History Gives Panthers Advantage Over Maple Leafs in Game 7

Panthers head coach Paul Maurice is one of just two head coaches in NHL history to win each of their first five career Game 7s. Maurice stands with a perfect 5-0 record in Game 7s over his nearly 30-year coaching career.

Maple Leafs’ head coach Craig Berube is 2-1 in Game 7s but does have a pretty big win over a key member of the Panthers lineup. One of Craig Berube’s Game 7 victories came over Brad Marchand and the Boston Bruins to win the Stanley Cup in 2019 as a member of the St. Louis Blues.

That’s a big win for Berube, but the Maple Leafs have struggled in elimination games with their superstar core. Some of the biggest names in the league like Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner, and William Nylander have made the playoffs in nine straight seasons but have made it past the first round just twice.

Four of the Maple Leafs’ first-round exits have come against Marchand and the Bruins. Now with the Panthers, the Maple Leafs can’t escape their postseason boogeyman. Those four span prior to Toronto’s current superstar core making their way to the NHL, but it was an all-time dramatic Game 7 collapse.

Marchand is no novice in Game 7s, either. He’s joining some rare company setting up to play in his 13th career Game 7. Marchand will be one of just five players in NHL history to appear in 13 Game 7s.

Marchand joins former teammates Patrice Bergeron and Zdeno Chara with 14 each, and Hall of Famers Patrick Roy and Scott Stevens who both had 13.

The odds may be even between the Maple Leafs and Panthers, but the numbers and history give Florida a big advantage.