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It’s inarguable that this generation of Toronto Maple Leafs hockey has been defined – for better or worse – by four players. The quartet of Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner, William Nylander and John Tavares, known collectively by the catchy moniker of the “Core Four”, epitomize everything that is right and wrong about this iteration of the Maple Leafs. They have each made immeasurable contributions to the franchise while, at the same time, they accounted for nearly $47 million of this season’s $88 million salary cap and stand as easy, popular scapegoats for Toronto’s disappointing recent playoff history.
In the 2025 postseason, however, the ‘Core Four’ isn’t feeling quite so “core” to the success of the team – and that has proven thus far to be a very good thing. The foursome still ranks as the Maple Leafs’ top-four point-getters through three games and have certainly had a hand in the club’s 3-0 stranglehold over the Ottawa Senators. Yet, balanced contributions, opportunities, and big moments across the lineup mean that they can be productive without necessarily assuming the role of the franchise’s only hopes.
With so many voices across the hockey world expressing their opinion that this version of the Maple Leafs feels different than other iterations who have failed to live up to expectations, the lack of reliance on the “Core Four” might be the most evident sign of change.
Others Playing the Hero
The most obvious sign of the de-emphasis on Matthews, Marner, Nylander and Tavares has come in the form of the overtime heroes of Games 2 and 3. Max Domi was coming off an underwhelming 2024-25 regular season before putting the Maple Leafs up 2-0 with his Game 2 overtime winner, while Simon Benoit matched his regular-season goal total by notching the Game 3 overtime winner.
Simon Benoit is the unlikely overtime hero!!!
— JayOnSC (@JayOnSC) April 25, 2025
•••
(: @NHL_On_TNT) pic.twitter.com/p9PHqnpUqo
On one hand, Domi and especially Benoit serve as reminders of the ‘unlikely overtime hero’ theme that seems to emerge every year in the postseason. Former Maple Leaf and depth forward Colin Blackwell closed out Game 2 in overtime for the Dallas Stars on Monday night. Meanwhile, the Benoit goal inspired eerie parallels to Cory Cross, another defensive defenceman who gave Toronto a 3-0 lead in a first-round series against the Senators by scoring in overtime to secure a 3-2 victory back in 2001.
On the other hand, it speaks to the expectations on depth players to be involved in the attack. Where previous Maple Leafs teams would tend to rely too much on the abilities of four men to create scoring chances, now the rest of the team is taking their own opportunities. Apart from Domi and Benoit, Morgan Rielly has tallied two goals, Oliver Ekman-Larsson opened the playoff scoring in Game 1, and Matthew Knies continues to make his ‘Core Five’ case with two goals of his own.
The Maple Leafs’ 12 goals through three games stand in stark contrast to last year’s first-round loss to the Boston Bruins, where they needed all seven games of that series to muster the same 12 goals. Apart from success on the power play and potentially facing a less playoff-ready Senators team, the real difference from one postseason to the next is how Toronto has found alternate solutions when their four top scorers have been locked down defensively and are struggling to gain traction.
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Managing Balance
Based on the way that the Maple Leafs’ coaching staff have managed the first three games, this seems to be very much by design. Through three games, only Jake McCabe (21:51), Marner (21:31) and Matthews (20:05) are averaging 20 minutes of ice time or more. The Senators’ Jake Sanderson (26:44), Thomas Chabot (24:54) and Artem Zub (22:10) have all spent more time on the ice than any Toronto player.
Instead, a balance in allocated minutes has enabled the Maple Leafs to take some of the pressure off of the likes of Nylander (17:41) and Tavares (17:20), as well as Ekman-Larsson (19:06) and Brandon Carlo (18:35). On the other end of things, Scott Laughton, Pontus Holmberg, and Steven Lorentz have all seen upticks in their minutes (as you might expect after two overtime games), demonstrating the importance of having depth pieces who are trusted by the coaching staff.
This approach shows that head coach Craig Berube and the rest of the Maple Leafs coaching staff have more than a first-round victory in mind. Toronto is being managed in a way that strongly suggests a broader, long-term vision in place, specifically an anticipation of a lengthy playoff run. Sure, Berube and company have enjoyed the luxury of a comfortable lead in Game 1 and a 3-0 series lead, thus affording them less urgent lineup choices. Still, the balanced lineup and long-term vision speak to a confidence in this squad’s chances to go deep in the playoffs.
It also speaks to a confidence in the club’s depth. Benoit’s clutch play highlights the contributions of a deep blue line that already has netted four goals, all coming outside of the shutdown top pair of McCabe and Chris Tanev. Up front, Berube has enough faith in the third line of Domi, Bobby McMann, and Max Pacioretty and the fourth line of Lorentz, Laughton, and Calle Jarnkrok to continue rolling four lines even in key situations.
Don’t look now, Maple Leafs fans, but these are all pretty encouraging signs of a deep, well-run team that is hitting its stride, has big goals in mind, and still has plenty left in the tank, “Core Four” and all.
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Blue Jackets' extension talks with young star will have major impact on salary
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