The Maple Leafs and Blue Jackets held limited media availabilities on Sunday ahead of Game 5.
The Leafs had a 2-1 series lead against the Washington Capitals back in 2017. Toronto had the lead entering the third period of Game 7 in 2018 in Boston. And they had a 3-2 series lead on the Bruins last year. Those three golden opportunities turned into bitter losses and, hopefully for the Leafs, important lessons. Tonight, the young core has a chance to change the narrative and earn the franchise’s first series win since 2004.
“We have more than enough guys that have been in these types of situations before as a group,” said coach Sheldon Keefe, “although it’s changed a lot over the years, there are enough guys who’ve been through this together that are looking to leave it all out there to take the next step.”
The Leafs showed great resilience to survive on Friday, but it will mean very little if they fall short in Game 5. And the coach and the captain aren’t shying away from just how significant tonight’s game is for the maturation of the group.
“The continued experience our young core gets in these opportunities and these moments to continue to learn about themselves, find ways to grow and get better and continue to try and rise to the occasion [is important],” said John Tavares. “Obviously, through times of adversity [you] look back and reflect on how you can be better and do a better job and I think we’ve had a lot of that this season.”
Keefe noted that the joy around the team after the Game 4 comeback was unlike anything he’d seen before with this group, but no one is getting carried away.
“A lot of yesterday was trying to turn the page and realize we’ll have a real test again today,” said Tavares, “and know they’ll be prepared and we’ll have to be at our best and continue to find ways to get better.”
It’s been a series of swings with the Jackets scoring the first two goals, the Leafs countering with six straight, Columbus going on a seven-goal run before Toronto potted the last four. When it has been Toronto on the front foot, what is the team doing well?
“We just seem very connected,” said Tavares, who has two goals and an assist in the series. “You know, the level of execution is very high and that comes from all three zones. We’ve done a much better job, especially coming out of training camp with some of the emphasis we’ve put on things defensively, and that has led to a lot of other positives in our game and just being connected through all three zones.”
The ice has been choppy at times during this mid-summer tournament and the pressure is growing. Right now, it’s all about mental strength.
“That’s what it’s about,” agreed Keefe. “I mean, especially as you get to this point in the series where you really know your opponent, you know what the games are going to be like in terms of the structure and different pieces and it really just comes down to staying with it.”
Despite the devastating way Game 4 ended, Jackets coach John Tortorella doesn’t think there will be any emotional hangover for his group.
“We feel we have the momentum no matter what happened there,” the veteran bench boss said. “You know, momentum’s a funny thing, if you want to give it back to them you lose it, if you don’t want to give it to them you keep it on your side so that’s kind of a psychological thing. So, we’re good. We’re good and ready to play.”
The Jackets have reason to feel confident. They have outscored the high-octane Leafs 8-3 in five-on-five play in the series. In fact, they haven’t given up a five-on-five goal since Nick Robertson snuck a puck past Joonas Korpisalo in the second period of Game 3. So, that’s a stretch of 122 minutes and 46 seconds where the Leafs have been held in check at even strength.
“We’re not changing,” Tortorella said. “We thought we played a good game. You know, we pissed it away on a couple of bad plays and just within a couple of minutes, but we thought we played a good game. We’re going to go play the same way.”
Tortorella wasn’t willing to say, specifically, what his team has done well.
“Sorry, man,” he said. “I know I haven’t given you guys a bunch. I’ll talk to you guys about what I think about the series when the series is over, but not during.”
While most of the Leafs have gone through series-deciding games the last couple of years against Boston, this is the first such situation in the history of the Jackets franchise. During an interview with Jackets play-by-play voice Bob McElligott this afternoon, Tortorella revealed that the four guys with Game 7 experience on his roster addressed the group about what to expect.
“If you feel pressure now, you’re an idiot, because this is where you should try and enjoy yourself,” Tortorella told McElligott. “I’m anxious to see who’s tall and who shrinks. The playoffs are where your legacies are made and Game 7s it’s just doubled.”
