What The Toronto Maple Leafs Need to Do to Win Game 6

The Toronto Maple Leafs earned their victory on Tuesday night.

After falling down 3-1 in their best-of-7 series with the Boston Bruins, it's safe to say that the Toronto Maple Leafs are back on track to potentially winning this series and finally overcoming their rivals in the playoffs.

Joseph Woll and Matthew Knies obviously stole the show in the 2-1 overtime victory, but almost every Leafs player had their best game of the series in game 5, most notably Mitch Marner and Max Domi.

With that being said,the Toronto Maple Leafs will need to be better in game 6, and here are some things they'll need to do in order to force a game 7.

What The Toronto Maple Leafs Need to Do to Win Game 6

1. Figure Out Their Power Play

The Leafs power play has been rough to watch at times this series, and though it was better last game, they still have only scored once on 1 out of 17 attempts so far, with the lone goal coming from John Tavares in game 2.

Not great for a power play that ranked 7th in the regular season.

Having Auston Matthews (if he returns for game 6) and William Nylander playing together for a full game will obviously help the power play, but a team with the likes of Mitch Marner, Tyler Bertuzzi, and Morgan Rielly should have a far better power play.

Speaking of Matthews, things aren't looking good on that front:

2. Put The Puck Past Jeremy Swayman More Than Twice

Not since April 29, 2022 have the Leafs managed to score more than twice in a game against Jeremy Swayman, and not since game 4 of last year's first round vs the Tampa Bay Lightning have the Leafs scored more than three goals in a playoff game.

Over this time span, the Leafs have gone 4-8 in playoff games, averaging just 1.91 goals per game in those games.

Finally beating Swayman in a crucial game was huge for the Leafs, and it'll give them much confidence going forwards, however, this level of production is not sustainable for a full playoff series, let alone a full Stanley Cup run.

If the Leafs want a legit shot at beating the Bruins, they'll likely need to score at least three goals (or more) in game 6 and potentially even game 7.

3. Keep Joseph Woll In Net

Woll arguably should've been in net from game 1.

All jokes aside, I do understand why Samsonov got the nod for the early part of the series. But in my opinion, Woll should have started game 4.

However, hindsight is 2020, and what matters now is that Woll is in net and full of confidence. Woll has stopped 32/33 shots since coming in relief of Samsonov for game 4, and actually outplayed Swayman in game 5.

If Woll keeps his strong play up, which I have full confidence that he does, he'll give the Leafs a great chance to win this series. Not only that, the more doubt he can plant in the Boston Bruins mind, the better the Leafs chances will be of winning.

If the rookie netminder can help lead the Leafs to round 2, he'll be an instant fan favourite (more than he already is), and the #60 jerseys are sure to start flying off the shelves at stores all over Leaf Nation.

4. Finally Winning At Home

Along with their scoring struggles, the Leafs have had an even tougher time winning games at home. The Leafs have lost six straight home playoff games, including a brutal 1-5 record in last year's playoffs.

They'll have to break this run of losses in game 6, there's no other option.

While they've done well at winning on the road (6-2 since the beginning of last year's playoffs), they'll need to win at home if they want to keep their season alive.

Final Thoughts

I think the Leafs are more than capable of winning these next two games and moving on, but it won't be easy. The Bruins are more than a formidable opponent, and they're going to do anything in their power to prevent blowing another 3-1 series lead in back-to-back playoff years.

If I had to give a prediction for game 6, I would say Leafs win 3-2 in regulation. William Nylander, Mitch Marner, and Pontus Holmberg are my goal scorers.

Let's see if the Leafs can force game 7 and prove to all of us they belong here.