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The Toronto Maple Leafs dominate the Ottawa Senators 6-2 to take Game 1 of their first-round series in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Toronto opened the scoring in the first period with Oliver Ekman-Larsson. Mitch Marner added another to make it 2-0 for the Maple Leafs.
With Drake Batherson cutting the deficit to one at the first intermission, a close game seemed like a possibility. But the Leafs offensive firepower was too much for the inexperienced Senators. Toronto scored three goals on the power play, which included goals from John Tavares, William Nylander and Matthew Knies.
Anthony Stolarz made 31 saves en route to the Game 1 victory. In Game 2, Max Domi scored the OT winner to give the Maple Leafs a 2-0 series lead.
Read more below on Toronto's Game 1 win.
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Leafs rout Senators as Battle of Ontario reignites: 5 takeaways from Game 1
It’s tough times for OGWAC fans.
I won’t sugarcoat it. It’s been a bumpy year for us here in the OGWAC world. For those of you who are new, that would be Old Guys Without a Cup, the beloved NHL playoff trope that’s served up classic stories like Ray Bourque, Teemu Selanne and Lanny McDonald. Everyone loves an OGWAC story — especially one that ends with a Stanley Cup.
It happened last year, with Kyle Okposo. He won his first Cup at age 36 in what would turn out to be the final game of his 17-season career.
But while seeing Okposo get his lap with the Cup was a great moment, it’s been largely downhill since then for the OGWAC community. We lost Joe Pavelski, the patron saint of active OGWACs, to retirement. We’ve also said goodbye to Zach Parise, Sam Gagner, Blake Wheeler and Mark Giordano. And this year’s playoff field means we can’t root for names like Chris Kreider, Anders Lee or Tyler Myers.
That said, change can be good, even when it comes to old guys. All those absences should clear the way for some new names on this year’s list, and maybe a few older ones we haven’t seen in a while.
Let’s see where this takes us — and see where the Leafs' John Tavares lands.
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Old Guy Without a Cup rankings, 2025 edition: John Tavares, Brock Nelson and more
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This could be it.
The last time Mitch Marner plays in the postseason for the Maple Leafs. That’s not hyperbole, not with Marner playing without a contract beyond this season and seemingly unsure about signing one.
This was always going to be a spotlight postseason for Marner. The fact he has been unwilling to sign an extension, which led the front office to request that he lift his no-movement clause in a trade for Mikko Rantanen, has only made the spotlight brighter.
These playoffs have the potential to alter not only the course of Marner’s career, but the course of the Leafs along with it. They could be the start of something new, something richer (a Stanley Cup?) for both player and team, or the end of the line.
Read more.
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Mitch Marner and the playoffs: A new beginning or the end of the line?
This is John Tavares' 16th season and second as a qualified OGWAC.
It is his 10th trip to the playoffs, but the first since 2013 in which he’s not his team’s captain. That’s actually a good thing for our purposes, since part of any great OGWAC story is seeing a guy get that first Cup handoff honor. You can’t do that if you’re the captain. You also can’t do that if you’re a Maple Leaf, apparently, but we’ll keep Tavares on the list anyway.
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Old Guy Without a Cup rankings, 2025 edition: John Tavares, Brock Nelson and more
The Leafs are no strangers to the wild swings in emotion and the grind that’s about to take hold. However, in Game 1, they dug in early and got a rare chance to exhale long before the final buzzer sounded.
“Listen, it’s one game,” Leafs coach Craig Berube said. “It’s going to get harder. We all know that.”
For now, it's OK to soak in the 1-0 series lead.
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Maple Leafs open Battle of Ontario with intriguing lack of past playoff woes
Craig Berube praised the line of Steven Lorentz, Scott Laughton and Calle Järnkrok for their Game 1 performance following Monday’s practice.
“Just the checking and hounding,” Berube said, when asked what he liked most about the unit. “I think they’re a difficult line to play against. They forecheck well and they’re on top of people, and there’s just no room out there when they’re playing. And they’re responsible defensively. They’ve been a good line for a little while now.”
The line combined to score the Leafs’ first goal on Sunday night and won the shot attempts’ battle in their nine minutes of ice time.
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Have the Maple Leafs unlocked a new weapon for playoff success?
What’s different about the Maple Leafs in these playoffs?
After a midseason tweak, it might be their power play.
The Leafs won Game 1 against the Ottawa Senators 6-2 in large part because their power play scored three times in six tries. They all but put away Sunday night’s opener with consecutive power-play goals, three minutes apart, in the second.
That’s no small development for this particular team — and a formidable weapon, perhaps, for a more successful postseason.
“Our power play was obviously very good tonight,” Leafs coach Craig Berube said. “Those guys did a good job.”
Despite a wealth of star power, the power play hasn’t done a good job in the playoffs for the Leafs, coming up short again and again at crucial times. Over seven games against the Boston Bruins in last year’s playoffs, the Leafs had 40 minutes and 40 seconds of power-play time. They scored once on 21 opportunities.
In other words, the Leafs tripled their output from last year’s postseason in Game 1 against Ottawa alone.
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Have the Maple Leafs unlocked a new weapon for playoff success?
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Unquestionably favoured in this best-of-seven against the Senators, the Leafs checked off every box the coaching staff could have asked for in Game 1.
Check.
Check.
Check.
Check.
They also seemed to get under the Senators’ skin as the night wore on. Asked whether his team was undisciplined, Ottawa coach Travis Green acknowledged it took too many infractions while adding a caveat.
