Leafs ponder changes; Rodrigues out for Panthers
TORONTO – Craig Berube is still weighing his options.
The Maple Leafs head coach said following Wednesday's morning skate he has yet to decide on any potential lineup changes when Toronto faces the Florida Panthers in Game 5 of the teams' second-round playoff series.
Berube said any moves would be tactical — and not injury-related — with the best-of-seven matchup between Atlantic Division rivals tied 2-2.
Among the most likely options, centre David Kampf and/or winger Nick Robertson could draw in as part of the forward group's supporting cast in the bottom-6. Berube said defenceman Oliver Ekman-Larsson, who missed Tuesday's practice with an illness, is good to go for Game 5 at Scotiabank Arena.
The Panthers, meanwhile, will be minus winger Evan Rodrigues after he took a big hit from Ekman-Larsson — the play resulted in an interference penalty — in Game 4.
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Jesper Boqvist, who was a healthy scratch the last two games, will draw in. He took the spot of Rodrigues on Florida's top line at the morning skate alongside Aleksander Barkov and Sam Reinhart.
The Leafs jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the best-of-seven series with consecutive home victories before the defending Stanley Cup champion Panthers held serve on their turf, including a suffocating 2-0 victory Sunday.
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Berube hasn't made any tweaks to his forward group or defence corps since veteran winger Max Pacioretty replaced Robertson for Game 3 of Toronto's first-round victory over the Ottawa Senators.
Game 6 between the Leafs and Panthers goes Friday at Amerant Bank Arena in Sunrise, Fla. Game 7, if necessary, would be back in Toronto on Sunday.
WONDER WOLL
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Toronto fans have been making video versions of the song 'Wonderwall' by English rockers Oasis where they add goaltender Joseph Woll's name to the lyrics.
Leafs winger Matthew Knies recently showed him some of the clips that have gone viral online.
'Nice little ring too it,' Woll said with a smile following Tuesday's practice.
MOVING ON
Mitch Marner isn't interested in discussing the elbow he took to the back of the head from Florida defenceman Dmitry Kulikov in Game 4 that went uncalled.
'It's hockey,' said the Toronto winger. 'Stuff happens fast. I don't really care or talk about it. I'm just trying to go out there and do my thing.'
WHAT ABOUT BOB?
Toronto forward Bobby McMann had gone 21 games without a goal dating back to the regular season entering Wednesday. The 28-year-old, who has one assist in the playoffs, last found the back of the net March 25.
The Leafs haven't got a lot of offensive production from its depth forwards this spring. Scott Laughton, Calle Jarnkrok, Steven Lorentz and Pontus Holmberg had also all failed to score through 10 post-season contests ahead of Game 5.
'The bottom-6 has really got to drive the pace of the game, the physical side of the game,' Berube said Wednesday morning. 'Establish our game plan with our forecheck and how we want to check.
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'They need to check. They need to do a good job of checking and playing with energy and pace.'
This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 14, 2025.
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