<p>The second round matchup between the <a href="https://theleafsnation.com/combinations">Toronto Maple Leafs</a> and the Florida Panthers is headed back to Toronto tied 2-2, and frankly, Florida winning one of these games handily had to happen at some point.</p>
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<p>After a pair of Leafs wins at home followed by a loss in Game 3 in an affair of bounces, the Panthers finally showed up and dominated the Leafs from start to finish with a 2-0 shutout. They took four penalties in the first period, a horrendous strategy against a team like the Panthers, and eventually let them capitalize on one near the end of the period. From there, like it was in the first period, the Leafs struggled to get anything going. Their bottom-six was dominated from a possession standpoint and the top lines were held without any meaningful chances.</p>
<p>As expected, they came out strong in the third period, but Sergei Bobrovsky finally channeled his form from last season, making the timely stops and keeping his team in the driver&#8217;s seat after allowing 13 goals in the first three games of the series. The Leafs had some golden opportunities to tie it, but when Matthew Knies missed the net on a breakaway despite having all the time and space in the world, it felt like a sign of how the rest of the game was gonna go.</p>
<p>The Leafs lost this game not just because the Panthers played well, but because they <a href="https://theleafsnation.com/news/why-staying-course-never-more-important-toronto-maple-leafs">strayed off course</a> from how they won Games 1 and 2. Taking four penalties in the first period is not a winning strategy, and whether you want to argue the legitimacy of some of those calls or not, they got three power plays in the second period and didn&#8217;t do anything with them. They won the first two games by not giving into the Panthers&#8217; crap, as Knies put it, and tonight, the Panthers got the better of them in every category, including the emotional one.</p>
<p>The one bright side to take away from the game is that Joseph Woll was absolutely stellar following a rough Game 3. He was the only player locked in start to finish, and if the Leafs want to win two of the next three games, they have to be on the same page as him.</p>
<p>Onto Game 5.</p>
<p><strong>Sponsored by bet365</strong></p>
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The second round matchup between the <a href="https://theleafsnation.com/combinations">Toronto Maple Leafs</a> and the Florida Panthers is headed back to Toronto tied 2-2, and frankly, Florida winning one of these games handily had to happen at some point.
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After a pair of Leafs wins at home followed by a loss in Game 3 in an affair of bounces, the Panthers finally showed up and dominated the Leafs from start to finish with a 2-0 shutout. They took four penalties in the first period, a horrendous strategy against a team like the Panthers, and eventually let them capitalize on one near the end of the period. From there, like it was in the first period, the Leafs struggled to get anything going. Their bottom-six was dominated from a possession standpoint and the top lines were held without any meaningful chances.

As expected, they came out strong in the third period, but Sergei Bobrovsky finally channeled his form from last season, making the timely stops and keeping his team in the driver's seat after allowing 13 goals in the first three games of the series. The Leafs had some golden opportunities to tie it, but when Matthew Knies missed the net on a breakaway despite having all the time and space in the world, it felt like a sign of how the rest of the game was gonna go.

The Leafs lost this game not just because the Panthers played well, but because they <a href="https://theleafsnation.com/news/why-staying-course-never-more-important-toronto-maple-leafs">strayed off course</a> from how they won Games 1 and 2. Taking four penalties in the first period is not a winning strategy, and whether you want to argue the legitimacy of some of those calls or not, they got three power plays in the second period and didn't do anything with them. They won the first two games by not giving into the Panthers' crap, as Knies put it, and tonight, the Panthers got the better of them in every category, including the emotional one.

The one bright side to take away from the game is that Joseph Woll was absolutely stellar following a rough Game 3. He was the only player locked in start to finish, and if the Leafs want to win two of the next three games, they have to be on the same page as him.

Onto Game 5.

<strong>Sponsored by bet365</strong>
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