Despite a disappointing overtime loss in Game 4, the Toronto Maple Leafs still hold a commanding 3-1 series lead over the Ottawa Senators in the Battle of Ontario.

And while Game 1 saw a dominant 6-2 performance over a playoff-green Senators group, Games 2 and 3 were much closer, both also coming down to an extra period. It’s not hard to imagine that if a few little things had gone differently, this series might not be in the Leafs favour right now.

Longtime hockey executive Brian Burke joined The Sheet with Jeff Marek on Friday to discuss everything about the Stanley Cup Playoffs. With Toronto up 3-0 at the time, he spoke about the key factor that has differentiated the Leafs so far from previous years.

“Unlikely contributions, unlikely heroes,” Burke said. “I think that’s a hallmark of a great team, that they don’t count on the same people doing the same thing every night. They had a game where it was Max Domi, next night it’s [Simon] Benoit. This is not just Mitch Marner or the emergence of the Core Four for the first time in a couple of years, it has been refreshing. Looks like they figured out the playoff system.”

Undoubtedly, few could have predicted that Domi and Benoit, who had nine goals between them this season, would be Toronto’s overtime heroes, forcing Ottawa to the brink of elimination after three games. But that’s what has been so effective about this group under the direction Craig Berube, a willingness to rely on key depth pieces and empower them to rise to the occasion.

“They’re getting contributions from people they don’t expect it from, that’s like finding a wallet on the street with no ID that you can’t return,” Burke joked. “You’re counting on Mitch to score, counting on JT to score, Auston Matthews to score, when you’re getting goal from guys that aren’t on that list, that’s a miracle.”

The depth contributions have also taken some of the pressure off the Core Four, which ironically has allowed them to produce some of their finest playoff hockey to date. Between the four of them, they have 23 points through the first four games, but John Tavares is the only one with multiple goals, netting three so far. True to Burke’s praise, their other top goal scorers are Matthew Knies with three, and defencemen Morgan Rielly and Oliver Ekman-Larsson, who both have two.

Game 5 is set for Tuesday night, as both teams get one extra rest day en route back to Toronto. With the Leafs looking to punch their ticket to the second round in front of their home crowd, will one of the stars step up or will it be another surprise performer who gets his moment in the spotlight Tuesday?