Brad Marchand Drops Subtle Maple Leafs Joke After Game 7 Win
Florida Panthers forward Brad Marchand didn't waste his chance to needle the Toronto Maple Leafs fanbase one last time after Florida's 6-1 Game 7 win at Scotiabank Arena.
During a postgame interview on TNT, Marchand was asked by former NHL player, current analyst, and renowned Leafs fan Paul Bissonnette about the Panthers' mindset heading into the second period.
Advertisement
Florida scored three unanswered goals in just over six minutes, including one by Marchand, to break the game open and remove all chances of Toronto advancing to the Eastern Conference Final.
'Yeah, we had the beLEAF,' Marchand said with a grin, drawing laughs from the panel and a funny reaction from Bissonnette.
It was a pointed but light-hearted shot after Marchand became the first player in NHL history to win five Game 7s against Toronto.
Marchand finished Sunday's game with a goal and two assists and led Florida in second-round scoring with eight points across seven games.
Florida Panthers forward Brad Marchand (63) skates against the Toronto Maple Leafs at Scotiabank Arena.John E. Sokolowski-Imagn Images
While Marchand played up the rivalry, he also gave Toronto credit during his media availability, prasing the team and blasting Leafs Nation for their never-ending criticism of the franchise.
Advertisement
'I said it before, I wasn't just pumping their tires, they're a different team this year,' Marchand said. 'They competed way harder than they ever had.
'If you look at the heat this team catches, it's actually really unfortunate. They've been working at building something really big here for a while, and they were a different brand of hockey this year. They are getting crucified and I don't think it's justified just because they weren't able to do it.
'But we are a really good, deep team, too, and that's how things go sometimes.'
Florida will face the Carolina Hurricanes in the conference finals, beginning Tuesday.
Advertisement
Related: Brad Marchand Blasts Leafs Nation's 'Unjustified' Behavior Toward Maple Leafs
Related: Auston Matthews Calls Out Maple Leafs 'Passengers' After Game 7
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
New York Times
an hour ago
- New York Times
Ryan Fox finally eliminates Sam Burns to win typically wild Canadian Open
This week's Canadian Open, as it tends to be, was a strange golf tournament. None of the biggest stars in the field contended. World No. 2 Rory McIlroy shot a 78 to miss the cut. The main storyline was the professional debuts of Luke Clanton and two other rookies, and none of them made the cut, either. Advertisement So it feels right that the Canadian Open was decided by not one, not two, not even three playoff holes. It took four attempts on the 18th hole at TPC Toronto for Ryan Fox to win the Canadian Open with a majestic 258-yard approach that landed just feet from the hole. Even the way it went to a playoff felt fitting, with Sam Burns — so far down the leaderboard he teed off two hours before the final group — shooting a Sunday 62 and waiting in the clubhouse as a collection of journeymen and volatile talents faded down the stretch. That was until Fox, the 38-year-old Kiwi, hit a 17-foot birdie on 18 to force a playoff. And until Burns, the best putter on tour statistically, missed a 7-footer to win on the first playoff hole. Or when neither birdied the par-5 18th on the second playoff hole. Then, the PGA Tour moved the pin location on the same green to a different spot while the golfers drove back to the tee for a third time. And again Fox and Burns made a mess of it with poor wedge shots into the green for more pars. All of this until the fourth try, when Fox hit his beautiful approach. But still it wasn't to plan. Fox missed the short eagle putt, but Burns three-putted across the green to hand the title to Fox for his second PGA Tour win in a month and 19th professional win worldwide. 'That shot I hit on 18 … probably the best shot I've ever hit."@RyanFoxGolfer sealed the deal with this shot on the fourth playoff hole @RBCCanadianOpen. — PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) June 8, 2025 Then again, the Canadian Open has truly been the strangest tournament for years. You know, the one where Adam Hadwin got jacked up and tackled by a security guard while running onto the green to celebrate countryman Nick Taylor's win in 2023. The one Robert MacIntyre won last summer with his father, a shy, Scottish grass cutter, on his bag in a pinch. And it's the tournament always going on during LIV drama, like the initial mass exodus that week in 2022 and the framework agreement announcement in 2023. There's always something. Advertisement And then there's this year's contest. For a very respected PGA Tour event, a 54-hole leaderboard led by Matteo Manassero, Fox, Lee Hodges, Kevin Yu, Matt McCarty and Mackenzie Hughes caught many off