On Tuesday, April 29, the Toronto Maple Leafs hosted the Ottawa Senators for Game 5. The Maple Leafs could have ended the series with a win here on home ice. The Senators had other plans, shutting out Toronto 4-0 to force a Game 6.
Game Recap
In the first period, Ridly Greig sat for a cross-checking penalty at the 14-minute mark. Before Greig’s two minutes were up, Matthew Knies took a seat for slashing. The two teams had 51 seconds of 4-on-4. Both penalties ended, but the Maple Leafs took another penalty at the 18-minute mark. The first period came to a close with a 0-0 score; the Maple Leafs took 12 shots on net to the Senators’ four. The Senators also had a 35-second extra-man advantage to start the second period.
Although the Senators didn’t score on that early advantage, they did break the ice early in the second period. Three minutes into the second period, Tim Stutzle won the faceoff for Ottawa. The puck found Brady Tkachuk to his left. Tkachuk sent the puck down to Thomas Chabot at the blue line, who fired a shot. Chabot’s shot flew past the traffic in front and into the back of the net.
At 6:58 of the third, Greig took another seat for holding Mitch Marner. Before the penalty was over, Adam Gaudette gained control of the puck. He drove it through the neutral zone and into the Senators’ offensive zone. Dylan Cozens skated up with speed to force a 2-on-1. Gaudette passed to Cozens, who scored a shorthanded goal to give the Senators a two-goal lead.
As regulation time dwindled, Toronto pulled Anthony Stolarz to give the Maple Leafs an extra-man advantage. With three minutes left in the third period, Tkachuk gained control of the puck near the boards. He sent a long pass down the ice, and Claude Giroux made sure there was no icing call. Giroux picked up the loose puck at the other end of the ice and passed it to Stutzle in front of the net. With a shot, Stutzle scored the third goal of the night for the Senators on an empty net.
With less than a minute left in the third, Toronto pulled Stolarz once more. Off a missed Toronto pass, Stutzle picked up the puck and sent it into neutral ice for Tkachuk. With another empty net goal, Tkachuk called game for the Senators.
While Toronto took 27 shots on net, Linus Ullmark saved all of them to ensure the Senators’ victory.
Game 6 on Thursday
Both teams will head to Ottawa for Game 6 on Thursday, May 1, at 7:00 PM EDT.
