The Toronto Maple Leafs defeated the Florida Panthers 2-1 in Game 4 of their Eastern Conference semifinal series on Wednesday night, with Joseph Woll stopping 24 shots in his first playoff start. Mitch Marner and William Nylander scored the goals, and the Toronto Maple Leafs avoided elimination.
In the second period, a strange bounce led to a power-play goal for Nylander. In the third period, Marner scored, and Woll finished the job in place of injured starter Ilya Samsonov.
For Florida, who had 23 stops from Sergei Bobrovsky, Sam Reinhart scored. With Game 5 taking place in Toronto on Friday night, the Panthers still have a 3-1 series advantage.
Since Felix Potvin, who was 23 at the time, saved 42 shots to defeat Chicago 3-0 on May 9, 1995, Woll, who turns 25 on July 12, was attempting to become the youngest Toronto goaltender to record a playoff shutout.
He was 7:47 away from succeeding.
Reinhart, who scored the game-winning goal in overtime in Game 3, received a fast feed from Matthew Tkachuk and managed to slip the puck under Woll’s leg pads for a power-play goal that trimmed Toronto’s advantage to 2-1.
The first goal looked appropriate given that Nylander’s last name is pronounced KNEE-lander.
Before Florida’s Eetu Luostarinen was given a misconduct penalty for high-sticking Toronto’s Michael Bunting early in the second period, Toronto went almost five full periods—107 minutes and 46 seconds, to be exact—without using its power play.
Thanks to the hockey gods who supervise strange bounces, they made money.
Bunting attempted to throw the puck around the goal from the right wing boards, but it bounced off Jon McIsaac’s leg as he moved to block the shot. It skittered towards the goal, where Nylander beat Bobrovsky to give Toronto a 1-0 advantage.
For Toronto’s main four players, Nylander, Auston Matthews, John Tavares, and Marner, it was their first goal of the series.
Although Toronto had a great opportunity to increase their lead to two in the waning seconds of the second period, the score remained 1-0 heading into the third. Tavares broke free down the middle of the ice on a breakaway, but Bobrovsky stopped his shot to the stick side to hold Florida within one.
With 9:57 remaining, Marner made it 2-0, and the Leafs held on.
STILL NO SWEEP.
Florida has never won all of its postseason series. Additionally, it has been since 1996 that the Panthers haven’t won a series on home ice.
IN THE AREA OF THE RINK
It was Woll’s 12th career start (his first in a playoff game), and Bobrovsky’s 680th overall (his 54th in a playoff game). The Maple Leafs recalled G after Samsonov became injured. The squad will have Dennis Hildeby from the Toronto Marlies of the AHL as a backup goalkeeper in case of an emergency.
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