OverDrive - Johnson on the Maple Leafs' mindset for the series, Stolarz's imperative role and the Senators' attempt to claw back

Episode Date: April 23, 2025

TSN Hockey Analyst Mike Johnson joined OverDrive to discuss the headlines around the Battle of Ontario, the Maple Leafs' views for Game 2, the important factors leading to consistency, how the Senators approach the game and more.

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So I left a couple months before the first one, so I never played against him specifically. Did you talk to your boy Tux at the game the other day? No, he's a big shooter down there, man. He is busy right now. You can't bother him. He's down there. They gave him the full welcome back. I text him. I go, welcome back from what? You're in Toronto all the time. Welcome back, Darcy. Welcome back from Et you're in Toronto all the time welcome back Darcy and they came in and got the topical yeah where were you where have you been but yeah he was they did a great job the other night I said that the game offs like it was they had Dougie out there they had Darcy they had Rick five they did a really good job with panning the crowd it was just a really really quality night could you tell that there was more energy in the building a lot of people

do you you played playoffs here recently, I played here a long time ago, that the building gets criticized, the fans get criticized for not being excitable enough, loud enough, into it enough. Could you tell last night that it was different than years past? Very different. I thought it was one of the best crowds

I've experienced down there. That's what I heard. And my theory is, well, for starters, it was a Sunday, which is big, long weekend. But my theory is it is about the Battle of Ontario. That like, Joe, you're talking about it like when the Leafs are playing Boston, there's some bad mojo there, man.

Like I think Leaf fans walked into the building past years kind of like racing for impact and like it's Boston again and they're gonna get burned or if it was Tampa it would be different or Florida you have a lot of confidence against Ottawa right like that's just the reality and I think Leaf fans are like I'm embracing something different and I'm embracing something I'm familiar with it's actually been very successful 20 years ago but still nonetheless could you also said Sunday night so all those Bay Street people who have like it'll be different tonight

They're wearing jeans and they're like it's an off night like that I always felt like and i've been i've been invited by guys who are you know venture capital and all of that type And it's like hey, we're going to go to this club. I'm like, I don't even know there was a restaurant there Oh, yeah, and all the games on the tv. We're literally having dinner watching it on tv I'm like our seats are right there. But I don't sense that, that's not gonna happen tonight, but it is. They're working at Bay Street today.

It's a big opportunity for them to carry over what happened the other night. And a lot of the renovations are done down there too. Like the self-service stuff, like that's the new era of technology. Well, you tap your card, you go in and you leave, and it just. So you can get back to your seat yeah exactly like there's no lines or anything like they are they have a lot

lot of ranks around the league like that climate pledge that's all you walk in in seattle it's also serve you just right anybody you just walk in it's also off the wall but i just i don't know i just i did charge a bunch of that or whatever that just a little bit and i walk out or whatever well they'll find out when that visa bill comes in you actually got caught now you travel a lot have you been in the airport once you tap on the way in just grab whatever you want you don't tap on the way out

that's what this is just like you know can i say that's what this is i walked in i bought popcorn and a diet coke uh... and i left and i'm like that's it what happened I did until you look at your visa and there's 412 on exactly well that's what's coming like people are going to file complaints like I don't know about that like they're going to challenge it and it's like dude we saw you we have the video of you walking out with that stuff there's literally you grab the popcorn and diet coke. Yeah, diet coke and the popcorn. So tonight, where do you start? Like when you're looking at a game like tonight, do

you start with the Leafs? Do you start with the response from Ottawa? Like where does your head go first preparing for tonight? I mean, I think you instinctively turn to the team that lost. What are they going to do different? They don't want to repeat what they did last game. They don't like the result there. So immediately go, will Ottawa not take so many penalties? Because if they, if Ottawa can play 52 minutes of the game at five on five, they'll like their chances better than what they saw in game one. So how do they do that? I don't know if it's less physical, maybe it's just more disciplined. And then the other part, so that's Ottawa trying to

make their adjustments. And the other part for so that's Ottawa trying to make their adjustments. And the other part for me, and I think Toronto has every reason to be excited. Best players scored goals, power play found the back of the net, things that don't happen easily. One, a game where it wasn't stressful. You live the last, like it's so stressful watching Toronto play in the playoffs. It wasn't game one. But I don't

know if John DeVars' line had a good game. And they flipped that. Holmberg's in Dome. The fact that they changed guys halfway through the game, they moved Dome down and Holmberg up, tells you that Craig Brubay recognized we weren't loving what we were getting at those guys five on five. And we weren't loving what we were getting from Holmberg and McMahon and Robertson at five on five. So my my mind kind of goes there if it is played less on the special teams or they don't score in the power play What will a five on five play look like for Toronto will their best players? Who didn't get a lot of looks at five on five will they get them tonight? Yeah, I think That's it's interesting what I I anticipate Ottawa's looking for like we were talking about this party coming on that there's been this focus on

Five on five, but I think they probably want an advantage in the power place tonight Like that's what they're leaning on the league for right is flip it and give it six three in our door Travis was trying hard right trying to try anything you want. Yeah, exactly two different refs tonight You know, that's a human they heard the clips. Yeah, you know of it like if I'm not saying the penalties were unjustified It'll be the favoring Toronto. Like it was appropriate in game one But let's just say it was 10-1 in favor of Toronto and you're like what the next game even with different refs You're like probably won't be 10-1 again. No, right, right. Like that's the way human nature works Yeah, I was telling Geo off air. I looked it's Gordy Dwyer and Pierre Lambert