“I thought there was a couple calls that they did a good job selling,” he said. “It’s tough on the refs.”
Read more.
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Maple Leafs open Battle of Ontario with intriguing lack of past playoff woes
The Senators' Ridly Greig was a popular topic of conversation inside the Leafs dressing room between Games 1 and 2. His slide into Anthony Stolarz late in Sunday's series opener got the players' attention, as did his penalized cross-check to John Tavares' head and neck area.
Said Toronto's Matthew Knies on Monday: "It's definitely annoying. I think we're going to play hard on him and not make it easy for him the rest of the way."
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Senators’ Ridly Greig won’t face suspension for cross-check: Source
The biggest question for Anthony Stolarz: Can the Leafs goalie continue to play this well, every second night, during a long run — something he has never really been asked to do at the pro level?
The fact that that is the only uncertainty — and not his ability or his mindset — is an upgrade over the question marks the Leafs have had at the sport’s most important position far too often in the past.
For now, all of the pressure has shifted to Linus Ullmark and the Senators, who need to show they’re not going to be the ones out-goalied this time around.
It’s just one game. But given the season he’s had, Stolarz feels like one of the biggest sure things in this series right now.
And when have we said that before in Toronto?
It’s been a while.
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In Anthony Stolarz, the Maple Leafs may finally have their advantage in goal
Maple Leafs coach Craig Berube on Anthony Stolarz missing today’s practice: “Just rest. He’s all good.”
The Maple Leafs say it’s just a rest day for Anthony Stolarz.
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Anthony Stolarz is not participating in Leafs practice the day after making 31 saves in a Game 1 victory. He is the only regular not taking part.
TORONTO — Had you granted the Toronto Maple Leafs the ability to script their own opening scene to the Battle of Ontario, even they may not have come up with a night that soothed this many old wounds.
For one pitch-perfect game, at least, the long-suffering denizens of Leafs Nation were treated to something that almost felt like playoff calm.
The stars peppered the scoresheet. The power play came roaring out of the gates against an undisciplined opponent. The best goaltender stood in the Toronto crease. And the Leafs comfortably won a series opener for just the third time in 10 tries during the Core Four era.
“They played,” coach Craig Berube said after Sunday’s 6-2 win. “They just played.”
Yes, for 60 refreshing minutes, the team that’s basically become a playoff punch line gave its loyal following a reason to believe — not to mention the chance to serenade Brady Tkachuk with chants of “Brady sucks!” while treating shell-shocked goaltender Linus Ullmark to a few derisive rounds of “Ullllllmark!”
This was entirely different than what came before.
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Maple Leafs open Battle of Ontario with intriguing lack of past playoff woes
Day 2 of the NHL playoffs took place Sunday with three more Game 1s.
In the day’s opening action, the Carolina Hurricanes beat the New Jersey Devils 4-1 to take a 1-0 series lead. Carolina was propelled by Logan Stankoven, who scored two goals. Game 2 is at 6 p.m. ET Tuesday in Raleigh, N.C.
Later, of course, the Toronto Maple Leafs took down the Ottawa Senators 6-2. Mitch Marner led the way for the Leafs with a goal and two assists, while John Tavares and William Nylander each had a goal and an assist. Goalie Anthony Stolarz had 31 saves as the Maple Leafs took a 1-0 series lead. Game 2 is at 7:30 p.m. ET Tuesday in Toronto.
In the Sunday nightcap, the Vegas Golden Knights — the pick favored to win Game 1 by all of The Athletic’s experts — toppled the Minnesota Wild. Brett Howen scored twice, while Tomas Hertl scored once and had an assist. Vegas will look to extend its series lead when it hosts Game 2 at 11 p.m. ET Tuesday.
Read our takeaways from the entire day here.
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NHL playoffs daily: Hurricanes down Devils, Maple Leafs rout Senators, Golden Knights outlast Wild
TORONTO — Ottawa Senators forward Ridly Greig will not face any supplemental discipline after delivering a high cross-check to John Tavares of the Toronto Maple Leafs during Game 1 of the Battle of Ontario, according to a source familiar with the decision.
Sunday’s game produced 52 minutes in penalties, but did not include any infractions the NHL’s department of player safety believed rose to the level of a fine or suspension.
Greig was initially assessed a five-minute cross-checking major penalty after getting his stick up and striking Tavares in the neck or head area as the Leafs player finished a hit on him early in the second period. Following a video review, referees Brian Pochmara and Garret Rank reduced Greig’s penalty to a two-minute cross-checking minor.
Read more.
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Senators’ Ridly Greig won’t face suspension for cross-check: Source
Game 2 of the Maple Leafs and Senators series is Tuesday night from Toronto. Puck drop is half an hour later than Game 1, with action beginning at 7:30 p.m. ET/4:30 p.m. PT.
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Both the Maple Leafs and Senators will participate in an off-day practice. Select players and coaches from both teams will speak to the media.
Stay tuned for quotes and updates.
With the Leafs leading 2-1 after the first period, the Senators came out flying in the second. It was Anthony Stolarz's critical saves preventing goals from Brady Tkachuk and Shane Pinto that kept the Leafs in front. Before the onslaught of Toronto offense happened.
Watch Stolarz shut down the Senators captain on the breakaway below.
One of the questions entering Game 1 was how the Toronto special teams would play. It's just one game but the powerplay and penalty kill were stellar in Game 1.
Toronto scored three powerplay goals, courtesy of John Tavares, William Nylander and Matthew Knies. The Maple Leafs were 2-for-2 on the penalty kill.
