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Brad Marchand Shocks Leafs Fans With Rare Praise After Back-to-Back Losses

Originally posted on Blade of Steel | By Tom Banks | Last updated May 8, 2025 1:53 PM ET

Brad Marchand has been a rival of the Maple Leafs his whole career, but after going down 0-2 against them, he gave the team a rare moment of praise.

Game Two between the Toronto Maple Leafs and Florida Panthers is officially in the books, and while there was plenty of criticism towards the officials as a result, the Maple Leafs have taken an impressive 2-0 series lead after playing two games at home.

In the past few years, this hasn't been a matchup that has favoured Toronto, but this year things seem different, and that was something that long-time rival Brad Marchand pointed out as he gave his long-time rival a rare piece of praise.

'They came ready to play this round. We see that.'

Whether it be Marchand's Bruins or the Panthers before he arrived, the Maple Leafs have been dominated in the post-season by two Atlantic Division rivals, but in 2024/25, the team are now 6-2 in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, and with their biggest stars standing up, this is clearly a team that won't be pushed around.

That praise however isn't to say that Marchand believes they can't beat Toronto, just that they've been better than usual through two games, but with just one goal separating the teams in both games thus far, this series is far from over.

Now, things shift back to Florida where the Panthers were 9-4 a season ago in the post-season, and given the experience and the resilience of this team, there's absolutely no quit in them.

Ultimately, this series could end up going to seven games, and while many believe this could be the Maple Leafs year to finally make a deep run, there's no reason to count the Panthers out just yet.

This article first appeared on Blade of Steel and was syndicated with permission.

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