Mitch Marner scored the winning goal in the third period as the Toronto Maple Leafs defeated the Florida Panthers 4-3 on Wednesday to take a 2-0 lead in their second-round Stanley Cup Playoffs series. Joseph Woll made 25 saves in net for the Maple Leafs, who won the game after the Panthers had tied the score minutes earlier.
The victory gives the Leafs a two-game advantage over the defending Stanley Cup champions. Florida had not trailed 2-0 in a series since the 2023 final.
Max Pacioretty and Max Domi each recorded a goal and an assist for Toronto. William Nylander also scored, and Morgan Rielly contributed two assists. Florida's goals came from Anton Lundell, Aleksander Barkov and Brad Marchand. Sergei Bobrovsky stopped 16 shots for the Panthers.
The best-of-seven matchup now shifts to South Florida for Game 3 on Friday. Woll started in goal for Toronto after Anthony Stolarz left Game 1 following an elbow to the head from Panthers center Sam Bennett.
This series marks a rematch from the 2023 second round, where Florida eliminated Toronto in five games. The current Maple Leafs team features some differences in style under coach Craig Berube, who replaced Sheldon Keefe. Panthers coach Paul Maurice noted this Toronto team appears more patient and mature in its approach compared to two years ago.
Several players from the 2023 series remain with the Toronto Maple Leafs, including Marner, William Nylander, Auston Matthews, John Tavares, Calle Jarnkrok, David Kampf, Morgan Rielly, and Joseph Woll. The Maple Leafs also feature former Panthers Steven Lorentz, Oliver Ekman-Larsson and Anthony Stolarz on their roster.
The Panthers are known for their physical, relentless forecheck led by players like Matthew Tkachuk, Brad Marchand and Sam Bennett. Discipline for the Maple Leafs will be a factor in countering this style of play.
Toronto managed only 10 goals over five games when the teams met in 2023. The first two games of this series have seen higher scoring outcomes for both sides.
Florida defenseman Aaron Ekblad returned to the Panthers lineup after serving a two-game suspension.
Maple Leafs coach Craig Berube addressed the challenge ahead.
"Any time you're playing the Stanley Cup champions, you're going to be the underdog, right?" Berube said. "They've proven the past few years they're a great team. We're a good team too. And we're approaching this with a business-like approach. We've got to go out and do our job and play the way we can."
