It's do or die time for the Toronto Maple Leafs in the playoffs yet again. After losing 6-1 to the Florida Panthers in Game 5 of their second round series, Toronto is on the verge of being eliminated from the Stanley Cup playoffs for the ninth straight season.
After scoring 19 goals against first-round opponent Ottawa and potting 13 in Games 1-3 against Florida, the Maple Leafs' offense has fallen flat. The Panthers nearly shut them out in two consecutive contests (8-1) to take a 3-2 series lead.
Star forward Auston Matthews has 10 points (2 goals, 8 assists) in the playoffs through 10 games but has been held pointless in three against the Panthers. That's not going to get Toronto to the Eastern Conference Final for the first time since 2002, let alone the Stanley Cup Final for the first time since the team last lifted the trophy in 1967.
Toronto fans let him know it too. During Game 5, fans could be heard booing at the end of the second period and one even tossed a Matthews jersey on the ice in disgust.
Leafs get booed off the ice after another scoreless period 😬 pic.twitter.com/5tronFbxuZ
— B/R Open Ice (@BR_OpenIce) May 15, 2025
A fan threw an Auston Matthews jersey on the ice in Toronto. The Leafs trail 5-0 and are close to being shut out for the 2nd straight game 😳 (via @dalter) pic.twitter.com/al8qUrxIAZ
— B/R Open Ice (@BR_OpenIce) May 15, 2025
Auston Matthews needs to wake up if Toronto is going to avoid yet another playoff heartbreak
The Maple Leafs were shutout for 143 minutes since the third period of Game 3, per the ESPN broadcast. Matthews was a no show in that span, logging just nine shots on goal in Games 4 and 5.
This appears to be a consistent problem for the 27 year old. He hasn't scored more than five times in a single postseason with a career-high 11 games (both in 2023). He's guaranteed to play No. 12 on Friday but that could be far too late for Toronto's prospects.
A team needs its stars to show out in order to win championships. It can't just rely on depth pieces and secondary scoring to get by. The Panthers are firing on all cylinders at the moment and Toronto's cold sticks couldn't have come at a worse time.
The Maple Leafs' fate doesn't rest entirely on his shoulders, however. The rest of the team hasn't stepped up one bit and it's going to take a massive effort to turn things around. It all starts with Game 6 on Friday.