Maple Leafs take 3-0 lead over Senators in Battle of Ontario

The Canadian Press

· Posted: Apr 24, 2025 10:18 PM EDT | Last Updated: 3 minutes ago

The Maple Leafs are 1 triumph distant from different Battle of Ontario triumph — and a travel to the 2nd circular of the NHL playoffs.

Simon Benoit scored astatine 1:19 of overtime arsenic Toronto topped the Ottawa Senators 3-2 connected Thursday to instrumentality a commanding 3-0 pb successful the teams' first-round series.

Benoit blasted a changeable done postulation disconnected an violative portion gully earlier being mobbed by his teammates spilling disconnected the bench.

Auston Matthews and Matthew Knies had the different goals for the Leafs. Anthony Stolarz made 18 saves.

Claude Giroux, with a extremity and an assist, and Brady Tkachuk replied for the Senators. Linus Ullmark made 17 stops.

The Leafs took Game 1 by a 6-2 scoreline successful Toronto earlier a 3-2 overtime triumph 2 nights aboriginal aft blowing an aboriginal two-goal lead.

The Senators, who played their archetypal location playoff crippled since the 2017 Eastern Conference last pursuing a glacial rebuild, big Game 4 connected Saturday looking to stave disconnected elimination.

Largely quiescent done 2 contests and 40 minutes, Matthews buried his archetypal extremity of the bid connected the 3rd period's caller crystal disconnected a slick, one-touch Mitch Marner provender with Ullmark looking the incorrect way.

The Leafs didn't springiness the Senators overmuch country arsenic the timepiece ticked down until Tkachuk took a walk from Giroux disconnected the unreserved and ripped his 2nd past Stolarz's blocker with 8:38 near successful regulation.

Giroux opened the scoring connected a two-man vantage astatine 1:38 of the 2nd erstwhile helium fired a changeable done a Tkachuk surface for the Senators' archetypal pb of the bid wrong a raucous Canadian Tire Centre.

Dylan Cozens had a accidental to marque it 2-0 for the location broadside connected a breakaway aboriginal successful the play earlier David Perron missed an unfastened nett from the slot.

Toronto went to the powerfulness play aboriginal successful the play and equalized erstwhile Knies' centring walk went disconnected the skate of Senators guardant Shane Pinto and dribbled past Ullmark.

Ottawa got different antheral vantage precocious successful the period, but couldn't get thing going earlier the players headed to the locker rooms for the intermission.

Stolarz held the fort aboriginal with the Senators decidedly connected the beforehand foot, including connected a terrific Tim Stutzle accidental from the slot earlier the Leafs yet started to propulsion back. Toronto's champion accidental of the archetypal came disconnected the instrumentality of William Nylander, who blasted a slapshot connected a breakaway that Ullmark smothered.

Long wait

Leafs winger Max Pacioretty suited up for the archetypal clip successful 75 days. The 36-year-old past played Feb. 8 earlier getting unopen down with an undisclosed injury. Pacioretty took the spot of Nick Robertson.

Senators fans waited 2,891 days betwixt location playoff games. The past post-season day successful the nation's superior came connected May 23, 2017, erstwhile Ottawa bushed Pittsburgh 2-1 to unit Game 7 successful the East final. Pittsburgh took that 1 successful treble overtime earlier winning its 2nd consecutive Stanley Cup.