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Yahoo
4 hours ago
- General
- Yahoo
How The Maple Leafs Can Win Game 6 After All – And Still Lose Game 7
Final Remaining Teams In This Year's Stanley Cup Playoffs Shows Sabres What's Necessary To Have Success After the Toronto Maple Leafs and Florida Panthers play Game 7 of their second-round Stanley Cup playoff series Sunday night, there will be only four teams left in this year's post-season. And no matter which team joins the Carolina Hurricanes, Dallas Stars and Edmonton Oilers in the conference finals, it's going to be crystal-clear to everyone -- the Buffalo Sabres included -- what it takes to have success to get into the playoffs, and when the games matter most once they get there. 2:27 Now Playing Paused Ad Playing
Yahoo
4 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Canadiens: Demidov Snubbed For KHL Rookie Of The Year Award
How The Maple Leafs Can Win Game 6 After All – And Still Lose Game 7 At the beginning of the second round of the Stanley Cup playoffs, this writer picked the Toronto Maple Leafs to beat the Florida Panthers in seven games.
CTV News
4 hours ago
- Entertainment
- CTV News
Marchand says he's going to savor this trip to Cup final, knowing the chance isn't guaranteed again
Florida Panthers center Brad Marchand (63) drives against Carolina Hurricanes defenseman Alexander Nikishin (21) and goaltender Frederik Andersen (31) during the first Period in Game 5 of the NHL hockey Stanley Cup Eastern Conference finals Wednesday, May 28, 2025, in Raleigh, N.C. (AP Photo/Chris Seward) FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — Brad Marchand won the Stanley Cup with the Boston Bruins when he was 23. He and the Bruins played for it again when he was 25 and 31. He wondered if he would ever return to the title round. At 37 — and with the Florida Panthers — he's gotten there. And this time, Marchand is making sure he savors the chance. Over 1,274 games in his career, including playoffs, there are some memories that escape Marchand now. There are some moments that he acknowledges taking for granted, moments where he didn't use an extra second or two to appreciate being part of. That won't happen now, he insists, since Marchand knows he's much closer to the end of his career than the beginning. 'It's more like enjoying each day like, having fun when you come to the rink,' Marchand said. 'It can be stressful when you start overthinking things, start looking ahead or the pressure sometimes you put on yourself. This time around, I'm coming to the rink every day and just having fun and trying to live in the moment. You know, not taking anything too seriously.' Except the hockey, that is. Marchand is incredibly serious about the task at hand — which resumes Wednesday night when Marchand and the Panthers open the Stanley Cup Final at Edmonton. It's a rematch of last season's Panthers-Oilers series, one that Florida won in seven games. It wasn't difficult to envision a rematch when that series ended. But there's probably nobody on the planet who would have thought the rematch would include the former Boston captain playing for Florida. 'This is special,' Marchand said. 'You don't get a lot of opportunities to be part of something like this.' The Panthers are 8-2 in the playoffs when Marchand gets a point, 4-3 when he doesn't. They're 9-1 when he logs at least 15 1/2 minutes of ice time in the playoffs, 3-4 when he doesn't. It's clear: At his age, he still impacts winning with his hands and his voice. 'Guys that are vocal and intense sometimes will get up and down your bench screaming at your bench, right? They just get so wired in the game and he never does that. It's always positive,' Panthers coach Paul Maurice said. 'It's always, 'Stay in there, hang in there.' ... It's bordering on legendary status at this point. He's pumping their tires and he's just, every day, excited. It's his personality.' There is a very clear silly side as well. Marchand made a trip to Dairy Queen on an off day with teammates essentially become a three-day story by saying he had one of their desserts between periods of a game against Carolina. (He didn't, the snack was honey, not a Blizzard.) He has been chirping teammates from the day he arrived in Florida. He embraces how teammates shoot the toy rats — a Panthers tradition that goes back to 1996 — at him after games, even calling it a family reunion once in a subtle nod to his 'rat' nickname. He keeps it light, until it's time not to. If there's a scrum on the ice, he'll be involved. If a teammate needs backup, he'll be there. A chance at the Cup might not come again, and Marchand — who came to Florida at the trade deadline in a stunner of a move — is vowing that this opportunity won't be wasted. 'I may never get back this late in playoffs ever again in my career,' Marchand said. 'To be one of the last teams standing and being part of a great group of guys, these are memories that I want to remember and enjoy. I don't remember some of the series that I played and I know that there's moments that I missed out on or didn't really appreciate because I was worried about other things or stressing about other things. I'm not going to do that to myself this time around.' Tim Reynolds, The Associated Press
National Post
5 hours ago
- Business
- National Post
A look at Brad Treliving's work two years into his tenure as Maple Leafs GM
