Berube keeps faith in embattled Matthews, Marner
Published
The Maple Leafs and Florida Panthers (optional) skated at Baptist Health Iceplex in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. on Friday.
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With the Leafs facing elimination on Friday night, Craig Berube is sticking with centre Auston Matthews and winger Mitch Marner together on the top line.
"I've split them up this year at times, and I never felt that it really did anything, to be honest with you," Toronto's head coach said. "These guys have been a combo for a long time, and they've had a lot of success. So, I trust them. I trust in them. I believe in them."
That belief was tested in Game 5 in Toronto. Matthews and Marner did not generate any goals and made mistakes that directly led to two Florida goals in a 6-1 loss.
Marner was at fault for Florida's third goal as his backhand, no-look pass into the neutral zone was picked off and led to a Panthers quick-strike chance off the rush. Jesper Boqvist scored a tap-in goal after beating Marner to the back post.
"Just trying to make a play," said Marner. "Couldn’t really get it off the wall. Tried to hit the far guy and then, yeah, on the 3-on-2 back I was trying to cheat the pass up top and didn’t take him to the post. I mean, that’s obviously a big mistake, so you live to forget. You make mistakes. You’re human. Yeah, just making sure you clear your mind of that. You know you got better and bring it tonight."
Marner has been held off the scoresheet in the last two games. He has landed just two shots on net over the last four games.
Matthews lost a puck battle with Panthers top-line centre Aleksander Barkov in the first period, which led to the opening goal of Game 5 by Aaron Ekblad.
"Puck battles weren't great for us as a team," Matthews said when asked about his line. "And those are so important. They're a big, heavy team, obviously, and they're strong down low, so just being stronger in those puck battles, winning those 50-50s to be able to break out and get the puck out of our own zone and into the neutral zone and offensive zone [is important]."
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Matthews has yet to score in the series despite firing 20 shots on Sergei Bobrovsky.
"Of course, you know, you want to score, you want to do that," Matthews said. "Getting opportunities, it's on me to capitalize on them. I'm just going to continue to shoot, continue to compete out there and work and do the little things to the best of my ability, and when those opportunities come, I'm just going to keep shooting and keep believing that the next one's going in."
The Leafs captain has not found the back of the net in 10 career second-round playoff games against the Panthers.
Matthews, who has scored just three goals in his last 21 playoff games, missed a skate earlier in the series and was asked how he's feeling physically.
"I don't think anybody at this point is, you know, 100 per cent," he said. "So, it's just mentally, physically being able to grind through all that stuff. Everybody's going through something, and so just trying to put your best effort out there, staying focused, competing, working, battling. You know, those second and third efforts are obviously important this time here."
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Brad Marchand objected to the idea that Wednesday's win by Florida was one-sided.
"It wasn’t that one-sided," the Panthers winger insisted. "We got a couple bounces and that dictated the outcome ... I don’t think the score was an indication of how the game was played and how close it actually was."
Marchand pointed out that William Nylander had a breakaway in the first period when the game was tied and Scott Laughton rang a post early in the second period, which could've tied things up.
Paul Maurice echoed Marchand's sentiment.
"Game 5 was our smallest differential in chances for and against," the Panthers coach said. "Our best differential was actually Game 2 [which Florida lost]."
Marchand expects the Leafs to draw motivation from the crooked number that Florida posted in Toronto.
"If anything it’s going to make them hungrier to have a bounce-back game and to prove a lot of people wrong, which is a very dangerous combination," he said.
The Panthers only needed one close-out opportunity in the first round when they knocked out the Tampa Bay Lightning in five games.
"We would possibly have a desire advantage in that we are right there for a prize," Maurice surmised. "They would have a desperation advantage. It is the team that controls those things the best that has the best chance to win."
The Panthers won both games in Florida in this series.
"I like us being at home," said defenceman Nate Schmidt. "I like our energy here. I like how we’ve come out the last couple games at home. I find our group finds a different level here and I’m excited to have the late-night match [8 pm local start] for all the marbles."
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Berube believes his players were "overthinking" things in Game 5. What's his sense of the group now?
"Well, Game 5 is over," the coach stressed. "So that's over with. Excited, ready to go. Go play."
How did Marner, who is a new father, turn the page?
"Go home and hang out with my son and hang out with my dog," he said. "They don't have a clue what's going on in this world. So, go home, hang out with them, enjoy some personal time with them, especially going on the road. You know, just cuddling the son and, you know, talking and hanging out with him and just enjoying those moments. And that's really what matters in life, and that's what makes you kind of forget what happens in, you know, a bad day or a good day. So those are something I'm thankful for and that's how I kind of just go home and reset and get my mind right."
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Forwards Calle Jarnkrok and Pontus Holmberg will re-enter the Leafs lineup after being scratched for Game 5. Nick Robertson and David Kampf will return to the press box on Friday night.
"I liked our game with the other guys in the lineup," Berube explained. "I made changes. We lost a couple, added some fresh guys, some fresh legs. Other guys are rested, you know, ready to go. And we played good hockey with that lineup we have tonight."
Robertson scored Toronto's only goal in Game 5.
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Lines at Friday's Leafs skate:
Knies - Matthews - Marner
Holmberg - Tavares -Nylander
Lorentz - Laughton - Jarnkrok
McMann - Domi - Pacioretty
Kampf, Robertson
McCabe - Tanev
Rielly - Carlo
Benoit - Ekman-Larsson
Hakanpää, Myers
Woll starts
Murray
Hildeby
Power play units at Friday's Leafs skate:
QB: Marner
Flanks: Matthews, Nylander
Middle: Tavares
Net front: Knies
QB: Rielly
Flanks: Domi, Ekman-Larsson
Middle: McMann
Net front: Pacioretty