Panthers look to cool off Maple Leafs' power play in Eastern 2nd Round

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. -- Gustav Forsling was asked Sunday whether, if he was coach of the Toronto Maple Leafs, he would employ five forwards on the power play, considering their access to a plethora of firepower.

“Yes,” the Florida Panthers defenseman said with a laugh. “Absolutely.’’

The Panthers know they are in for a unique challenge when their Eastern Conference Second Round series begins with Game 1 at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto on Monday (8 p.m. ET; CBC, SN, TVAS, ESPN).

The Maple Leafs have found a successful formula with five forwards on their top power-play unit. Their top five scorers during the regular season -- Mitch Marner, William Nylander, Auston Matthews, John Tavares and Matthew Knies -- make up the group that went 6-for-17 (35.3 percent) in six games against the Ottawa Senators in the first round.

The top unit scored all six of the goals, with Tavares and Knies each scoring twice and Nylander and Matthews contributing one goal apiece. Marner had five assists.

“They are confident in it right now and they have a tremendous amount of skill, so that’s no surprise,” said forward Sam Reinhart, who excels on special teams and led Florida with 30 power-play points and five short-handed goals in the regular season. “We just have to make them as uncomfortable as possible out there. Certainly, discipline is part of that factor as well.’’

Panthers coach Paul Maurice noted the unpredictable nature of a five-forward power-play unit.

“It allows for interchangeability you don’t see on power plays with a defined defenseman up top that rotates very much," he said. "He moves side to side, maybe gets down on the flank, but there won’t be a lot of change that happens.

“There’s more [of that] with the five-forward power play. You could start at the top, end up at the net. They have enough experience doing those things. There will be quite a bit more movement in their power play.”

Although Toronto’s power play was firing on all cylinders against Ottawa, the Panthers were able to cool off the Tampa Bay Lightning in their first-round series.

Florida went 16-for-18 on the penalty kill (88.9 percent) in the series, which it won in five games. Only the Carolina Hurricanes, who killed all 15 opportunities against the New Jersey Devils, were better on the penalty kill in the first round.

Still, the Maple Leafs present a bigger challenge.

“They are really good, super skilled, especially with the five forwards,” Forsling said. “We just want to keep doing our thing out there. We did a really good job against Tampa. We want to keep that rolling. … We have the same mentality whether it’s five forwards or five defensemen out there. We want to put the pressure on them.”

During the regular season, the Maple Leafs were tied for eighth in the League on the power play, converting on 24.8 percent of their opportunities. The Panthers finished 10th on the penalty kill at 80.7 percent.

But Florida made changes to its penalty kill as the season went along, acquiring defenseman Seth Jones (from the Chicago Blackhawks on March 1) and forwards Brad Marchand (from the Boston Bruins on March 7) and Nico Sturm (from the San Jose Sharks on March 6).

Against the Lightning, Forsling led the Panthers in short-handed time at 20:44. Jones was second (17:56), Sturm was fifth (13:56) and Marchand was 11th (8:04).

Sturm’s high-end penalty killing, as well as his ability in the face-off circle (51.1 percent in 15 games with Florida during the regular season), was a big reason why the Panthers acquired him from the Sharks prior to the Trade Deadline.

“You get to play against the best players in the world, the best centers in the world in the circle,” Sturm said Sunday before the Panthers traveled to Toronto for Game 1. “For me, in the role that I play, I can make an impact. If you play on a team that gives up five or six goals, you can go 100 percent on the PK and your role doesn’t matter very much. But on this team, what I do, that’s my reward and that’s what I get excited about. It is my way to help the team and I am excited I get another chance to do it [Monday].”