Dmitry Kulikov celebrates his goal against the Toronto Maple Leafs with defenseman Nate Schmidt and forward Matthew Tkachuk on May 14. (John E. Sokolowski-Imagn Images) [https://deweb-519a7.b-cdn.net/post-images/aa64f3bd-6ac9-47aa-b72e-12e0c54e40a2.jpeg] Dmitry Kulikov celebrates his goal against the Toronto Maple Leafs with defenseman Nate Schmidt and forward Matthew Tkachuk on May 14. (John E. Sokolowski-Imagn Images) When a team goes to the Stanley Cup final in successive years and captures it once, you'd have to believe it has learned a thing or two about winning in the playoffs. And when a team consistently underperforms and loses in the most crucial situations, it's probably a safe bet it has learned how to accept defeat. How else do you explain what has happened in the second round of the playoffs in the series between the Florida Panthers [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/florida-panthers] and Toronto Maple Leafs [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/toronto-maple-leafs]? Ken Campbell's post-game video column dives into what's led to the Florida Panthers leading the Toronto Maple Leafs 3-2 in the series. This is a series in which the Leafs were leading 2-0 in games and 2-0 in Game 3 and, since then, look as though they've hit a brick wall. Their stars are not only not scoring, but their play [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/toronto-maple-leafs/latest-news/i-don-t-think-we-gave-them-much-reason-to-stick-around-auston-matthews-maple-leafs-react-to-boos-fans-leaving-during-game-5-blowout] is leading to goals against. Their power play has gone south, goaltending has been a problem, and they might have to look up depth scoring in the dictionary to find out what it is. The Panthers, on the other hand, got goals in a 6-1 win [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/florida-panthers/game-day/bobrovsky-panthers-push-maple-leafs-to-brink-with-dominant-game-5-victory] in Game 5 from Niko Mikkola, Dmitry Kulikov, Jesper Boqvist and A.J. Greer. They're harder and faster on pucks, they're more determined, they're playing with a sense of purpose, and their goaltending is trending upward. "They outskated us, they had the puck, they won the races, and we just played slow," said Leafs coach Craig Berube. "They were fast, they were honest, they were hungrier." And they're going to be Atlantic Division playoff champions Friday night [https://thehockeynews.com/news/latest-news/nhl-playoffs-2025-second-round-schedule-dates-times-where-to-watch] unless the Maple Leafs can be much, much better and the Panthers much, much worse. Watch Game 5's post-game video column for more, and share your thoughts. Get the latest news and trending stories by following The Hockey News on Google News [https://news.google.com/publications/CAAqBwgKMK-q0gsw7sXpAw?hl=en-CA&gl=CA&ceid=CA%3Aen] and by subscribing to The Hockey News newsletter here [http://eepurl.com/i7OC4I]. And share your thoughts by commenting below the article on THN.com.
