Sheldon Keefe and Luke Schenn discuss the Leafs' demeanor ahead of pivotal Game 3 against Florida
Obviously not the start to the second round that the Toronto Maple Leafs were expecting after exorcizing their demons just last week against the Tampa Bay Lightning. The Florida Panthers not only defeated the Presidents Trophy winning Boston Bruins, but they won the final 3 games of the series to overcome a 3-1 deficit before moving on to Round 2 and capturing both games in Toronto to kick things off.
The Panthers return to home-ice tonight, looking for a shocking sweep, while the Leafs re-enter the state of Florida, where they previously won 3 games against the Lightning - all of them in overtime. The only silver lining they can take from their 2 home defeats is that they definitely outplayed the Panthers. However, Sergei Bobrovsky had all the answers, especially late in each of the third periods.
Sheldon Keefe doesn't seem like he's ready to ring the alarm bells just yet:
"The challenge is the challenge and it's pretty obvious of course, but the group feels good and remains confident and optimistic. We're excited to get out on the road, it's a place we've developed some confidence, but it doesn't make it any easier. The puck will drop and the game will be hard and competitive again but we just have to stay with it as a group, minimize our mistakes, stay on the attack and keep shooting."
One of the most experienced players on the team in Luke Schenn has been through this same song and dance before:
"To my knowledge or my experience, I don't think there's ever been a team in the history of the NHL who has gone through the playoffs and had great runs without going through adversity"
Even with their resiliency and strong efforts on the ice, the Leafs never led in Game 1 but had tied the game mid-way through the second before Carter Verhaeghe dropped the hammer on a late breakaway goal to send the Panthers into the third with a lead they'd never cough up.
Game 2 was a little tougher to swallow considering the strong first period the Leafs put together. However that was all squashed with 2 early goals by the Panthers to start the second period off of defensive miscues and turnovers in their own zone.
This is the first time since 2018 that the Leafs are trailing 2-0 in a series, which was against Boston and a series they ended up losing in seven games.
The resiliency and the fight-back in this group is ever-present and it all starts when the puck drops for Game 3. If they continue to play the same way, continue to throw the kitchen sink at Bobrovsky, and clog the neutral zone defensively, then they should have a very good shot at cutting the series deficit.
| POLL | ||
MAI 7 | 332 ANSWERS Sheldon Keefe and Luke Schenn discuss the Leafs' demeanor ahead of pivotal Game 3 against Florida Will the Leafs win Game 3 tonight? | ||
| Yes | 260 | 78.3 % |
| No | 72 | 21.7 % |
| List of polls | ||
