Knee Jerk Reaction: Maple Leafs embarrassed on home ice in pivotal Game 5

Originally posted on TheLeafsnation | By Alex Hobson | Last updated May 14, 2025 10:01 PM ET

If there was a way to somehow abandon every single good habit built throughout the course of Round 1 and the early parts of Round 2, the Toronto Maple Leafs did it in Game 5 on home ice.

The Florida Panthers walked into the building and immediately established themselves as the driver of the game. Despite some strong play early, the Panthers scored the first goal of the game after hemming the Leafs in for the first 15 minutes, and from there, they didn’t look back. The Leafs utterly collapsed in the second period, allowing three goals before the Panthers finished the beatdown in the third with two more goals for a 6-1 final. They were saved from being shut out in two straight games by, hilariously enough, a Nick Robertson goal upon returning to the lineup after a streak of healthy scratches. And you can add an Auston Matthews jersey on the ice to the theatrics.

An Auston Matthews jersey was just thrown on the ice at Scotiabank Arena. pic.twitter.com/lLP1pfpRFl

— Chris Johnston (@reporterchris) May 15, 2025

Florida outclassed Toronto in every respect of the game tonight. The Panthers were harder on the forecheck, better on the draw, better up front and better in net. Joseph Woll started the game with a little bit of life but fed off of the lack of energy in front of him, and ended up being pulled for Matt Murray. That’s about the extent that we’ll talk about the goaltending. There is not a single way to justify scoring one goal in their last two games, and it inspires little confidence that they’ll be able to find an offensive spark on the road in Florida facing elimination.

By the end of the night, the amount of empty seats, the boos ringing out from the remaining crowd, and the otherwise silence of Scotiabank Arena would have you thinking it was Game 7. The Leafs may have a fighting chance to get out of this, but after years and years of painful playoff losses in a number of different ways, no one should be blamed for feeling like the series is a lost cause.

The Leafs will now face the exceptionally uphill task of winning two straight games against Florida. If they want any shot at salvaging Game 6 and at least pushing it to a Game 7, they have to return to the good habits they used in the first two games of the series. Games 4 and 5 have shown what happens when you let the Panthers dictate the pace and get under your skin. And now they’ll have to face them under the brightest lights so far.