Pulled in Game 3 and on the bench for all of Game 4, Korpisalo will start tonight for Columbus. Tortorella told McElligott that Elvis Merzlikins is hurt and won’t dress. Matiss Kivlenieks, who only has six games of NHL experience, will be the back-up goalie.
There was some good injury news for the Jackets on Sunday as defencemen Ryan Murray, who missed Game 4, and Zach Werenski, who left Game 4 in the third period, are both well enough to play.
“Our defensive depth is a big part of our team and happy that they’re back in,” said Seth Jones, who’s averaging a league high 30 minutes and 12 seconds of ice time in the playoffs. “They’re big pieces offensively and defensively and in all situations so they should play a key part in the win.”
Auston Matthews came through in the clutch picking up a pair of assists in that frantic finish to regulation on Friday night. The big centre then completed the crazy comeback with the overtime winner. But, for Keefe, the biggest thing that stands out about the 22-year-old’s playoff progression is how he’s been a factor on the defensive side of the puck.
“His commitment defensively has really been off the charts,” Keefe gushed. “How competitive he’s been, his tracking, coming back to our end and blocking shots and getting in lanes and doing a lot of little things that don’t necessarily show up on the scoresheet or anything like that and he’s not doing it for recognition or anything, he’s just doing it because it’s what’s required to win. He’s really taken a massive step in that regard not just now, but it was really starting to come even before the pause in that regard and he’s carried it forward and, in fact, found another level.”
Matthews has seven blocked shots in the series (1.75 per game), which is tied for second on the team behind only defenceman Justin Holl. Matthews blocked 0.86 shots per game in the regular season.
Leafs Ice Chips: Matthews’ defensive play ‘off the charts’
Auston Matthews has had a tremendous series against the Blue Jackets so far, highlighted by his late game heroics in Game 4. His offensive production has been there, but as Mark Masters reports, his defensive play in the series is what has really caught Sheldon Keefe’s attention.
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The Leafs got a psychological boost this morning as defenceman Jake Muzzin is out of quarantine for the first time since going to the hospital following that scary injury on Tuesday night.
“Jake is doing well in the sense that he’s finally got a little bit of freedom,” Keefe said. “He left his hotel room this morning for the first time and he actually got out on the ice and got a little skate in this morning so that’s obviously very positive considering what he had been through. We’re happy to see that. We’re happy to see him around our team today and certainly we’re very fortunate that he’s recovering quickly in comparison to what we were fearing in terms of him being on the stretcher and all that sort of stuff. So, it’s great to see him around our team and moving around today.”
NEW YORK – Toronto Blue Jays reliever Chad Green and Canadian slugger Tyler O’Neill of the Boston Red Sox were named finalists for the Major League Baseball Players’ Association’s American League comeback player award on Monday.
Chicago White Sox left-hander Garrett Crochet was the other nominee.
New York Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge, Los Angeles Dodgers designated hitter Shohei Ohtani and Kansas City Royals shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. were named player of the year finalists.
The award winners, selected via player voting, will be named Saturday before Game 2 of the World Series.
Green, who missed most of the 2022 and ’23 seasons after undergoing Tommy John surgery, was a high-leverage option for the Blue Jays this past season and filled in at closer over the second half of the campaign.
The right-hander converted his first 16 save opportunities and finished the year with a 4-6 record, 17 saves and a 3.21 earned-run average over 53 appearances.
O’Neill, a native of Burnaby, B.C., also endured back-to-back injury-plagued seasons in ’22 and ’23.
After being traded to the Red Sox in the off-season, O’Neill set an MLB record by hitting a homer in his fifth straight Opening Day. He finished with 31 homers on the year and had an OPS of .847.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 21, 2024.
NEW YORK – Florida Panthers centre Sam Reinhart was named NHL first star of the week on Monday after leading all players with nine points over four games last week.
Reinhart had four goals, five assists and a plus-seven rating to help the Stanley Cup champions post a 3-0-1 record on the week and move into first place in the Atlantic Division.
New York Rangers left-winger Artemi Panarin took the second star and Minnesota Wild goaltenderFilip Gustavsson was the third star.
Panarin had eight points (4-4) over three games.
