The Toronto Maple Leafs are heading to the second round of the NHL playoffs, but the path there was far more dramatic than they would have hoped. Max Pacioretty scored the game-winning goal with just over five minutes left in regulation as the Leafs edged the Ottawa Senators 4-2 on Thursday to win their first-round series 4-2 in the long-awaited revival of the Battle of Ontario.
William Nylander, celebrating his 29th birthday, delivered a stellar performance with two goals and an assist, while Auston Matthews also found the back of the net. Pacioretty, who had been a healthy scratch earlier in the series, finished with a goal and an assist in his standout return to the lineup. Anthony Stolarz turned aside 20 shots in goal, securing just the second playoff series win for the Leafs in the salary cap era. With the victory, Toronto sets up a second-round clash with the Florida Panthers.
The Senators, appearing in the playoffs for the first time since 2017 after a painful rebuild, refused to go quietly. Brady Tkachuk and David Perron scored for Ottawa, while Linus Ullmark made 19 saves and Thomas Chabot added two assists. Despite falling behind 3-0 in the series, Ottawa clawed back with two gutsy wins — including a Game 5 shutout — before finally running out of gas in Game 6.
Matthews opened the scoring late in the first period on a power play after Tkachuk was penalized for interference. Just 43 seconds into the second period, Nylander extended the lead to 2-0 after Pacioretty forced a turnover in the Senators’ zone. Ottawa responded at 7:28 when Tkachuk tipped in his fourth of the playoffs, igniting the home crowd in Canadian Tire Centre.
Toronto nearly regained a two-goal cushion when John Tavares hit the post, followed by quality chances for Matthew Knies and Brandon Carlo. The Sens kept pressing in the third, with Chabot and Tim Stützle coming close to leveling the score. Although a power play midway through the period fell flat, Ottawa cut the lead to 3-2 with 7:20 remaining when Perron banked a shot in off Stolarz from below the goal line.
Pacioretty finally put the Leafs back in control with a clinical finish off a pass from Max Domi, slipping the puck past Ullmark for his first of the postseason. Nylander sealed the win with an empty-netter in the final 18 seconds.
Toronto had entered Game 6 with a woeful 1-13 record in potential series-clinching games since 2018, and Ottawa’s comeback had fans fearing another chapter of heartbreak. But this time, the Leafs held their nerve. The win also reaffirmed Toronto’s dominance over Ottawa in postseason history, having won five of six playoff series against their provincial rivals since the early 2000s.
For Ottawa, the end was bittersweet. Forward Claude Giroux, a veteran of the 2010 Flyers team that overcame a 3-0 series deficit to beat Boston, nearly witnessed history repeat itself. But this time, it was the Leafs who held strong.