Berube expects Maple Leafs' leaders to respond in Game 5
Toronto Maple Leafs head coach Craig Berube anticipates his core players will be able to step up in Game 5 on Tuesday night as they look to close out the Ottawa Senators.
"They've done a great job of that throughout the season for sure," Berube said of his top players, per NHL.com's Dave McCarthy. "There's ups and downs throughout the season and our guys have responded well. I think the leadership has really grown here and that's the key. The leadership and our leaders leading the way.
"I expect the same in Game 5. We played a real good hockey game, didn't come out on top, but I think our guys will be ready to go and be highly competitive for Game 5. The leadership has been very good and that's the key, so I don't expect anything different."
Pressure is on the Maple Leafs' big guns to deliver the knockout blow after they fell to 1-12 in potential elimination games since 2017. The "Core Four" has been productive in the series thus far but has gotten less productive the longer series go throughout their careers.
| Player | Goals | Assists |
|---|---|---|
| Mitch Marner | 1 | 6 |
| William Nylander | 1 | 5 |
| John Tavares | 3 | 2 |
| Auston Matthews | 1 | 4 |
Top-line winger Matthew Knies has chipped in three goals in the series, and Toronto has gotten five tallies from defensemen - an area in which it struggled throughout the regular season.
Toronto mounted two separate comebacks to get Game 4 to overtime on Saturday but failed to convert on a four-minute power play in the extra frame before Jake Sanderson scored the winner for Ottawa.
Game 5 is scheduled for Tuesday in Toronto.