserved, the score could have been far worse.
“I just think we need to talk more. Have a little bit more juice, and I think we were just a little slow to pucks. Obviously, we weren't creating much offense, so I think that kind of bummed us a little bit. I think we've just got to know that simple hockey is what's going to create the offense for us and create that juice,” said Knies.
With just five games left in the regular season, Toronto sits at 47-26-4 with 98 points – only two points ahead of the Tampa Bay Lightning, who they’ll face on Wednesday in another important matchup.
“I think we're all hungry and eager to prove that this game was just a fluke, and I think that we can do a lot better, and we want to prove that tomorrow,” said Knies.
“These are important games. It's good that we get to get right back at it. Tomorrow night's important. It's important that we get focused and do what we've got to do tonight to prepare to play tomorrow. Important games down the stretch,” added defenseman Morgan Rielly.
Toronto finished the season series against Florida with a 1-3-0 record, outscored 13-7. Since the tail end of the 2022-23 campaign, the Panthers are now 10-3-2 against the Maple Leafs – a record that looms larger should the two teams meet again in the playoffs.
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