Maple Leafs face Senators in high-stakes season opener

April 20, 2025, 9:20 am

Two reports cover the unfolding NHL playoff series between the Toronto Maple Leafs and the Ottawa Senators, with a focus on the pivotal opening game. One story presents insights from experienced scouts who predict that the Leafs could clinch the series in six games because of their strong performance and historical rivalry pressures, while the other emphasizes the critical need for the team to overcome past series opener struggles and build immediate momentum. Both pieces underscore the strategic significance of the first game in setting the tone for the remainder of the series.

torontosun.com / Tkachuk has Maple Leafs’ full attention going into Game 1

They’ve got him in their sights. Not a small part of the Maple Leafs’ preparation for Game 1 of the Battle of Ontario against the Ottawa Senators was how to defend against Sens captain Brady Tkachuk. “He was definitely talked about,” Leafs coach Craig Berube said on Sunday morning. “We...

torontosun.com / Maple Leafs’ Lorentz speaks to long grind of Stanley Cup playoffs

Steven Lorentz knows. The Maple Leafs winger knows what it takes to win the Stanley Cup, knows that properly handling the roller-coaster ride that can be a long playoff run is paramount. A year after lifting the Cup with the Florida Panthers, and on the morning of the Leafs’ Battle of Ontario...

torontosun.com / Bobby McMann, Nick Robertson ready for playoff prime time

Bobby McMann won’t be a playoff spectator this time. An injury kept him out of last spring’s seven-game series against Boston, one that former Maple Leafs coach Sheldon Keefe said would’ve been tailor-made for his rolling thunder game to counter the Bruins. While McMann looked on from the...

globalnews.ca / Ekman-Larsson ready to go for Leafs in Game 1

Oliver Ekman-Larsson smiled and politely dodged the question.

winnipegfreepress.com / Oliver Ekman-Larsson ready to go for Maple Leafs against Senators in Game 1

globalnews.ca / Ottawa Senators excited to suit up for NHL playoffs for first time in 8 years

It's been a long, often challenging and frustrating journey for the Senators to reach this point.

torontosun.com / What the scouts are saying about the Maple Leafs and Senators series

Maple Leafs in six. That’s how a couple of veteran National Hockey League scouts see the Battle of Ontario ending, with the Leafs taking care of the Ottawa Senators in one less game than is required in the best-of-seven series. Some of the factors in the series that came up in our conversations,...

torontosun.com / SIMMONS SUNDAY: Leafs have to reverse their sorry record in series openers

Game 1 means everything for the Toronto Maple Leafs. They can’t afford to lose to the Ottawa Senators. Not on opening night. They can’t afford to get behind early. They can’t afford to have doubt creep into their playoff consciousness. They can’t afford to jog memories of past failures....

permalink / 8 stories from 3 sources in 29 hours ago #ontario #sports #hockey #leafs #politics #senate #flames #finance #employment

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Maple Leafs face Senators in high-stakes season opener

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