It’s Game Day!
The Toronto Maple Leafs and Ottawa Senators continue their first-round series tonight with Game 5 of the Battle of Ontario. Puck drop is set for 7:00 p.m. EST.
The Maple Leafs come into Game 5 after dropping their first game of the series. After taking a 3-0 stranglehold against the Senators, they were hoping to close it out in Game 4. Unfortunately, a long-distance shot from Jake Sanderson beat Anthony Stolarz, sending the series back to Toronto for another chance to wrap it up.
For the Maple Leafs, they played much better than in previous games, but still had to play catch-up at times. They fell behind by two early, managed to battle back, then fell behind again before tying it in the third on a shot from Oliver Ekman-Larsson. In overtime, the Maple Leafs carried most of the play, including a 4-minute power play early on, but failed to convert. After the penalty expired, they had several more chances, but it was a seeing-eye shot from Sanderson that beat Stolarz and ended the game.
Maple Leafs News:
The Maple Leafs’ AHL affiliate, the Toronto Marlies were eliminated from playoff contention this weekend. As a result, they have called up their Black Aces for the playoffs.
Forwards:
- Alex Steeves
- Jacob Quillan
- Nicholas Abruzzese
- Reese Johnson
- Alex Nylander
- Roni Hirvonen
Defencemen:
- Matt Benning
- Cade Webber
- Topi Niemelä
- William Villeneuve
- Mikko Kokkonen
- Marshall Rifai
Goalies:
- Matt Murray
- Dennis Hildeby
These players aren’t expected to play, but they will be around the team during practices and team events for the entity of the playoffs.
Team Stats
Toronto Maple Leafs
Series Record: 3-1
Top 5 Scorers:
- Mitch Marner: 1 G, 6 A, 7 P
- William Nylander: 1 G, 5 A, 6 P
- Auston Matthews: 1 G, 5 A, 6 P
- John Tavares: 3 G, 2 A, 4 P
- Matthew Knies: 3 G, 0 A, 3 P
Goalie Stats:
- Anthony Stolarz: 3-1, 2.29 GAA, .902 SV%
Ottawa Senators
Series Record: 1-3
Top 5 Scorers:
- Brady Tkachuk: 2 G, 1 A, 3 P
- Claude Giroux: 1 G, 2 A, 3
- Jake Sanderson: 1 G, 2 A, 3 P
- David Perron: 1 G, 1 A, 1 P
- Drake Batherson: 1 G, 1 A, 2 P
Goalie Stats:
- Linus Ullmark: 1-3, 3.44 GAA, .848 SV%
Projected Lineups
There are just projections, these lineups are subject to change before the drop of the puck.
Toronto Maple Leafs:
Matthew Knies — Auston Matthews — Mitch Marner
Pontus Holmberg — John Tavares — William Nylander
Calle Jarnkrok — Scott Laughton — Steven Lorentz
Max Pacioretty — Max Domi — Bobby McMann
Jake McCabe — Chris Tanev
Morgan Rielly — Brandon Carlo
Simon Benoit — Oliver Ekman-Larsson
Anthony Stolarz
Joseph Woll
Scratched: David Kampf, Nick Robertson, Dakota Mermis, Philippe Myers, Artur Akhtyamov
Ottawa Senators:
Brady Tkachuk — Tim Stutzle — Claude Giroux
Fabian Zetterlund — Dylan Cozens — Drake Batherson
Ridly Greig — Shane Pinto — Michael Amadio
David Perron — Adam Gaudette — Nick Cousins
Jake Sanderson — Artem Zub
Thomas Chabot — Nick Jensen
Tyler Kleven — Nikolas Matinpalo
Linus Ullmark
Anton Forsberg
Scratched: Dennis Gilbert, Travis Hamonic, Matthew Highmore
Game 5 Prediction
Ahead of Game 4, I predicted that the Maple Leafs would close it out in four games. Unfortunately, they didn’t, they lost. But I personally don’t think that this will be the case tonight.
Related: 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs Round 1 Hub
They want to silence the haters, the doubters, and the critics who believe they blew their chance to close out the series after just one loss. This win means more than just advancing—it’s about proving that this team is different. With that in mind, I predict the Maple Leafs will finish the job tonight at home with a 4-1 win.
