Achi news desk-
BOSTON – Sheldon Keefe’s team was in a similar situation 12 months ago.
The Maple Leafs dropped their playoff opener to the Tampa Bay Lightning before roaring back to capture the franchise’s first Original Six series in nearly two decades.
Weight was finally lifted. The fan base rejoiced, if only briefly.
Despite suffering a 5-1 loss in Boston to open this spring’s Stanley Cup tournament, Toronto still – in some ways at least – finds itself in a slightly better spot compared to the curtain-raiser hurdle on home ice. last year.
The Bruins, however, are a different animal.
Boston swept the Leafs four straight in the regular season, outscoring Toronto 14-7. The Bruins have now won eight straight games against their Atlantic Division opponent – a stretch of more than 530 days dating back to November 2022.
And looking even further in the rearview mirror, Boston claimed the previous three playoff series between the teams over the past dozen years with Game 2 set for Monday.
“You have to be able to move forward,” Keefe said Sunday at the team hotel. “You make your adjustments and come back to it. That’s it really. You can’t get too worked up about it. Whether the game ends like it did last night or we lose the game in overtime, we’re still down 1-0.”
The numbers and long-term trends, however, are bleak for a team that pumped 36 shots at Bruins netminder Jeremy Swayman on Saturday, but was undone by mistakes, penalties and an inability to capitalize on opportunities .
Related Videos
“You have to be able to deal with it,” Keefe continued. “We’ve been through this and we’ve bounced back well. We have a chance to do that again.”
Toronto won four of its next five contests last spring after dropping Game 1 against Tampa to snap a 19-year streak of playoff misery.
Breaking news from Canada and around the world sent to your email, as it happens.
Leafs enforcer Ryan Reaves, signed in the offseason as part of a roster makeover that featured intangibles off the ice, referenced Disney’s “The Lion King” when asked about the team’s mood.
“A kind of ‘Hakuna Matata’ motto almost,” he said. “You can’t worry about what happened in the past. You have to look forward.”
Looking back to Saturday, the Leafs will be hoping for better special teams play after giving up two goals on five Boston power plays and getting nothing from their three man-advantage opportunities.
And then there’s staying within the structure of Toronto – something the group got away with at times.
“They are a very patient team and they wait for those mistakes,” said Leafs star Auston Matthews on Saturday night. “We have to take care of the puck and simplify things a little bit. When we did that there were points in the game where we had a lot of momentum.
“It’s just finding that throughout the 60 minutes.”
Discipline and control of emotions will be another key after some Toronto players, including winger Max Domi, crossed the line at various times.
“The physicality was right,” said Reaves, a veteran of 109 playoff contests. “Only the sticks and the penalties really didn’t have an effect on the play.
“Remove those and we’re right there.”
A huge question mark for Toronto as the best-of-seven series progresses is the status of winger William Nylander, who missed the opener with an undisclosed injury. The 27-year-old has sat out through illness in the past, but Saturday was the first time he had been absent due to a physical ailment since November 2016.
The Leafs have made it clear they wouldn’t discuss injuries — Keefe wouldn’t even say how Nylander is dealing with the disappointment of losing Game 1 — but a couple of his players offered a piece of insight.
“He seemed to be in a good mood,” Toronto defenseman Jake McCabe said of the swearing. “Not going to talk too much about it.”
Whether or not Nylander, whose absence ripples down the line and affects the power play, is available Monday, the Leafs know a response is needed.
It’s something they’ve done before. Just not against the Bruins.
“We have to be able to bounce back,” Keefe said. “But at the same time don’t overreact or get too emotional about one loss. You have to go right back to it.
“And trust your group.”
GOALTENDING QUESTIONS
Bruins head coach Jim Montgomery said he is “considering” his starting lineup for Game 2. Swayman and Linus Ullmark have turned the crease since February.
Keefe declined to say whether he will go back to Ilya Samsonov after the Russian allowed four goals on 23 shots Saturday.
BUZZING BUILDING
Leafs winger Tyler Bertuzzi, picked up by Boston at the trade deadline last season, knows what TD Garden is like when the Bruins come on.
“The crowd is a big part of their success,” he said. “One thing we need to do in the next game is to kick that up and try to keep the momentum on our side.”
This report was first published by The Canadian Press on April 21, 2024.
___
Follow @JClipperton_CP on X.
& copy 2024 The Canadian Press