guard. The 36-hole leader was Cameron Champ, a former rising star who hasn't qualified for the past 13 major championships. Burns breaking out at least seemed to add some star power. Burns is a Ryder Cup participant who's played on two Presidents Cup teams. From age 24 to 26, he won four PGA Tour events and was looped into that class of exciting young talents like his buddy Scottie Scheffler, Viktor Hovland and Collin Morikawa. But Burns had a somewhat disappointing 2024, and the beginning of 2025 included his worst stretch in years, dropping outside the Data Golf top 40 for the first time since he was 23. But suddenly, Burns is hot at a good time. Starting in April, he's finished top-20 in the PGA Championship, the Memorial, the RBC Heritage and the Byron Nelson. His Sunday 62 just adds to his momentum leading into the U.S. Open at Oakmont this week. This weekend, though, is about Fox. After a win in Myrtle Beach at an opposite field event last month, he finished T28 at the PGA Championship, T20 at the Memorial and now adds this win to continue a dominant month. Can it continue at Oakmont? (Photo of Ryan Fox, left, and Sam Burns: Vaughn Ridley / Getty Images)
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Fox beats Burns on fourth playoff hole to win PGA Canadian Open
New Zealand's Ryan Fox celebrates his winning putt after beating Sam Burns on the fourth playoff hole to capture the US PGA Tour's Canadian Open (Minas Panagiotakis) New Zealand's Ryan Fox birdied the fourth playoff hole to defeat American Sam Burns on Sunday and win the US PGA Tour's Canadian Open for his second triumph in five weeks. The 38-year-old Kiwi hit a 3-wood from the fairway to eight feet and two-putted for victory when Burns lipped out an 11-foot birdie putt on their fifth playing of the par-five 18th, counting their regulation birdies in Sunday's final round. Advertisement "Probably the greatest shot I've ever hit considering the circumstances," Fox said of his second shot on the last extra hole. "To be honest, Sam and I had a bit of a pillow fight there for three holes. It was some average golf from both of us, some average putting. "But that shot I hit on 18, that 3-wood, was probably the best shot I've ever hit. Would have been nice to make it but hey I'll take it." Fox became the first New Zealand golfer to win two PGA Tour titles in one year after taking his first at last month's Myrtle Beach Classic. Taiwan's Kevin Yu was third on 263 with Americans Cameron Young and Matt McCarty sharing fourth on 264. Advertisement Burns and Fox each finished 72 holes on 18-under par 262 at TPC Toronto Osprey Valley. Burns fired an eight-under 62, his second-lowest career round, while Fox shot a 66, his closing birdie from just inside 17 feet forcing the playoff. "It was tough," Fox said. "I hit some great shots down the stretch in regulation. Probably got a little lucky on that putt on 18 in regulation. That snuck in the left door." Both Fox and Burns laid up and made routine pars in the first three holes of the playoff, Burns missing a six-foot putt for the win on the first extra hole. In a pre-planned move, officials changed the hole location before the third extra hole and still they were tied. The drama went to the fourth playoff hole when Fox blasted his second shot on the green to eight feet. Advertisement "I had 230 meters, 255 yards, and into the wind it was a cut 3-wood. In the air, I thought I hit it stone dead or in the water. Judged by the crowd it was a really good shot." Burns was 28 feet from the hole with his second, missed the eagle putt then lipped out on an 11-foot birdie putt while Fox missed but then tapped in for the victory. "Took a lot of patience in regulation. Didn't play great the first 12 holes. Just hung in there. Made a couple of great putts coming down the stretch, a lot of really good shots," Fox said. - A lot of 'Go Foxy' - The victory gets Fox into next week's US Open. Advertisement "Probably get my butt kicked next week," he said. "But it'll be worth it." The triumph came with the New Zealand football team watching after a match the night before in Toronto. "That was awesome," Fox said. "It was great to get them in. A lot of 'Go Foxy' and Kiwi accents out there so that was great." Burns opened his final round with back-to-back birdies and began his back nine with five birdies before closing his round with a birdie. "I would definitely say that was probably the best nine I played all week. It was nice to see some go in and hit some close shots," said 33rd-ranked Burns. Advertisement Young, Yu and South Korean Ben An all challenged Burns at 18 but couldn't match him. Fox made the final charge with a 20-foot birdie putt at 14, a tap-in at 15 and his last from just inside 17 feet at 18. js/bb
NBC Sports
2 hours ago
- NBC Sports
Panthers-Oilers Stanley Cup Final is as tight as can be. Game 3 could tilt the series
