The Toronto Maple Leafs finally gained the lead over the Boston Bruins this season, but they were unable to maintain it through the final four regular-season games and Game 1 of the playoffs. Last night, they accomplished just that with a stunning goal from Auston Matthews. This would finally stand up as the game-winner, and with the victory, the series was level at 1-1 as they returned home.
Following the game, the Maple Leafs players attended their post-game press conferences, which felt strange. They were thrilled to have knotted the series with Games 3 and 4 back at home. This triumph appears to be the catalyst for the club’s probable series victory. The most essential thing for them to remember is that this is only Game 2 of the series, which is tied. There is still a long, hard-fought series ahead of them, so they must pour their energy and emotion onto the ice. With that, let’s look at how the Maple Leafs reacted to their Game 2 triumph.
Sheldon Keefe, head coach of the Maple Leafs, met with the media for barely five minutes and maintained a good tone. TSN’s Chris Johnston questioned him on the hardship his team endured in this game. Keefe said, “Yeah, loved our result tonight. The goal at the end of the first period provided them energy and momentum heading into the second. The game you were thinking about could be comparable to the one you played the night before. We did not let that happen. Excellent effort on the road tonight. “Really good team wins.”
He was then asked about Ilya Samsonov’s performance, and he said, “It was excellent. Some major saves at critical periods. One stands out at the opening of the third quarter, as does one at the beginning of the second. He is important. I think we played a really great defensive game tonight. It will never be flawless. Their squad accomplishes a lot of wonderful stuff, which will put your team under defensive stress. He had to be present, for sure. He is a significant element of this one now. It is an excellent collaborative effort. We had some outstanding individual initiatives, but it was a truly collaborative effort.”
Keefe was then asked about his top line of Matthews, Max Domi, and Tyler Bertuzzi, specifically how they competed and worked. Auston has one goal and two assists. He dominated the stats sheet tonight. In so many ways, he is improving the game for us. To me, the way he worked and competed made him appear harsh and physical. He was winning puck battles across the ice. I would say the same thing about Bert and Domi.
Keefe also spoke about his belief in his fourth line and how the club can maintain momentum heading into Game 3:
“I’m not going to reflect or spend much time thinking about it, but I enjoy the statement. The line has been quite good. They have a very definite identity. Kampf and Dewar can truly be relied defensively. They give you everything they own. Reavo has done an excellent job for quite some time. I felt he was pretty good tonight. He was all over the net, both offensively and forechecking. He was also quite good on the defensive wall.
“We believe in our group. We know we have a solid team. We understand what we are up against. They were one win away from second place in the league. We expected them to compete for the President’s Trophy a few weeks ago.”
Tyler Bertuzzi spoke positively about his teammates during a two-minute media interview. He was asked for his thoughts on Matthews’ game-winning goal. Here’s what he had to say: “It was awesome; I saw Max have it and kind of just a flip pass, and Auston grabbed it and went in and scored, and that was, you know, a big goal for us and the team, and something we all needed, and we shut them down after.”
Auston Matthews scores the go-ahead goal.
It's the Maple Leafs first lead vs the Bruins in 372:56 of game-time pic.twitter.com/7gOMpEPDMi
— Sportsnet Stats (@SNstats) April 23, 2024
He also mentioned his desire of getting called back owing to a high stick. “Yeah, I kind of had a little bit of an idea.” He went on to discuss the Maple Leafs’ late-game penalty kill after slashing Brad Marchand. “Yeah, the boys got a large kill. That wasn’t a good penalty from me, but they bailed me out, and it was a great kill late in the game.” Finally, he was asked about Matthews’ capacity to step up in critical situations. “Yeah, that was a significant goal at a critical time in the game, and then the boys did an excellent job killing the penalty, and then we shut down six-on-five. There are going to be a lot more one-goal games coming up, and we’ll have to shut them down.”
Ilya Samsonov addressed post-game after helping his side win and tie the series. Last night’s game was significant for him because he appeared to have lost faith in himself following Game 1. The first question he was asked was about the team’s response: “Yeah, it was a really terrific game for us; everyone stayed strong throughout. You know, every zone, D-zone, offensive zone, neutral zone, was a great game for us.”
Samsonov discussed the mindset of coming back after giving up a late first-period goal: “We didn’t think about it; we just need to play our game, talk to the coaches and the team; we just move forward, moment by moment.”
It appears that Samsonov’s new approach, which helped him turn around his season, is focused on “moment by moment.” He was asked several times about his ability to make saves and how the team came through in critical occasions, and he often closed his responses with “moment by moment,” which is amazing to see.
Max Domi has been a valuable addition to the Maple Leafs’ top six, providing a physical edge to the line while also being a Mitch Marner-like player. Matthews’ game-winning goal would not have been possible without Domi’s flip pass, which set him up on a breakaway. After the game, he commented on the play: “Yeah, great play by Boosh (Lyubushkin). “I obviously tried to catch them in transition, but Tone (Matthews) took off, so I just threw it up and he did the rest.”
He also commented on the team’s response last night, saying, “Yeah, it’s huge.” I mean, I think when you have a close game like that and everyone is stepping up at different moments, the PK has to step up at times, and we scored when we had to, and Sammy (Samsonov) made the saves he had to make.”
Domi is known for being a touch snarky with the media at times, as evidenced by his response when asked how the team overcame the Bruins’ late-first-period score. He stated “60-minute hockey game” for a reason, correct? I mean, it’s the playoffs; you can’t afford to waste any time or energy feeling sorry for yourself or moaning; just get back to work and lock in, which is exactly what we did.”
John Tavares and Auston Matthews were interviewed together at the media stand, with Matthews receiving the first question. When asked if it was worth the waste for his 70th goal of the year, he replied, “Ha, I don’t know how to answer that, honestly. You know, it’s a significant time of year for us, for the squad, and these moments are obviously emotional and meaningful, so we’re really thrilled with the win and the 1-1 tie; we just have to stay focused.”
Tavares was asked what he has learned about Matthews and his ability to step up in crucial occasions for this club. “He’s just world-class at everything he does.” He then went into greater detail about Matthews, saying, “I think when you see the drive nervy every day and the passion for the game and wanting to be such a difference maker, night in and night out, and certainly at this time of year, it was massive for our group and puts us back on equal footing going home. We had a big win, and he really led the way and scored a hell of a goal.”
Tavares also addressed Samsonov, stating, “We love him, and he’s a big part of our locker room.”
Overall, the Maple Leafs played an excellent game and were rewarded with the victory. In the playoffs, not every strong effort by a side will result in a win; sometimes the opposing team is lucky and takes advantage of mistakes. That is exactly what they were able to do tonight, tying the series at one. During Keefe’s post-game news conference, he delivered the remark of the night while discussing Matthews and Domi’s connection on the team’s third goal, which wonderfully described the game: “That’s big-time stuff.”
The Maple Leafs will next play on Wednesday, April 24 at 7:00 PM, when the series returns to Toronto for Game 3.
