It's the postseason where the 29-year-old really shines. Lightning: Kucherov eclipsed the 100-point barrier for the third time in his career, scoring 113 points (30 goals, 83 assists). However, for the Maple Leafs to be successful in this series, Marner will need to improve his postseason stats of 33 points (seven goals, 26 assists) in 39 games. He had 36 power-play points and kills penalties as well (he scored four short-handed goals). The 25-year-old had 99 points (30 goals, 69 assists) and was looking to become only the fourth Toronto player ever to crack the 100-point barrier, joining Matthews (last season) and Hall of Famers Doug Gilmour (1992-93, 1993-94) and Darryl Sittler (1977-78). Maple Leafs: Marner is the heartbeat of the Maple Leafs. Nylander led all scorers in those three games with three goals and six points Marner, and Lightning forward Alex Killorn each had two goals. The only blemish was a 4-3 defeat in overtime on Dec. Toronto earned five of a possible six points against Tampa Bay this season, winning 4-1 on Dec. "You can only control what's ahead, not the past," Marner said. But ultimately the Maple Leafs will need more from its core: forwards Auston Matthews, Mitchell Marner, William Nylander and defenseman Morgan Rielly, who have been part of six consecutive one-and-done postseason eliminations with Toronto. There's no question Toronto has improved its depth. O'Reilly and defenseman Mark Giordano (Calgary Flames, Seattle Kraken) have both captained NHL teams and can help current captain John Tavares. Louis Blues captain who helped them win a Stanley Cup in 2019. While the Maple Leafs have added much-needed sandpaper, they also augmented their leadership both on and off the ice in O'Reilly, the former St. "There's no reason to beat around," Toronto GM Kyle Dubas said. Each plays a blue-collar style that should help in grinding out shifts, improving the cycle game, and initiating physical play, as much as absorbing it. The forward creates chaos for the opposition on the forecheck but will miss the beginning of the series after sustaining a lower-body injury against the New York Islanders on April 6.Īs for the Maple Leafs, they feel better equipped to deal with the physicality of the postseason after acquiring forwards Ryan O'Reilly, Noel Acciari and Sam Lafferty, as well as defensemen Jake McCabe and Luke Schenn in pre-deadline deals. Lightning management was thinking along those lines when it acquired forward Tanner Jeannot from the Predators prior to the 2023 NHL Trade Deadline on March 3. "So it's just about that, and then obviously your skill can take over." It's about finishing checks, because when you finish checks, guys really don't want to go in the corner," defenseman Mikhail Sergachev said. Ruuta and McDonagh were great fits for the physical gameplan Tampa Bay employed during the postseason, and the Lightning plan to stick to that blueprint with new players. In retrospect, much has changed for each team since two goals from Nick Paul helped the Lightning defeat the Maple Leafs 2-1 in Game 7 on May 14, 2022.įor the Lightning, forward Ondrej Palat (New Jersey Devils), and defensemen Jan Ruuta (Pittsburgh Penguins) and Ryan McDonagh (Nashville Predators) are gone. The next one is defeating a Maple Leafs team that has not won a postseason series since 2004. "You have no chance to win the Stanley Cup unless you make the playoffs," Tampa Bay coach Jon Cooper said. Their first obstacle is an opening-round series against the Maple Leafs, the team they eliminated in seven games to start the playoffs last season. "There are a lot of teams that are really strong and have a legitimate shot of winning the Stanley Cup," Lightning general manager Julien BriseBois said. Tampa Bay is attempting to become the first team to reach the Final in four straight seasons since the New York Islanders did it in five consecutive seasons from 1980-84. The Tampa Bay Lightning will look to reach the Stanley Cup Final for a fourth consecutive season, a journey that begins with a matchup against the Toronto Maple Leafs in the Eastern Conference First Round.įrom 2020-22 the Lightning won 11 consecutive postseason series and the Stanley Cup twice (2020, 2021) before seeing their run end by being defeated by the Colorado Avalanche in six games in the 2022 Final.
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