Gustavsson became the 15th goalie in NHL history to score a goal and had a 1.00 goals-against average and .962 save percentage over a pair of victories.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 21, 2024.
CLEVELAND (AP) — Deshaun Watson won’t finish the season as Cleveland’s starting quarterback for the second straight year.
He’s injured again, and the Browns have new problems.
Watson ruptured his right Achilles tendon in the first half of Sunday’s loss to Cincinnati, collapsing as he began to run and leading some Browns fans to cheer while the divisive QB laid on the ground writhing in pain.
The team feared Watson’s year was over and tests done Monday confirmed the rupture. The Browns said Watson will have surgery and miss the rest of the season but “a full recovery is expected.”
It’s the second significant injury in two seasons for Watson, who broke the glenoid (socket) bone in his throwing shoulder last year after just six starts.
The 29-year-old went down Sunday without being touched on a draw play late in the first half. His right leg buckled and Watson crumpled to the turf. TV replays showed his calf rippling, consistent with an Achilles injury.
He immediately put his hands on his helmet, clearly aware of the severity of an injury similar to the one Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers sustained last year.
As he was being assisted by the team’s medical staff and backup Dorian Thompson-Robinson grabbed a ball to begin warming up, there was some derisive cheers and boos from the stands in Huntington Bank Field.
Cleveland fans have been split over Watson, who has been accused of being sexually inappropriate with women.
The reaction didn’t sit well with several Watson’s teammates, including star end Myles Garrett, the NFL’s reigning Defensive Player of the Year, who was appalled by the fans’ behavior.
“We should be ashamed of ourselves as Browns and as fans to boo anyone and their downfall. To be season-altering, career-altering injury,” Garrett said. “Man’s not perfect. He doesn’t need to be. None of us are expected to be perfect. Can’t judge him for what he does off the field or on the field because I can’t throw stones for my glass house.
“Ultimately everyone’s human and they’re disappointed just like we are, but we have to be better than that as people. There’s levels to this. At the end of the day, it’s just a game and you don’t boo anybody being injured and you don’t celebrate anyone’s downfall.”
Backup quarterback Jameis Winston also admonished the uncomfortable celebration.
“I am very upset with the reaction to a man that has had the world against him for the past four years, and he put his body and life on the line for this city every single day,” he said. “The way I was raised, I will never pull on a man when he’s down, but I will be the person to lift him up.
“I know you love this game. When I first got here, I knew these were some amazing fans, but Deshaun was treated badly and now he has to overcome another obstacle. So I’m going to support him, I’m going to lift him up and I’m going to be there for him.”
The injury is yet another twist in Watson’s tumultuous time with the Browns.
Cleveland traded three first-round draft picks and five overall to Houston in 2022 to get him, with owners Dee and Jimmy Haslam approving the team giving Watson a fully guaranteed, five-year $230 million contract.
With a solid roster, the Browns were desperate to find a QB who could help them compete against the top AFC teams.
The Browns had moved on from Baker Mayfield despite drafting him No. 1 overall in 2018 and making the playoffs two seasons later.
But Watson has not played up to expectations — fans have been pushing for him to be benched this season — and Cleveland’s move to get him has been labeled an abject failure with the team still on the hook to pay him $46 million in each of the next two seasons.
Watson’s arrival in Cleveland also came amid accusations by more than two dozen women of sexual assault and harassment during massage therapy sessions while he played for the Texans. Two grand juries declined to indict him and he has settled civil lawsuits in all but one of the cases.
Watson was suspended by the NFL for his first 11 games and fined $5 million for violating the league’s personal conduct policy before he took his first snap with the Browns. The long layoff — he sat out the 2021 season in a contract dispute — led to struggles once he got on the field, and Watson made just six starts last season before hurting his shoulder.
Cleveland signed veteran Joe Flacco, who went 4-1 as a starter and led the Browns to the playoffs.
Before Watson got hurt this year, he didn’t play much better. He was one of the league’s lowest-rated passers for a Cleveland team that hasn’t scored 20 points in a game and is back in search of a franchise QB.
