Although the Toronto Maple Leafs held an optional morning skate Tuesday, the entire focus was on the Toronto Blue Jays advancing to the World Series.

George Springer hit a go-ahead three-run home run to give the Jays a 4-3 lead in the seventh inning, an instantly iconic moment that will live in Toronto sports history forever. Jeff Hoffman closed it out, and the Jays punched their ticket to the World Series, their first appearance since 1993.

Prior to Monday’s Game 7, Blue Jays superstar Vladimir Guerrero Jr. wore an Auston Matthews jersey. Several members of the Maple Leafs are huge Jays fans, and it was all anyone could talk about during Tuesday’s morning skate.

“I watched Vladdy closely and how much energy he has all the time and happiness for his teammates when do they well. He has a lot of energy and a positive vibe around him,” Maple Leafs head coach Craig Berube said, after starting his press conference with an emphatic ‘How ’bout them Jays, boys!’

“You’re a bit jealous at what they’re doing, just because of Toronto,” Maple Leafs defenceman Morgan Rielly said. “You watch it firsthand. You’re obviously happy for them. It’s a great moment for the city. But we want to be able to do that and have a run like that. We felt that when the Raptors did it, too. So, you look at the passion that they’re playing with, and that’s contagious. And you want to be able to also bring that when your time comes.”

Maple Leafs forward Max Domi offered a short and succinct prediction: “Jays in 6!” while Chris Tanev chose the Jays in seven games. New Jersey Devils head coach Sheldon Keefe declined to offer a prediction, noting that he doesn’t watch enough baseball to be accurate.

Steven Lorentz is a major Jays fan, and spoke about the parallels between the Jays and Leafs.

“It’s almost like a little bit of outside motivation, I guess you could look at it right, you see when that team’s doing well, when our team’s doing well, the support, there’s extra bodies in the seats, there’s extra bodies outside. I’m sure the bars are all filled up with people who are rooting, cheering. I had some buddies out and you could see the Instagrams and the Snapchats of people going nuts when Springer hit that home run. So you know, the Jays get that. We get that when we’re doing well too. So yeah, it’s, it’s obviously a hockey city, a sports city, that’s no secret. But it’s nice that we can kind of feed off that energy that the Jays are bringing to the city.”

Easton Cowan will be a healthy scratch for Tuesday’s game. The 20-year-old rookie registered one point in four games on the top line with Matthew Knies and Auston Matthews and was among the team’s best forwards. Berube is electing for a different look but didn’t appear to be remotely concerned about Cowan’s game.

“I just think he needs a reset, a game to watch. Cowan’s in a good spot,” Berube said.

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