Despite the leaky third period, the Leafs should feel great about their outing against Florida: Leafs Morning Take

The April Fools clash against the Florida Panthers sure was something.

5-1 turned into 5-4, but at the end of the day, the Leafs found a way to solidify the victory. And most importantly, they won the game in regulation and are suddenly just four points back of the Cats for second in the Atlantic Division with a game in hand.

Anthony Stewart filled in for Jay Rosehill on the Tuesday edition of Leafs Morning Take. We kicked off the show by discussing the stretch drive to the playoffs and how much stock we should put into games/victories like Monday night’s down the stretch. Very quickly, it turned into a hairy affair. A win is a win is a win, right? Something like that.

Presented by DoorDash, in the Appetizer, we jumped deeper into the 6-4 win against Paul Maurice’s squad. First and foremost, Auston Matthews potted two more goals. He’s up to 62 on the season with eight regular season contests remaining. Naturally, we talked about a plan for Papi down the stretch. Should they rest him? 70 goals would be epic, but ultimately, the focus should be on the Stanley Cup Playoffs, no?

Then, thanks to Douglas, we talked about the farm. London Knights forward Easton Cowan, who’s currently riding a 38 game Pointstreak, was nominated for the OHL’s Red Tilson Trophy, given to the league’s regular season MVP. On top of that, we talked a little bit about Jacob Quillan. On Monday night, the Leafs announced that they signed the 22-year-old Maritimer to a 2-year ELC. Furthermore, it sounds like the defensive forward, who’s coming off another successful season at Quinnipiac of the NCAA, good compete for a bottom-six role in Toronto as soon as next fall. Suffice it is to say, there’s plenty of optimism surrounding both players right now.

Jay Rosehill will be back in the mix for the Wednesday edition of Leafs Morning Take. Join us at 11 AM ET as we preview the home tilt with the rival Tampa Bay Lightning. Also, former Leaf/TSN Hockey Analyst Jeff O’Neill will drop by for a chat. Additionally, we’ll dissect and answer the Great Clips inbox question of the week.