Bob Cole was on the CBC Sports microphone when the 2004 Toronto Maple Leafs defeated the Ottawa Senators in the opening round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Chris Cuthbert was still with CBC at that time; Cuthbert had an extensive career at TSN before jumping to Rogers Sportsnet, all of them since the Maple Leafs advanced beyond the first round.
Cuthbert called the game winner Saturday night in overtime. John Tavares got the game-winning OT goal.
The Maple Leafs went 3-0 in Tampa, all OT wins. Edmonton and overtime playoff games has been an ugly reality. The Oilers came into 2023 with 6 OT losses in its last 7 playoff games that went into extra time. The streak dated back to 2017: Connor McDavid scored the game winner at Calgary in Game 5 in 2022.
The Oilers made it 8 of the last 9 by losing Games 1 and 3 in this playoff round to Los Angeles. Edmonton snapped the streak by winning in overtime in Game 4.
All 3 of the Canadian teams went to overtime in Game 3 of their series: Edmonton lost in single OT, Winnipeg lost in double OT, and Toronto won in single OT
Toronto and Edmonton won Game 4 in OT, both on the road. Toronto also won Game 6 in OT on the road to wrap up the first postseason series win since 2004.
Toronto will face Florida with home ice resting in Toronto. Las Vegas has home ice advantage in its series with Edmonton.
The Edmonton Oilers feel the most comfortable in this position, defeating the Los Angeles Kings for the second year in a row in the playoffs. The only defeats came in overtime. Like the Maple Leafs, the Oilers clinched on the road.
Leon Draisaitl got hurt in the LA series in 2022 but should be in a lot better shape in 2023.
We are not fans of Will Ferrell as a comedian or actor. He made headlines with his checkered pattern as a Kings fan. Won't miss that in the next round.
The Winnipeg Jets had a sharp game in Game 1 and a thrilling 3-goal comeback in Game 3 in Winnipeg. Unfortunately, the Jets came up short, losing in 5 games to Las Vegas.
Whatever we might think of the violence of football and basketball, the NFL and NBA does not go out of their way to injure opposing players just before the playoffs start.
Ryan Hartman did get a 1-game suspension for what is likely a concussion to Nikolaj Ehlers, who hadn't played since that night. Minnesota and Winnipeg weren't destined to even meet in the playoffs.
Ehlers had a non-hockey injury. The play was deliberate to injure Ehlers.
Reminded us painfully off what Duncan Keith (Chicago) did with a cheap hit against Daniel Sedin (Vancouver) in 2012. Duncan Keith got a 5-game suspension.
There is the thought of the offending player sitting out as long as the injured player is out. Daniel Sedin's play suffered even when he came back. The penalty needs to be strong enough to stop this behaviour.
The NHL thinks this is normal behaviour. Your humble narrator sharply disagrees.
Ehlers finally got into Game 5 after being out for that injury. He played 21:10 in a losing cause. The Winnipeg Jets depth was tested when Josh Morrissey suffered an LBI early in the 1st period of Game 3 and was out for the series. Mark Scheifele hurt his shoulder after being tripped early in Game 4.
Winnipeg became the first team out of the playoffs since that series was the only one that ended at 5 games.
Edmonton 3-0-1 against Las Vegas this season. Toronto has a 3-0-1 edge on Florida this season. The Maple Leafs haven't won 2 playoff series in a year since 2002.
The home teams went 2-6 in Game 1 in the opening round. The visiting teams went 4-0 on April 22 and April 23 and won the first three games on April 24. The 11-game streak was a new record for the Stanley Cup playoffs.
Toronto accounted for 2 of those wins in Tampa. Edmonton got a road win in Los Angeles in that streak. Unfortunately, Winnipeg went 0-2 in that streak at Canada Life Centre.
All 8 playoff series started 2-1.
Road teams went 11-3 in OT games in the first round.
We have said on Twitter in the first round that U.S. national outlets don't show the anthems for late games. They start things at the last minute. Turner (TNT and TBS) use as much studio time as possible before starting the late game.
ESPN, specifically ESPN2, took the U.S. audience early to Edmonton and showed the anthems. Colour us surprised. The pattern is true most of the time but good to get an exception.
We have chided the NHL in giving American teams more time in between playoff games than Canadian teams, especially in 2021. Toronto and Winnipeg played Monday, Thursday, and Saturday in the final week of April while Edmonton played Sunday, Tuesday, and Saturday.
The Maple Leafs and Jets only got 1 extra day between Games 4-5 while the Oilers had 2 extra days between Games 5-6. The Edmonton gift is more about the NBA Los Angeles Lakers and Los Angeles Clippers in the playoffs sharing space with the NHL Kings at what was Staples Center.
The Stanley Cup playoffs are a grind. American teams in recent years have been better rested than their Canadian counterparts.
The NHL has this habit where a Toronto player in the first round has to receive an outrageous suspension. Nazeem Kadri knows that pain. This spring, Michael Bunting was caught in that NHL trap on top of a match penalty and game misconduct. No hit on a player for a Canadian team would ever garner a 3-game playoff suspension.
Matthew Knies played well in Bunting's absence. The Maple Leafs went 3-0 without Bunting in the series against Tampa. Bunting was a healthy scratch for Game 5.
Bunting played in Game 6. Knies set up Tavares for the game winner in Game 6.