After going the distance in the Stanley Cup Final last year with the Florida Panthers beating the Edmonton Oilers by a goal in Game 7 and being one win apart during the regular season, not much is separating these two NHL powerhouses so far in their championship series rematch. This final is just about as close as can be through two games, with each team winning once in overtime and knowing full well one puck off the post or into the net could have dramatically changed the situation. That remains the case going into Game 3 on Monday night at Florida, with the very real chance that a couple of bounces and small adjustments could tilt the series one way or the other. 'It's just the back-and-forth punches of a heavyweight tilt,' veteran Oilers forward Adam Henrique said after practice Sunday. 'Every shift matters so much because it might be a 1-0 game and a 2-1 game, and those mistakes that could either cost you or pay dividends for you and keeping that pressure high — that can be the difference.' This has been a different final than many in the recent past, in part because there's no underdog in it who no one expected to get this far, the opponents know each other well and the teams are nearly at full strength. That has made for some quality hockey where the goals have piled up and yet the defense and goaltending have at the same time been stellar. 'Everything is contested all over the ice, so you're having more events and it's more intense, but what a wonderful thing to be able to say that in the final,' Panthers coach Paul Maurice said after his team's optional skate in Fort Lauderdale. 'Both teams are competing defensively. They're blocking shots, they're battling, they're backchecking and it's still a high-event game. That's some high-end skill.' That high-end skill has been on display. Three-time league and reigning playoff MVP Connor McDavid fittingly leads all scorers with five points, and longtime Edmonton running mate Leon Draisaitl has matched Florida's Sam Bennett and Brad Marchand at three goals apiece. Game 1 finished 4-3 in overtime and Game 2 was 5-4 in double OT. The Oilers have more shots, 92 to 74, while the Panthers have led for over 67 minutes compared to trailing for nearly 28 minutes. It has been tied for large swaths of regulation, and for all the offense, players acknowledge there has not been a whole lot of ice with which to operate. 'It's very tight,' said Marchand, who scored the Game 2 winner 8:04 into the second overtime. 'You can't make any mistakes. Just every time you do, they seem to get something off of it. And we're obviously balanced throughout the lineup, so it's very tight out there. The games speak for themselves. It's been a battle. Very intense and a lot of fun to be a part of.' Like Maurice did after his team lost the opener, Oilers coach Kris Knoblauch is making some changes going on the road where he does not control the matchups. He jumbled his defense pairs, putting Evan Bouchard with Darnell Nurse, Mattias Ekholm with John Klingberg, and Brett Kulak with Jake Walman. 'We're always making adjustments to counter whatever teams are doing, who's playing well,' Knoblauch said. 'Fortunately, our players are comfortable with any changes that we do make just because of how much we've fluctuated our pairs and lines throughout the season. In Games 1 and 2 we had some changes, and games throughout the rest of the series there'll be some more.' The push and pull has been quite something to behold. Tune in to just one period or a handful of shifts and it's easy to get the idea that one team or the other is dominating, and then not long after it alternates. 'Both teams will have times where they look like they've got possession of the game, but it's just not going to last. It doesn't last,' Maurice said. 'This is so close out there, so you can take a look at that video and I can find you 15 goals for the Edmonton Oilers that just didn't go in, and I can find you the exact same for the Florida Panthers.' The emotional ebbs and flows, Maurice insists, are also not as big of swings as it looks from the outside. He didn't feel as devastated after the Game 1 defeat or as euphoric after the Game 2 triumph as it may have appeared. His players are accustomed to these waves from losing in the final to Vegas in 2023 and winning in seven games a year ago after surrendering a 3-0 series lead. 'It's all about staying in the moment,' Panthers winger Sam Reinhart said. 'You can't think too far ahead, and you can't think too far in the past.' Draisaitl, who scored the Game 1 OT goal, acknowledged the what-ifs creep into players' heads in the immediate aftermath of a difficult result. But he and his teammates and their counterparts on the other side understand they can't dwell too much given the razor thin margin of error. 'Two really good teams going at it,' Draisaitl said. 'You have to stay detailed and know that all those little bounces matter.'
