The Toronto Maple Leafs skated through beer, holding their sticks up high and thanked their fans after another disappointing Game 7 loss. It was another year lost for everyone.

Hope was unlocked for Maple Leafs fans following a Game 6 win in Florida. But Toronto's faithful once again asked themselves whether this team was any different than the previous versions.

And rightfully so.

They've watched the movie many times before of Toronto falling in a do-or-die Game 7.

The Maple Leafs didn't come out on time. The Panthers were all over them to start. Toronto battled back, though, showing in the final 10 minutes of the first period that they're still in the fight.

But it fell apart in the second period.

Three goals against in six minutes threw Toronto's top players off their game. Mitch Marner, specifically, was seen yelling to his teammates, "Wake the f*** up," after giving up back-to-back-to-back goals.

The Maple Leafs found an ounce of life early in the third period when Max Domi beat Sergei Bobrovsky. That life, though, was sucked out of the building 47 seconds later after Eetu Luostarinen scored on Joseph Woll off a faceoff.

Auston Matthews and Marner — the true pilots of their potential third-round destination against the Carolina Hurricanes — didn't have a point in Game 7. The pilots opted for a layover rather than landing at their terminus.

And instead of looking inwards, the pilots looked to those behind them for answers.

"I thought the first 10 minutes, they came out strong. The next 10 minutes, we controlled play," Matthews said, "and then I just thought we had too many passengers throughout the rest of the game."

"Yeah, I mean, that's the right wording I'd say as well," added Marner. "Can't have passengers in a Game 7, so yeah, it just sucks. We all got to hold ourselves to a higher accountability, and we all need to be better."

After a similar Game 5, all Maple Leafs fans wanted was an ounce of accountability out of Toronto's top players. More of an "I need to be better" than a "We need to be better" approach. Chris Tanev did it. Matthews said, "Everybody needs to look in the mirror," himself included.

But it didn't feel like their top players were taking full responsibility after a horrific defeat.

NHL Game 7 Highlights | Panthers vs. Maple Leafs - May 18, 2025 Brad Marchand had three points, notching his 150th career playoff point, Sergei Bobrovsky stopped 19 of the 20 shots he faced, and the Florida Panthers domin...

After another Game 7 loss, John Tavares stood in front of the cameras inside Toronto's dressing room to discuss what just occurred: "Yeah, it's difficult. I think you accept responsibility individually, and as a group, that this wasn't good enough."

It might not be what fans want to hear in the moment, but he's taking his part of the blame. 

When a team wins the Stanley Cup, people look back on all the players who helped them achieve the ultimate goal. It's not a one-person job. It's not a four-person job. And when it's not going well, it's certainly not the "passenger's" job.

It's everyone, from the head coach down to the healthy scratches.

"When you don't get everybody on board and doing the right things and playing together as a team, that's what happens," Maple Leafs head coach Craig Berube said of the frustrations in Game 7.  "You can't go in a game like tonight and have anybody not at their best."

'Don't Get Caught Up In It': How The Maple Leafs Are Approaching Game 7 This Time Around After Previous Failures The Toronto Maple Leafs core players Auston Matthews, William Nylander, Mitch Marner and Morgan Rielly will try to win a Game 7 for the first time when they host the Florida Panthers in their second-round deciding matchup on Sunday.

This is yet another opportunity lost for the Maple Leafs. Instead of sending the defending Stanley Cup Champions back to Florida with their season over, Toronto is left picking up themselves, plus the beer and jerseys thrown on the ice in Game 7.

"I just don't think we had our best stuff in the most important game of the season," Morgan Rielly said. "That's unacceptable, and that's the result you get when that's the case."

How can this keep happening? How do the Maple Leafs, time and time again, when it's the most important game of the year, shy away from the moment? Will this happen again next year?

These are all questions that couldn't be answered on Sunday night. But they will surely be dissected for days and months before the 2025-26 season begins.

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