The Toronto Maple Leafs won Game 1 against the Ottawa Senators in convincing fashion and have their special teams to thank for their 6-2 victory. Leading up to the opening contest for the Battle of Ontario, there was a lot of hype. Almost all of the Senators’ lineup made their playoff debut in this game and were excited to get started. Sens captain Brady Tkachuk said this in the morning of Game 1. “Waking up today, I can’t believe today’s the day,” he said. Ottawa came out with lots of excitement, but throughout the game, they could not stay disciplined.
Ottawa’s Parade To The Box
It all started in the second period for Ottawa. They took three minor penalties, some worse than others. Tim Stutzle got the game’s first penalty just over four minutes into the second frame, boarding defenceman Chris Tanev. Later, Ridly Greig delivered a high cross-check on John Tavares. As Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman put it, he could’ve been ejected from the game for that check.
Ridly Greig was called for a major for cross-checking, but after review it was downgraded to a minor pic.twitter.com/NaaS0Emx1y
— B/R Open Ice (@BR_OpenIce) April 21, 2025
While the Sens were shorthanded from the Greig penalty, Adam Gaudette cross-checked Auston Matthews. He checked the Leafs’ captain on the numbers in the corner, and Toronto earned a two-man advantage. The Maple Leafs scored twice on those three opportunities on the power play. Tavares’ goal on the Stutzle penalty gave Toronto a 3-1 lead. Later, William Nylander sniped it past Linus Ullmark on the two-man advantage to make it 4-1.
The penalties didn’t end there as Drake Batherson added another two minors. A tripping penalty late in the middle frame and a cross-check early in the third period. Toronto converted yet again on the power play. This time, it was Matthew Knies who scored the Leafs’ last power-play goal of the night. Toronto finished the game going three for five on the power play for a 60 percent conversion rate on the night.
Ottawa’s head coach, Travis Green, wasn’t a fan of some of the calls, saying the Leafs did a great job selling the calls. However, he said, “We definitely have to stay out of the box,” admitting that his team needs to be more disciplined. Maple Leafs’ bench boss Craig Berube added his thoughts about the calls. “Penalties are penalties. We were disciplined. We’re going to keep being disciplined,” he said.
Play At Even Strength
After the game, there were comparisons about what the game was like at even strength. The Senators controlled most of the play at five-on-five in terms of shots, puck possession and other stats like that. However, according to Natural Stattrick, high-danger scoring chances were nearly even, 6-5 for Ottawa. Also, the most important stat in all of the sports, the score. At even strength, the Maple Leafs had three goals to the Senators’ two.
Throughout the regular season, the Leafs established their identity in Berube’s first campaign with the team. They are a straight-line team that creates offence from dump-and-chase hockey. Toronto’s days of dominating puck possession and shots on goal are over. Under Sheldon Keefe, the Leafs were among the best teams in the league in those categories. However, that didn’t translate to much success, especially in the playoffs. The new approach with Berube behind the bench might be the change they needed.
Instead, the team is more sound defensively and very comfortable and holding leads. Not to mention, their goaltending has been above par since the start of the season. The Maple Leafs should expect the Senators to learn from their mistakes in Game 1 and come back stronger in the next outing. Game 2 is on Tuesday night at Scotiabank Arena before the series heads to Ottawa.
Main Photo Credit: John E. Sokolowski-Imagn Images
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