NOW. WE. GO.

Our adopted phrase isn’t just a playoff slogan, it’s a way of life.

Win or lose, we’re about to find out a lot about Craig Berube’s Toronto Maple Leafs.

For many of us, today feels like Groundhog Day. Once again, as we’ve done time and time again, we wait with bated breath to see if all those “learning lessons” over the years will finally produce some positive results in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

Not to be dramatic but it’s no exaggeration: The next few games will undoubtedly be legacy defying ones for Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner, and the Core Four.

It’s put up or shut up time. The Leafs will either find a way to push through to a first Conference Final appearance in 20+ years, or we could possibly be witnessing the end of an era.

To that point, it’s no secret what the formula will need to be for the Leafs to find success. Any way you slice it, they need their big boys to STEP UP, especially the captain and the guy who’s played Robin to Batman for nearly a decade now.

While there’s no denying that Matthews and Marner have had their moments through 10 postseason outings, it’s fair to question their consistency. Far and away, William Nylander, John Tavares, and Matthew Knies have managed to do it with regularity. I’m sorry but the same can’t be said for the first and third highest paid players on the team.

Simply put, Matthews and Marner need to elevate, or that could be all she wrote for the 2024-25 Maple Leafs.

With respect to the captain, I think it’s fair to bring up his health. For my money, it’s hard to believe that he’s not dealing with something. You don’t go from scoring 69 goals to missing the net like it’s your day job. Something’s up, and again, at the end of day, it’s important to acknowledge that. Having said all that, he won’t be the first to play through something, and he certainly won’t be the last. He needs to find a way to contribute —plain and simple. Be a difference maker. That’s all we’re asking for. Make a play. Rise up.

Then, there’s Marner, who’s coming off his first 100-point season in the National League. That’s great and everything, but where’s that been in this series? When the going gets tough, the game gets physical, and there’s no space out there, the pending UFA tends to fade into the abyss. You want to get paid like a premier talent, it’s time to go out there and prove your worth. Needless to say, it’s tough to justify handing over Rantanen money to someone who’s mustered just three measly shots over a three-game span. He needs to find a way to play more direct, get to the inside, and make some plays.

The good thing is that we’re not re-inventing the wheel here, nor are we asking for too much. When you break it down, the Leafs just need their best players to be their best players.

Incredible concept, right?