Latest news with #forecheck
CTV News
14 hours ago
- Sport
- CTV News
'They're Stanley Cup champions back to back for a good reason': Connor McDavid
Edmonton Watch Oilers captain Connor McDavid says the Florida Panthers were great on the forecheck, kept on top of the Oilers and kept Edmonton from generating momentum.
National Post
10-05-2025
- Sport
- National Post
SIMMONS: Maple Leafs lose in overtime, a game they should have won
Article content That's their game. Hard on the forecheck. Take a body or two on every dump in. Wear down the Leafs. With Anthony Stolarz in goal, the Leafs had a strong puck moving goaltender. Without him, every dump in is a little more dangerous, a little more difficult, every dump in puts the defence at some kind of risk. Article content This is Paul Maurice hockey at its best. Dump. Chase. Hit. Wear down. Do it again. And then start all over again. Woll is not comfortable playing the puck. The Leafs defence, strong as they may be as a group, don't like playing the part of pinata. Article content That's not going to change if Stolarz isn't able to play. That's something, like the forecheck, the Leafs are going to have to tough their way through this. This team is capable of that: unless by game five or six or seven they just get worn down. Article content The Leafs have scored 13 goals in three games against Bobrovsky. That's a lot of goal scoring for three playoff games. That's a lot of goal scoring for a Leaf team that has historically struggled with goals in the post-season. Article content Captain Auston Matthews has none of those 13 goals. Nylander has three. Knies, Rielly and John Tavares each have two. Mitch Marner, Max Domi, Chris Tanev and Max Pacioretty have the others. Article content Article content Article content Matthews had more hits in Game 3 than he had shots on goal. He didn't play terribly, he just didn't do what he's paid to do: And that's take over playoff games when they're this close. Article content That's why the Leafs made him hockey's highest paid player. That's why they look to him to score when no one else is scoring. But here, the first liners are all scoring. Knies and Marner are his linemates. They've got goals. Nylander, Tavares and sometimes Pacioretty are the second line. They've got goals. Article content Why not Matthews? Article content He made an incredible play that won't get him any points. While killing a penalty in the final minute, he reached out, dove across the ice, and somehow cleared a loose puck that didn't seem possible. Article content He made the play that few others could have made. But he also scores goals the way few others can score and through three games he has none. In the Leafs last 19 playoff games, eight of them against the Panthers, Matthews only has three goals. Article content Not even a deflection off a deflection off a deflection kind of goal. Article content Rielly scored the game tying goal in the third period, a shot that deflected off Seth Jones and past Bobrovsky. Article content