Sean McDonough called Game 1 in Toronto for ESPN. We don't figure this is his first national game in any sport in Toronto since he called Joe Carter's home run in Game 6 of the 1993 World Series. Still, McDonough should have great memories of his time in Toronto 30 years ago.
McDonough took over for Jack Buck as the top voice on CBS coverage of MLB. He called both Toronto Blue Jays World Series championships.
The distance between Rogers Centre to Scotiabank Arena is approximately 833 meters. Wonder if he took that walk while in Toronto.
We have wondered for years why U.S. national outlets haven't borrowed from Canadian crews to fill freelance opportunities in the first round. Dean Brown has had plenty of springs where the Ottawa Senators haven't made the playoffs.
ESPN did borrow Gord Miller last spring but Miller has called a lot of playoff games for U.S. outlets.
Rick Ball was available this spring in part because the Calgary Flames missed the playoffs. Turner got smart and brought Ball in to call Game 3 from Winnipeg on TBS.
Unlike U.S. national announcers, who only had Winnipeg for 1 national game in 2022-2023, Ball had called the Winnipeg Jets on a national basis this season.
The only time Winnipeg has been on a U.S. national outlet in the new TV deal was the sham invite to Arizona on October 28, 2022. John Buccigross, Brian Boucher, and Leah Hextall called that game on ESPN+/Hulu.
The Jets were definitely a playoff team early in the season and was worthy of a sincere visit. Then again, ESPN has only carried 2 games in Canada, both in January in Alberta.
Ball and Jennifer Botterill had an exciting game with a Jets 3-goal comeback to lose in double overtime.
Cassie Campbell-Pascall only worked a single game on ESPN in the opening round: Game 5 of the Winnipeg series.
NHL Network did offer CBC/Sportsnet feeds in matinee rebroadcasts for Edmonton Game 1, Toronto Game 2, and Edmonton Game 5.
Crumbs but we will always take crumbs.
Here is the CBC schedule for the Canadians and those in the States with a CBC feed. This schedule will be updated as needed in the second round.
Chris Cuthbert and Craig Simpson (Kyle Bukauskas) stay with the Maple Leafs. Harnarayan Singh and Louie DeBrusk (Gene Principe) will cover the Oilers. Scott Oake is taking this series off.
John Bartlett and Garry Galley (Ryan Leslie) will take care of Games 1-2 of the Seattle-Dallas series and the rest of the Carolina-New Jersey series (Games 4-7) on CBC.
We won't be able to know but inherently curious what the TV ratings will be like with Seattle Kraken fans choosing the CBC (via cable) over ESPN/TNT coverage. Eddie Olczyk, who works on TNT and as a colour analyst for Root Sports Northwest, is not working either of the first 2 games.
Games on CBC can be streamed in Canada via cbcsports.ca.
May 2 Florida @ Toronto, 7p
May 2 Seattle @ Dallas, 9:30p
May 3 Edmonton @ Las Vegas, 9:30p
May 4 Florida @ Toronto, 7p
May 4 Seattle @ Dallas, 9:30p
May 6 Edmonton @ Las Vegas, 7p
May 7 Toronto @ Florida, 6:30p
May 8 Las Vegas @ Edmonton, 8:30p
May 9 Carolina @ New Jersey, 7p
May 10 Toronto @ Florida, 7p
May 10 Las Vegas @ Edmonton, 10p
May 11 New Jersey @ Carolina, 7p
May 12 Florida @ Toronto, 7p
May 12 Edmonton @ Las Vegas, 10p
May 14 Las Vegas @ Edmonton, 10p
U.S. viewers in Detroit, Buffalo, Seattle, and other markets get a great option, even for select U.S. games.
May 2 Florida @ Toronto, 7p Steve Levy/AJ Mleczko/Dom Moore ESPN
May 3 Edmonton @ Las Vegas, 9:30p Bob Wischusen/Brian Boucher/Linda Cohn ESPN
May 4 Florida @ Toronto, 7p Brendan Burke/Darren Pang/Aly Lozoff TNT
May 6 Edmonton @ Las Vegas, 7p John Forslund/Shane Hnidy/Jody Shelley TNT
May 7 Toronto @ Florida, 6:30p Brendan Burke/Darren Pang/Aly Lozoff TBS
May 8 Las Vegas @ Edmonton, 8:30p Bob Wischusen/Brian Boucher/Leah Hextall ESPN
May 10 Toronto @ Florida, 7p Steve Levy/AJ Mleczko/Dom Moore ESPN
May 10 Las Vegas @ Edmonton, 10p Mike Monaco/Ryan Callahan/Leah Hextall ESPN
May 12 Florida @ Toronto, 7p Brendan Burke/Darren Pang/Kathryn Tappen TNT
May 12 Edmonton @ Las Vegas, 10p John Forslund/Shane Hnidy/Jody Shelley TNT
May 14 Las Vegas @ Edmonton, 10p John Buccigross/AJ Mleczko/Dom Moore ESPN
We will add CBC telecasts and U.S. crews for the Toronto and Edmonton series later. We will update this story through the second round.
Twitter captures: @MapleLeafs; @Sportsnet; @SportsTalkWPG; @Sportsnet; @NHL_on_TNT
photo credit: Rogers Sportsnet/CBC/NHL
