Kanata, Ont. — The Toronto Maple Leafs have another chance to close out their series with the Ottawa Senators on Thursday when they visit Canadian Tire Centre for Game 6 of their first-round playoff series.

After jumping out to a 3-0 series lead, the Maple Leafs were close to putting the Senators away when Game 4 went to overtime. But Jake Sanderson put the party on hold with his shot from the point that beat Toronto's Anthony Stolarz. The Sens followed that up with a 4-0 win in Game 5 at Scotiabank Arena, firmly planting a seed of doubt in Toronto's hopes for second-round action.

With the Leafs being 1-13 in close-out games during the playoffs dating back to 2018, how is the club dealing with the pressure?

"I haven't really thought about it but winning a series is a big deal," Maple Leafs star William Nylander said. "We've only done it once before, so that's something we want to do."

‘When You’re Out There, You Don’t Really Hear It’: Auston Matthews Dismisses Chants From Senators Fans As Maple Leafs Prepare For Game 6 Toronto Maple Leafs captain Auston Matthews couldn’t help but smile on Thursday morning when asked about taunts from Ottawa Senators fans in Games 3 and 4.

If there is any history on Toronto's side, it's that the one time before was also on the road in Game 6 when the Leafs defeated the Lightning in overtime in the first round of the 2023 playoffs after failing to close out their series with the Tampa Bay Lightning.

Maple Leafs head coach Craig Berube dismissed any notion of bringing up the team's past playoff failures, but it's clear he's tried to get his players to think about everyone else in the locker room individually as they prepare for what could be a another hostile environment in Canada's capital.

Why Max Pacioretty Is Moving Up And Why No Other Maple Leafs Lineup Changes Are Happening For Game 6 When the Toronto Maple Leafs stepped onto the ice at the Canadian Tire Centre for their morning skate on Thursday, Max Pacioretty was in top-six blue, re-affirming that lineup changes were coming after their Game 5 loss. 

"To me, the only pressure is the guy beside you in the locker room, your teammate," Berube said. You don't want to let them guys down. You want to do your best. Outside pressure, that's just talk.

"You guys are doing your job and fans and everything else, but you've got to try to block that out as best you can and focus on your game, focus on your teammates. That's what you want to do.

'We Can Have That Mentality More': Maple Leafs Want To Instill Fourth Line's Forechecking On Rest Of Group Ahead Of Game 6 Against Senators Scott Laughton hopes his line, alongside Calle Jarnkrok and Steven Lorentz, can find a goal sooner rather than later.

Maple Leafs captain Auston Matthews echoed those sentiments.

 "The main focus is the guys who are in the moment, just playing for one another. That's all there is to it," Matthews said. "All the outside noise and all that stuff, it's just what it is. It's not something you really focus on at all."

‘No One Expected It To Be Easy’: Morgan Rielly, Maple Leafs Focused On Regrouping After Back-To-Back Missed Opportunities To Close Out Senators With the Battle of Ontario tightening up, Morgan Rielly and the Toronto Maple Leafs are doing their best to remain composed following consecutive missed opportunities to eliminate the Ottawa Senators in their first-round playoff series.

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