Maple Leafs face dire odds with NHL teams at 4-197 when trailing 3-0
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The Toronto Maple Leafs find themselves in a 3-0 hole in the second round against the Florida Panthers, and will need to become just the fifth team in NHL history to pull off the reverse sweep if they are to advance.
The Maple Leafs are the 202nd team in history to trail 3-0 entering a Game 4. The previous teams in their situation are just 4-197 when it comes to advancing.
Toronto was the first franchise to erase a 3-0 deficit and win a series, doing so in the 1942 Stanley Cup Final against the Detroit Red Wings. It was another 32 years before the New York Islanders doubled the list, storming back to beat the Pittsburgh Penguins in the 1975 quarter-finals.
The other two instances came more recently, with the Philadelphia Flyers stunning the Boston Bruins in the second round of the 2010 playoffs, and the Los Angeles Kings battling back to defeat the San Jose Sharks in the first round of the 2014 playoffs. The Kings went on to win the Stanley Cup three rounds later in 2014, while the Flyers lost to the Chicago Blackhawks in the 2010 Stanley Cup Final.
The Maple Leafs are the first team to fall behind 3-0 in a series in this year's playoffs. Three teams faced 3-0 deficits in the 2022 playoffs, with all three losing Game 4 to be swept.
Following a 3-2 overtime loss on Sunday to the Panthers, Toronto put their sole focus on winning Game 4 on Wednesday to stay alive.
"It [stinks], obviously, but we've got to forget about it quickly," forward Mitch Marner said. "... We have to know that it's do-or-die. Just take it a game at a time and make sure we know that and be ready for it."
“Got to win one game,” head coach Sheldon Keefe added. “That was the mission here tonight. Got to start with one and give yourself a chance. They're in full control here; it's up to us to make it uncomfortable for them and not go away.
"We still have tremendous belief in our group. We just lost three games in a row. Florida won three games in a row. If we win three in a row, we put ourselves in a position for a Game 7.
"That would be the goal for us, but obviously it starts with one win."
Adding to the dire situation for the Maple Leafs is the question surrounding who will start Wednesday's game. Ilya Samsonov exited Game 3 with an injury, with rookie Joseph Woll stopping 18 of 21 shots in relief.
If Samsonov is unavailable, the Maple Leafs will have to choose between Woll, who has never started a postseason game, and veteran Matt Murray in Game 4. Murray is a two-time Stanley Cup champion but has not played since sustaining a concussion on April 2.
Maple Leafs head coach Sheldon Keefe did not have an update on Samsonov after Game 3 and while the team's starter for Wednesday remains to be determined, Woll said he is still confident in the team's chances.
"I think we've been playing pretty good offence. I think Bobrovsky's played well," Woll said after his second playoff appearance. "I like the offence we've been generating. Sometimes games don't go your way.
"I have all the faith in this team. It doesn't matter what the score in this series is or looks like, I have a lot of belief in this team, and there's a lot of belief in this locker room."
The 1975 Islanders are the only team in the exclusive reverse sweep club to employ a goalie change to lead their comeback. Coach Al Arbour replaced Billy Smith, who would later win four straight Stanley Cups with the team, with Glenn "Chico" Resch, a rookie at the time. Resch allowed four goals over the remaining four games for New York, who would exit the postseason one round later in another Game 7.