The Toronto Maple Leafs pulled goaltender Ilya Samsonov after the second period on April 27 in Game 4 of their first-round playoff series against the Boston Bruins.
Samsonov started the first four games of the playoffs, but in Game 4, he allowed three goals on 17 shots. To begin the third period, head coach Sheldon Keefe pulled Samsonov as Joseph Woll replaced him.
In the third period, Woll stopped all five shots he faced, and Keefe says the goalie change was about trying to change the momentum.
“The reason for it is we’re just trying to change things. You get Joe involved. That’s really it. You’re trying to change the momentum,” Keefe told the media after Game 4 on April 27.
Although Keefe pulled Samsonov in favor of Woll, the coach wouldn’t reveal who would be starting for the Maple Leafs in Game 5 on April 30.
“As per what we are doing going forward, we’ve got some time here to talk it through,” Keefe said.
In the playoffs, Samsonov has a 3.31 goals against average and a .883 save percentage.
Auston Matthews Leaves Game 4 Early
Toronto played the third period without star forward Auston Matthews.
Matthews had been dealing with an illness, and to begin the third period, the forward was not on the bench. After the game, Keefe said the doctors pulled Matthews from the game.
“It’s all just it’s all related to the illness he’s been dealing with,” Keefe said. “Ultimately, he’s been giving us everything that he has here. Ultimately, the doctor pulled him.”
In the playoffs, Matthews has 1 goal and 2 assists. Before being pulled by the doctors, Matthews had 14:16 of ice time and had one shot on goal.
Matthews’ status for Game 5 on April 30 is uncertain after being forced to leave Game 4 early.
Keefe Pleased With Maple Leafs Effort
Despite Toronto losing 3-1 in Game 4 on April 27 and now trailing in the series 3-1, Keefe was pleased with his team’s effort.
The Maple Leafs outshot Boston 25-to-22 and outhit Boston 65-to-37, which Keefe points to as things his team did well.
“Nothing wrong with our effort level here tonight. Guys are competing. It’s physical hockey. Guys are trying. It’s a good team over there. It’s limiting us. You can question a lot of things, can’t question the effort,” Keefe said.
Despite Keefe being happy with the effort, Toronto still lost, and during Game 4, a clip went viral of Mitch Marner and William Nylander getting into an argument on the bench.
Following the game, Marner said there wasn’t any frustration, as he and Nylander just wanted to make sure everyone was on the same page.
“I don’t think there is any (frustration). We’re grown men. We’re just talking about plays out there that we all want to make sure we’re 100 percent in. Just a little off-page there. We’re not yelling at each other because we hate each other,” Marner said to the media.
With the Maple Leafs losing Game 4, Toronto will need to win three straight games in order to advance to the second round of the playoffs.
Game 5 is set to take place in Boston on April 30 at 7 p.m. ET.
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