For the first time since 2017, the Ottawa Senators returned to the playoffs to take on their old rival, the Toronto Maple Leafs, in a highly anticipated Battle of Ontario matchup. The game did not disappoint, as the Senators came ready to prove they wouldn’t be pushed around, which led to several tense moments throughout the game. But the Maple Leafs kept composed for nearly all 60 minutes, leading to a dominant 6-2 victory, with Anthony Stolarz turning away 31 of 33 shots.

Game Recap

The Senators came out hot in the first period and threw their weight around as much as possible, but it was the Maple Leafs who opened the scoring 7:09 into the first period after Scott Laughton found Oliver Ekman-Larsson wide open in the slot, who easily put it by Linus Ullmark for the game’s first goal. Five minutes later at 12:18, the Senators were again caught in the wrong place, allowing Mitch Marner to get a breakaway and slip the puck above Ullmark’s glove, giving Toronto a 2-0 lead midway through the first. But, with the first period winding down, Dylan Cozens caught the puck and fired a shot on net, and when Stolarz bobbled the save, Drake Batherson popped it by the Maple Leafs’ goalie for the Senators’ first.

THE SENS STRIKE BACK!