Toronto Maple Leafs reveal lines ahead of playoff series vs. Florida Panthers
After a few days away from being completely in the spotlight, it is once again time to experience the roller coaster that is Toronto Maple Leafs playoff hockey.
On Monday night, the Leafs and Florida Panthers are set to face off at Scotiabank Arena in Game 1 of their second-round series, a rematch of a 2023 meeting that saw Toronto ousted in five games.
The Leafs are coming off a six-game Battle of Ontario series that was decided late in the third period after a clinching Max Pacioretty shot that found its way through traffic, while the Panthers made light work of the Tampa Bay Lightning in five games.
Because the Leafs won the division, Toronto has home-ice advantage in the series over the defending Stanley Cup champion Panthers.
And while Leafs coach Craig Berube tinkered with the team’s lineup throughout their opening six games, it appears there were no major changes when Toronto hit the ice for Sunday’s practice.
Per TSN’s Mark Masters, here’s how the team’s forward lines are shaping up for Game 1:
- Matthew Knies-Auston Matthews-Mitch Marner
- Max Pacioretty-John Tavares-William Nylander
- Steven Lorentz-Scott Laughton-Calle Jarnkrok
- Bobby McMann-Max Domi-Pontus Holmberg
Toronto’s third and fourth lines were listed as flipped by Masters, but the bottom-six personnel remains the same as it was to close out the first-round series.
Marner was actually absent on Sunday, for good reason — his wife Stephanie had just given birth to a new baby boy, the couple’s first child. He was replaced by Nick Robertson on Sunday, but is expected to be in the lineup once the series begins.
The team’s defensive pairs remain unchanged, as they had throughout the entire first-round series against Ottawa.
- Jake McCabe – Chris Tanev
- Morgan Rielly – Brandon Carlo
- Simon Benoit – Oliver Ekman-Larsson
As he was for all six games, Anthony Stolarz is expected to be Toronto’s starter.
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