Kyle Dubas and Jason Spezza's reactions to O'Reilly's goal to force OT and Rielly's goal to win Game 3 were amazing
I don't know about the rest of you, but after that thrilling come-from-behind win by the Leafs last night, I was chock full of energy and had a hard time sleeping. The Buds didn't look like the better team for much of the night, but they never gave up in that game and, eventually, their patience, poise and determination paid off as they came back from a 3-2 deficit in the third to, first, force overtime and then seal the deal in the late stages of the first OT period.
Kyle Dubas and Jason Spezza, like all of us, want nothing more than to see the Leafs get the monkey off their backs and escape the first round for the first time in nearly 20 years. Dubas' job might very well be riding on this year's postseason run and for Jason Spezza, he was an actual member of the team last year. Being so closely removed from his retirement, he's very much living vicariously through his teammates right now. So, naturally, while all of us were celebrating last night's win from our couches, or from our favourite sports bar, or even from Maple Leafs Square, Dubas and Spezza were doing the same from their box seats at Amalie Arena in Tampa.
Spezza and Dubas are all of us. Just take a quick look at these clips of the two execs celebrating Ryan O'Reilly's 3rd period marker to force overtime and then celebrating Morgan Rielly's eventual OT winner.
I'm not going to lie - seeing how fired up Dubas and Spezza were last night makes me want to run through a wall. In Dubas' case, he was even mixing it up with Lightning fans, engaging in heated verbal exchanges. Is it professional? Maybe not, but Dubas is a human as well and he has the same human emotions that we all have. Sometimes, even if you're an NHL executive, if someone is out of line, they need to be put in check. It was wild to see Dubas go that far in enemy territory. He's just as invested as anyone and, in a lot of ways, even more invested in the outcome of this series. Love the fire. Love the passion.
