Just get it done, Leafs (7:00 p.m. EST, Sportsnet/CBC).
Keys to Game 6
via Anthony Petrielli (@APetrielli)
– Auston Matthews needs a response game and to elevate his play in general. Five games into the series, he has yet to dominate one of them. Plain and simple, the captain needs to be better.
– The matchups will flip again with the Pinto-Matthews battle, but it really shouldn’t matter. They’ve got to push through.
– Travis Green noted that the Senators made some penalty-killing adjustments. It looks like they aren’t getting caught pressuring anymore and are instead packing the house and taking shooting lanes away. The Leafs can’t settle for playing on the perimeter; be direct to the net and win battles in front.
– Again, quit taking bad penalties.
– Again, Ottawa has scored the first goal in three games in a row. The Leafs need to come out flying.
– It’s not really about Xs and Os anymore. It’s about rising to the occasion, playing with confidence, playing physically, getting inside, and getting the job done.
Game Day Podcast
Game Day Quotes
Craig Berube on the decision to shift Max Pacioretty onto the John Tavares line:
Max had some really good stretches with those guys before he got hurt. Big guy. Strong. Physical. Good around the net. That was the decision there.
With JT and Willy, the puck will be in the offensive zone more. That is where he can do his thing. That’s the reason.
Berube on the keys to generating more offense than in Game 5:
They are clogging up the middle really well. They have done a good job of that. We have to stretch it out a little bit and use our D more. We have to get pucks through to the net from them.
In playoffs, you are going to have to win those rebound opportunities and broken plays around the net. That is going to be key.
Berube on his sense of the team’s mentality ahead of another close-out opportunity:
Business-like. Let’s go. Ready to go. Business. Let’s go.
Berube on the keys to handling the mounting pressure on the team:
The only pressure, to me, is the guy beside you in the locker room — your teammates. You don’t want to let them down. You want to do your best.
Outside pressure? That is just talk. You [media] are doing your job, and the fans, but you have to try to block it out as best you can, focus on your game, and focus on your teammates.
Auston Matthews on the key to a better Game 6 performance from his line:
I think we just have to be patient. We had good looks last game. You don’t want to see the puck go in the back of your (own) net.
Just be harder on pucks. In the offensive zone, we can do a better job of getting to the dirty areas, scoring those greasy goals, and delivering pucks there.
Matthews on the outside noise and navigating the highs and lows of the playoffs:
You try to stay as even-keeled as you can. Naturally, there are highs and lows in life and in playoffs. It’s about resetting each day, and staying focus and committed.
It is never going to be easy. It is not going to be a perfect day every single day. You are just trying to fight through that, go out there, and do your best effort. You are doing it for the guys in the room and competing for one another.
Max Pacioretty on his role on the Tavares-Nylander line:
Get them the puck and go to the net. Try to create some time and space for them. They have both been playing great hockey. My job is to get them the puck.
Two easy guys to play with because they are so damn good. I just want to create some time and space for them and get them the puck.
Pacioretty on the keys to generating more offense in Game 6:
That is definitely the area we want to improve on. It is no simple recipe. If you ask any NHL player how to produce in the playoffs, it is in the dirty areas with second and third chances. Their goalie played a hell of a game last game, but we have to get into his eyes and make life a little harder on him.
Travis Green on how his team is handling the pressure of big elimination games in the series so far:
Certain players like pressure. They don’t really look at it like pressure.
I think our team is enjoying itself. They are excited to play. They are enjoying the so-called pressure.
It is a good thing. I think our guys like it.
Green on whether the Senators have played their best hockey in the series yet:
Hard question. Playoff hockey… What you think is your best game doesn’t always get there because of the way playoff hockey is. I think we have come close. I don’t think we have quite gotten there.
We have talked during the playoffs about how, in every game, you almost have to raise your game as the series goes on. We are going to have to raise our game tonight. We are going to get the best out of Toronto tonight, and we are going to have to bring our best as well.
Brady Tkachuk on the anticipation for Game 6 at the CTC:
I am expecting big things. This is not just about our team. It is about our city. You can feel the excitement. We are going to need it.
The amount of energy and pride we get from our fans and this city is something that I don’t really think they know the impact that they have on our team.
I have been looking forward to this game right from when Game 5 ended. This is a big one. The season is on the line again tonight.
It’s going to be a lot of fun.
Tkachuk on the team’s points of emphasis ahead of another do-or-die game:
Just have the same mindset of win or go home. Nothing else to save it for. Our message in the last couple of games has been just to leave absolutely everything you have out there physically, mentally, and emotionally. The game usually takes care of itself that way.
I am expecting a huge response out of [the Leafs] tonight. I expect it to be a great hockey game with great energy and atmosphere. For us, it is about leaving it all out there and seeing what happens.
David Perron on the Senators’ growth through the series so far:
When we were down and out, we found a way to stay alive. In my first playoff experience, we lost four in a row. I said before the series that you are not in the NHL until you play in the playoffs. Until you win your first game, it is also a big step.
You can see the growth from game to game so far. We are going to try to do it again tonight.
Toronto Maple Leafs Projected Lines
Forwards
#23 Matthew Knies — #34 Auston Matthews — #16 Mitch Marner
#67 Max Pacioretty — #91 John Tavares — #88 William Nylander
#74 Bobby McMann — #29 Pontus Holmberg — #11 Max Domi
#18 Steven Lorentz — #24 Scott Laughton — #19 Calle Jarnkrok
Defensemen
#22 Jake McCabe — #8 Chris Tanev
#44 Morgan Rielly — #25 Brandon Carlo
#2 Simon Benoit — #95 Oliver Ekman-Larsson
Goaltenders
Starter: #41 Anthony Stolarz
#60 Joseph Woll
Extras: Nick Robertson, David Kampf, Ryan Reaves, Philippe Myers, Dakota Mermis, Artur Akhtyamov, Jani Hakanpaa
Ottawa Senators Projected Lines
Forwards
#7 Brady Tkachuk — #18 Tim Stutzle — #28 Claude Giroux
#57 David Perron — #24 Dylan Cozens — #19 Drake Batherson
#71 Ridly Greig — #12 Shane Pinto — #22 Michael Amadio
#21 Nick Cousins — #81 Adam Gaudette — #20 Fabian Zetterlund
Defensemen
#85 Jake Sanderson — #2 Artem Zub
#72 Thomas Chabot — #3 Nick Jensen
#43 Tyler Kleven — #33 Nikolas Mattinpalo
Goaltenders
Starter: #35 Linus Ullmark
#31 Anton Forsberg
Extras: Matthew Highmore, Hayden Hodgson, Dennis Gilbert, Travis Hamonic, Leevi Merilainen
