Todd: The Leafs continue to tolerate mediocrity
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Do the ghosts in suits who run this organization still believe their vaunted Core Four can win a Cup? Or is it enough to go through the motions, to put up fat stats and sign even fatter contracts, so long as lobotomized fans are willing to shell out the Gross National Product of Burkina Faso for season tickets?
What does it do to a team when your arena is a mausoleum for an elimination game and the only sign of life comes from toxic twerp Justin Bieber, dressed for Halloween and having a good giggle with his wife behind the Leafs bench in the midst of this embarrassment?
Is it conceivable that the cheerleaders at Sportsnet and TSN will begin to hold this team accountable, the way the Canadiens are held accountable in Montreal? Is it acceptable to lose twice at home by 6-1 scores when you are meant to be a bona fide Stanley Cup contender? For the team captain to vanish as completely as Auston Matthews vanishes every spring?
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Global News
27 minutes ago
- Global News
‘It's exciting to have worked ourselves back': Oilers set for Stanley Cup rematch with Panthers
Connor McDavid stood along the boards and waited for his teammates. The Oilers had given everything in the Stanley Cup final. McDavid rewrote the NHL's playoff record book with a jaw-dropping performance as part of a memorable post-season run that ultimately ended in Florida's sweltering heat inside Amerant Bank Arena. The gutsy effort — Edmonton forced Game 7 with a trio of victories after trailing the title series 3-0 — wasn't enough. Wiser and more balanced almost 12 months on, McDavid and Co. are hoping for a different closing chapter with the same opponent. The Oilers open this year's best-of-seven showcase against the Panthers on Wednesday at Rogers Place as a calmer, more confident, grounded bunch. Edmonton rode a roller-coaster of emotion to last year's final. After a horrendous start to the regular season that resulted in a coaching change, the club went down 3-2 in the second round and 2-1 in the Western Conference final before surging to victory. Story continues below advertisement This version trailed the Los Angeles Kings 2-0 in the opening round and has barely looked back since. The Oilers, who are 12-2 over their last 14 contests, won four straight to take that series before disposing of the Vegas Golden Knights and Dallas Stars in five games apiece. 1:57 Edmonton Oilers advance to Stanley Cup Finals 'Just keep giving yourselves opportunities to be in this position,' McDavid said Tuesday. 'Keep giving yourself chances to win, and eventually it happens. We've done that. We've put ourselves in another good spot. 'Learned a lot of lessons last year in that month that we can use this year.' Last year's playoff push saw McDavid register 42 points — the most ever by a player in a single post-season not named Wayne Gretzky or Mario Lemieux — while his 34 assists were also a record. Story continues below advertisement 'Winning in the playoffs takes everything you've got,' said McDavid, whose interview station at NHL media day was situated not far from a picture of Florida winger Matthew Tkachuk hoisting the Cup. 'We're in the last series, and it takes even more … they can be draining physically and emotionally, but it's supposed to be.' The Oilers superstar captain and his partner-in-crime, fellow stud centre Leon Draisaitl, have again been excellent this spring, but Edmonton possesses a more balanced attack, with goals from no fewer than 19 different players on the way to the final. Get daily National news Get the day's top news, political, economic, and current affairs headlines, delivered to your inbox once a day. Sign up for daily National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy 'The maturity factor of it,' Draisaitl said of what feels different this time around. 'The experience of having been through the travel, the media attention, knowing what it's all about, knowing the details that go into a game. 'It's exciting to have worked ourselves back into the situation.' Story continues below advertisement View image in full screen Edmonton Oilers centre Leon Draisaitl speaks to reporters on June 3, 2025. Global News Edmonton is also relatively healthy, save for grinding, heart-and-soul forward Zach Hyman's upper-body injury suffered against Dallas that likely ended his campaign. Top-six winger Evander Kane was ready in time for the playoffs after missing the entire regular season with abdominal surgery, while minute-crunching defenceman Mattias Ekholm returned to the lineup in Game 5 last round following a long absence due to a lower-body issue. 'We're more patient and more trusting in our game,' Draisaitl said. 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McDavid said his team is better prepared for the emotions of the final a second time around. 'It can feel like it's larger than it is,' he said. 'At the end of the day, it's another series. We're playing another great team. You've got to beat them before anything else happens. They have our complete focus. All of our energy is in going into beating the Florida Panthers. Story continues below advertisement 'There should be nothing else on anyone's mind.'


Ottawa Citizen
28 minutes ago
- Ottawa Citizen
Haunted and inspired Edmonton Oilers facing their best shot at a Cup
Article content Listening to the Florida Panthers celebrate a Stanley Cup championship that came at the expense of the Edmonton Oilers was like an earache that lasted 11 months. Article content 'It's something you don't forget,' the Oilers defencemen said on the eve of their Stanley Cup Final rematch with the Florida Panthers. 'It's something you thought about all summer and something you think about all year to get back to this point to give ourselves another chance. Article content Article content 'We still have that feeling from last year and don't want it to happen again.' Article content Article content Another shot at the Panthers is all they could ask for and now it's here. What they do with it is going to play out over the next couple of weeks, but one thing the Oilers know for certain is that they are a very different team than the one that came up short in Game 7 a year ago. Article content 'There is definitely a different feel within the group,' said defenceman Darnell Nurse. 'Our group is in a different mindset going into this one.' Article content They have more experience than last year. They have the added motivation of losing last year. They are healthier than they were last year. And they're 12-2 in their last 14 games. Article content This might be as ready as they are ever going to be. Article content 'All of our energy is going into beating the Florida Panthers, there should be nothing else on anyone's mind,' said Oilers captain Connor McDavid, well aware that the Panthers are a legitimate super power. Article content Article content 'They're the champs, this is their third final in three years. They're a great team. You can't say enough good things. It's going to be a great challenge.' Article content Article content For Edmonton, the road to this point has also been much smoother than last year when they needed seven games to get past Vancouver and were badly outplayed in the conference final clinching game against Dallas. Article content This time they're well-rested and coming in hot after winning the last four games against Los Angeles and taking Vegas and Dallas out in five games each. That's going to count for something. Article content 'The mental stress of battling blow-for-blow in a series, we didn't have much of that,' said Evander Kane. 'That helps a team when you don't go seven games at all through the first three rounds.