Article content Happy anniversary, Brad Treliving. Article content In the two years since the Maple Leafs hired Treliving to be the 18th general manager in franchise history, the 55-year-old has set the team on a new course, one that took greater shape when head coach Craig Berube was brought on board last spring. Article content In a perfect Treliving world, the Leafs will be a team that evolves into one of the top defensively responsible outfits in the National Hockey League, to the point that it becomes an annual Stanley Cup contender. In the wake of another frustrating exit from the playoffs, this time culminating in a Game 7 loss to the Florida Panthers in the second round, the Leafs aren't there yet. Article content 'We fell short of where we wanted to be, and we fell short of where I thought we could be,' Treliving said on Thursday at his end-of-season availability. 'There was a style of play I felt we needed to get to (in hiring Berube). It's a style of play that I feel gives you the best chance to have success. We're seeing it. Article content 'You see it prevalent in our division. It's a direct style, it's a style that you have to be a heavy, forechecking team.' Article content The loss to Florida aside, the Leafs have taken strides in Treliving's two years in the GM chair. Article content Let's take a look at the past 24 months: Article content Of the trades that Treliving has made, including a couple of draft deals that included only picks, one stands out above the rest. Article content We take you back to last June, when Treliving sent minor-league forward Max Ellis (who played this past season in Finland) and a seventh-round choice in 2026 to the Dallas Stars for the rights to free agent defenceman Chris Tanev. Article content Treliving has earned a reputation as a GM whose curiosity has him checking in on just about every player who may be available. Yet his pursuit of Tanev was unwavering. Treliving coveted a reunion with Tanev after working with him with the Calgary Flames. And after he was unable to trade for Tanev at the 2024 trade deadline, Treliving made it work a few months later. Article content Article content Within days, Tanev put his signature on a six-year contract with an average annual value of $4.5 million and the Leafs officially had their defensive linchpin. Article content Tanev quickly established himself as being representative of just about everything Treliving wants in his defencemen. When Tanev isn't blocking shots, he's sharp in the D zone and rarely gets caught out of position. Moving the puck is done with ease. Article content Tanev will turn 36 in December, but there wasn't one instance in his first season with the Leafs where his age was a detriment. Article content Treliving gave an indication of the longer, bigger defencemen he envisioned as being the poster boys of the Leafs blue line when he acquired Ilya Lyubushkin and Joel Edmundson at the '24 deadline. Both moved on in free agency last summer, but Treliving had laid the groundwork for his vision. Article content included saying goodbye to 2017 first-round pick Timothy Liljegren. Failure to adjust to the physical nature now required by Leafs D-men led Liljegren to being traded to the San Jose Sharks last October. A couple of draft picks and depth defenceman Matt Benning, who spent the rest of the season with the Toronto Marlies, were fetched by Treliving in the trade.
Reuters
5 hours ago
- Business
- Reuters
Bettors backing Oilers to thwart Panthers repeat
May 31 - With the "dynasty" word being floated freely as the Florida Panthers prepare for their third consecutive Stanley Cup Finals appearance, the public has been backing the Edmonton Oilers to avoid a repeat of last year's finals. The teams have equal -110 odds at DraftKings to win the series that begins Wednesday in Edmonton, with the Oilers drawing 65 percent of the total early bets and 78 percent of the money wagered on the champion. The action has been more split at BetMGM, where the Oilers opened as the -125 favorite. Their odds have shortened even further to -130, which has led to the Panthers being backed by 53 percent of the bets and 57 percent of the money at the book. The total games market has held steady at six, with 98 percent of the money backing the Over, which would mean another dramatic seven-game series. Edmonton eliminated Dallas in Game 5 of the Western Conference final on Thursday, setting up a repeat of last year's Stanley Cup Final won by Florida in seven games. It's also the first repeat matchup in the Final since Detroit and Pittsburgh met in 2008 and 2009. The Oilers are consensus 1.0-goal favorites (+153) nearly a week ahead of Game 1. The line is 1.5 goals at DraftKings (+190), Caesars (+180) and BetMGM (+192), which reported 66 percent of the money also backing Edmonton's -120 Game 1 moneyline. "They're a really good team and we're a really good team as well," Oilers forward Leon Draisaitl said of the Panthers. "It's nice to get a shot at getting some revenge, but we're a long ways from that. We'll enjoy this and get ready." In last year's Stanley Cup Final, Edmonton lost the first three games but pushed it to the limit before dropping the deciding game 2-1. Now the Oilers have their opportunity to not only win the Stanley Cup but claim the crown against the club that broke their hearts. "I think we're better for going through last year," Oilers star Connor McDavid said. "It's a great learning experience and really driven us all year. This run has felt very different than last year. It's felt very normal. ... "Games can be emotionally draining, but we're not drained. We've got as good a chance as they do." --Field Level Media
