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"You black out a bit" - Matthew Knies on his OT game-winning goal that saved Leafs' playoff chances in Game 5
Rookie forward Matthew Knies was the hero for the Toronto Maple Leafs, scoring the overtime game-winner in a must-win Game 5 against the Boston Bruins on Tuesday.
Knies' goal, coming 2:26 into OT off a feed from John Tavares, gave the Leafs a 2-1 victory and kept their playoff hopes alive as they trail the series 3-2.
"You black out a bit," Matthew Knies said of the dramatic goal. "I was just so excited and so happy. I think what brought me more joy was to see the faces of my teammates and how much they wanted to keep playing and keep moving on."
Leafs coach Sheldon Keefe praised his team's aggressive start and resilience after falling behind 3-1 in the series.
"We didn’t feel sorry for ourselves. We didn’t mail it in. We went out and tried to take charge of the hockey game in the first period." Keefe said.
Goaltender Joseph Woll also came up big for Toronto with 28 saves. The Leafs dominated offensively, outshooting Boston 33-28. Auston Matthews showed up for a bit at morning practice on Tuesday but left before the structured drills began and missed Game 5.
How Matthew Knies’ Maple Leafs registered overtime win over the Boston Bruins
Defenseman Jack McCabe opened the scoring for Toronto with a shot through traffic from the point at 5:33 of the first period.
However, the Bruins evened the game at 1-1 before the first intermission when Trent Frederic capitalized on a turnover caused by Jesper Boqvist's forecheck and beat Joseph Woll.
Matthew Knies buried the overtime goal from the rebound at the edge of the crease after captain John Tavares had driven hard to the net.
"That was a pretty incredible play by (Tavares) there to drive the net and make that play happen," Matthew Knies said of the game-winning goal. "It all started with him, and then it kind of just fell in my stick, and I was fortunate to bury that one."
Sheldon Keefe talked about how building momentum is key to victory.
“You want to build positive momentum your own way,” Maple Leafs coach Sheldon Keefe said. “And yeah, you want to make them be uncomfortable. You want to make them have to pack up and head out to Toronto.”
Boston Bruins captain Brad Marchand noted:
“That’s just the way it plays out sometimes,” Bruins captain Brad Marchand said on the loss.
“The hardest (win) to get is that last one, and you know, like I said, they came and they left it all out there. That’s just -- we need to be better. That’s all it is.”
The series now shifts back to Toronto for Game 6 as the Leafs look to keep their season alive.
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