Vancouver Sun
28 minutes ago
- Vancouver Sun
Haunted and inspired Edmonton Oilers facing their best shot at a Cup
The sound of it still haunts Evan Bouchard. Listening to the Florida Panthers celebrate a Stanley Cup championship that came at the expense of the Edmonton Oilers was like an earache that lasted 11 months. 'It's something you don't forget,' the Oilers defencemen said on the eve of their Stanley Cup Final rematch with the Florida Panthers. 'It's something you thought about all summer and something you think about all year to get back to this point to give ourselves another chance. 'We still have that feeling from last year and don't want it to happen again.' Start your day with a roundup of B.C.-focused news and opinion. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it, please check your junk folder. The next issue of Sunrise will soon be in your inbox. Please try again Interested in more newsletters? Browse here. Another shot at the Panthers is all they could ask for and now it's here. What they do with it is going to play out over the next couple of weeks, but one thing the Oilers know for certain is that they are a very different team than the one that came up short in Game 7 a year ago. 'There is definitely a different feel within the group,' said defenceman Darnell Nurse. 'Our group is in a different mindset going into this one.' They have more experience than last year. They have the added motivation of losing last year. They are healthier than they were last year. And they're 12-2 in their last 14 games. This might be as ready as they are ever going to be. 'All of our energy is going into beating the Florida Panthers, there should be nothing else on anyone's mind,' said Oilers captain Connor McDavid , well aware that the Panthers are a legitimate super power. 'They're the champs, this is their third final in three years. They're a great team. You can't say enough good things. It's going to be a great challenge.' For Edmonton, the road to this point has also been much smoother than last year when they needed seven games to get past Vancouver and were badly outplayed in the conference final clinching game against Dallas. This time they're well-rested and coming in hot after winning the last four games against Los Angeles and taking Vegas and Dallas out in five games each. That's going to count for something. 'The mental stress of battling blow-for-blow in a series, we didn't have much of that,' said Evander Kane. 'That helps a team when you don't go seven games at all through the first three rounds. 'When I was in San Jose when we had to call guys up from the American League to play in Game 6 of the conference final against St. Louis. We just didn't have anything because we went seven against Vegas, seven against Colorado. 'It's tough to go all the way and win it when you have those early series that take so much out of you. As a group we're feeling really good.' They mean that literally. Last year McDavid was on the limp, Nurse was playing hurt and Kane didn't even make it to Game 3. This time, after resting everyone down the stretch and wrapping up the first three series in short order, Edmonton feels as strong as it looks. 'I left the Cup Final last year knowing I had a lot more to give, and wanted to give,' said Nurse. 'That's the playoffs, everyone has some sort of ailment they're dealing with, and we had a lot last year.' This year, aside from Zach Hyman's arm injury, they're good to go. 'Anytime you can come into a series thinking you can play to your full capabilities you're going to have more confidence in your game,' said Kane. Going 12-2 in the last 14 games against the best teams in the conference, says defenceman Brett Kulak, suggests Edmonton is on the right track. 'There is no reason why we shouldn't be confident,' said Kulak. 'We haven't lost much in the last few rounds and we've gotten better and better as the games went on. 'That's a good sign. We don't need to go into Game 1 trying to change anything or be anything that we're not. We know that we're good enough to get the job done. 'We're going to lean on our experience. Every player has grown and gotten a lot better since this time last year.' The core group has grown in every sense in their 10 years together. A decade after arriving as nervous teenagers they are captains and leaders, ready to bring hockey's great prize back to Edmonton. Having another opportunity to do this together makes it even more special. 'They're my best friends,' said Leon Draisaitl. 'We've been through a lot of bad years, a lot of tough times here. And now a lot of good times. 'Our dream, our goal, is to finish this off now. Hopefully we can do it, most importantly, for ourselves, but for the people of Edmonton, the fan base, the organization. They live with us. The passion is different around here. We're excited to get another crack at it.' 'The core guys have been at this together for a long time,' added McDavid. 'We've shown a great deal of commitment to each other, to the organization, to the city and it's brought us to this point again, another kick at the can. It's great to be doing this with your brothers, the guys you've been with all along.' E-mail: rtychkowski@ Bookmark our website and support our journalism: Don't miss the news you need to know — add and to your bookmarks and sign up for our newsletters . You can also support our journalism by becoming a digital subscriber. Subscribers gain unlimited access to The Edmonton Journal, Edmonton Sun, National Post and 13 other Canadian news sites. The Edmonton Journal | The Edmonton Sun