Gordy's a veteran. He's both veteran veteran guys they're not gonna get overwhelmed by the situation like Gio was a captain he yelled at a lot of refs and yeah you I always tell the young guys like you want to stay away from yelling at refs when you're young because they carry it for the rest of your career so any 50-50 call it's going against you if you're giving it to them all the time when you're young But yeah for tonight I wonder if greener though tries a hard match against Matthews and gets dudes all away from them Like I wonder if he throws that what is it that Pinto line? They'd like to get Pinto ideally like I wonder if he goes at that a little bit harder that the penalties

Like ruin their flow last game. Yeah, I think he couldn't like he couldn't get there But I wonder if we see that more tonight. Cause definitely when they get to Ottawa, that's what they're gonna do. Yeah, it costs them a lot of ice time too. Their top pair of 15 minutes, 16 minutes, or their top line. And I would expect you're gonna play your best players

in the ground tonight. Tough to do that on the road. And those guys don't sniff the PK ever. Like you can't be like, oh, we're killing a lot of penalties. Let's put Timmy out there. Let's put Brady out there. Like you could with Austin and Mitch

when they didn't do it regularly. Like they were proficient enough. You could keep them in the game as opposed to like you're gonna sit there for six minutes. Yeah. And nothing else. Where those guys, Enclosed Giroud takes face-offs and kills penalties, but those two guys, they don't. Then they won't. Yeah, and it's an interesting mix. Like in Toronto, there's no one making their like playoff debuts. You know what I mean? Like the big boys are just, they've got a lot of experience. Where in Ottawa, it's different. Where like Kuchuk and Pinto and Stootsla and Shabbat

and Sanderson, these guys have no playoff experience. And I was intrigued by that the other night, cause you mentioned talking with the refs. And like Brady was talking to the ref a lot. But Giroud, it was constant. Like Claude Giroud would not stop talking with the refs and the linesmen and he was chirping all night. And I thought Perron was doing it as the night went on.

I think Cousins might draw in. And you've said this a million times this year. Like they brought in Cousins, they brought in Amadio, they brought in Perron, because they've been winners. Giroud hasn't won a cup, but he's been around for a long time. Like I'm curious, Johnny, and we can all go around the table on this.

Like would you lean on, would you look at it thinking it thinking okay Kaczuk, Stutzla, Pinto let's say they got to lead the charge cousins playing a second playoff game or would you if you're green do you think it's more reasonable to expect your veterans to play better than they did in game one because they have the experience and they're supposed to. The veteran I mean it won't matter if respectfully I love David Perron, but if David Perron plays a bit better, it's not going to make them win. What the veterans will be there to do is help guide the younger guys and help them play better. Because the

younger guys, the guys you mentioned initially, so it's the Brady, Jake Sanderson, those are the guys that are going to make them win or lose. What they do in the game, not what Perron or Nick Cousins do or Claude Giroux so maybe they can help them stay calm stay composed not get riled up with the refs although gee Claude Giroux he runs hot yeah he does like he is a volatile guy on the bench like he's screaming at himself and at the linesman in like not a negative way he's just he runs hot. A fiery guy. A fiery guy so but i think Travis has to look to his best players and night like i got a big bathroom that i was a very good at their problem they're

very good player was batters they played well really good season for them like he was a guy you played against him like he's a guy for me skilled but hadn't it all hadn't put it all together I think this year he put it together cuz he competes a lot harder on pucks. He can be physical, he's fast. I don't know what you make of him. Yeah, I think he scored a hat trick

the one game against us one year. I can't remember if it was in Toronto or if I was in Calgary, but I always looked at him as like a highly skilled guy with a really good shot. Yeah. And on the power play especially, I found like on that flank, you'd come down and rip a couple by you.

But I agree, I thought he was their best forward. You know, I thought their top guys just got put out of rhythm. Like they just couldn't get there because they were like, when you're used to playing 19-20 and then all of a sudden you play 15, it affects you. And like I went through that in my career at the end, like playing playing 25 24 minutes and then you get cut down right to like 16 17 minutes it's like you're sitting on the bench sometimes you're like getting cold 17 18 minutes a night to 10 you're like I'm I'm not even this game at all right I am strictly a spectator like you go to get your leg. I'm a spectator with a good seat And you hear your coach skipping your line

I go give us some energy. I got nothing Getting pulled off on a ozone drawer, right? Like yeah used to playing power play all my life and get putting up numbers And then you're pulling me off All right, Johnny we'll catch you on the panel tonight, yeah, what do you guys got cook? off the old ones. We got an icing ball here. Leave me out, please. Alright, Johnny, we'll catch you on the panel tonight. Yeah. What do you guys got cooking tonight? This is the game.

This is the game. It's going to be a series that's going to be tight and tense and long, or Toronto's going to win. Yep. Toronto's never had a 2-0 series lead in all the years with these guys. Nine years, whatever it's been. Which is crazy. Yeah, it is.

And so, we'll see. I think they're gonna have to if Toronto is going to win they're going to have to win in a tight game feels that way a great guy you know a game that makes them a little uncomfortable which will be a great test and if they can't then they're in it for the long haul they keep saying they've been learning lessons for a long time they're different we'll find out tonight supply them tonight maybe they're not game two tonight on TSN radio good seeing you Johnny coming in there is

Mike Johnson same birthday as geo That's why I was remember is that right? Not the same year clearly not far off man not far off Who invited climate action to the party we did hey, I'm Shannon Burns And I'm Sarah Christie together we host the Earth Day Party podcast where the guest list is full of climate experts sharing their advice on How we can protect our planet. Everything from avoiding microplastics to sustainable fashion to getting a prescription to spend time in nature. Plus, we hear from David Suzuki.

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