And exhale — if you’re a Leafs fan anyway.
Game 5 of the first round series between the Maple Leafs and Lightning was quite a roller-coaster, going from terrible for Toronto at the start to disastrous for Tampa by the end. After numerous penalties on both sides and wild momentum swings throughout the 60 minutes, the Leafs were the ones who ended up taking a 3-2 series lead with an impressive 4-3 statement win.
It was a win that Leafs fans will remember for a long time, regardless of how this series ends. Toronto now has a chance to go to Tampa on Thursday to close it out and do something they haven’t done since 2004: reach the second round in the Stanley Cup playoffs.
As always, fans and hockey writers had a lot to say about it. Of course, considering how chaotic this series has been, the Leafs can still lose in a Game 7 on Saturday in Toronto.
But for now, here’s how people are reacting after Tuesday night’s win:
Sports Illustrated and the Hockey News writer Mike Stephens says he’s never seen this kind of “resolve” from a Leafs team before:
Former player and NHL on TNT analyst Paul Bissonnette had this to say after the game:
The Star’s own Bruce Arthur called it the “best win” in the Auston Matthews era:
And a lot of kudos were given to the fifth line for the Leafs — the fans themselves. It had to be easily one of the loudest crowds ever at Scotiabank Arena:
Here’s what the Tampa Bay Times’ hockey columnist John Romano wrote after the two-time consecutive Stanley Cup winners’ loss:
“In a Stanley Cup playoff series filled with stars and backstories, we have been obsessed with the ramifications of penalties and the influence of pressure on Toronto and Tampa Bay,” writes Romano. “We wonder about momentum and motivation and mindset. And we forget that sometimes it just comes down to moments. Game 5 was like that Tuesday night.
“Should the Lightning lose (the series), however, it was the beginning of the end of Tampa Bay’s hope of a dynasty.”
A former backup goaltender for both the Leafs and Lightning, now retired, had this to say about the number of penalties during the game:
Even Drake got in on the fun after the game, with this, uh, interesting photo of Auston Matthews on his Instagram story:
Do the Leafs have The Passion? Many fans think so now:
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