'Dart Guy' to attend Game 3, support Maple Leafs

TORONTO --Jason Maslakow left nothing to chance when he prepared to attend Game 3 of the Eastern Conference First Round between the Toronto Maple Leafs and Washington Capitals at Air Canada Centre on Monday (7 p.m. ET; NBCSN, CBC, TVA Sports 2, CSN-DC).
The makeup that made him an internet sensation during Game 2 at Verizon Center on Saturday had been applied by 12:30 p.m. After a quick stop back at home in Waterloo, Ontario to pick up his Maple Leafs jersey, Maslakow was headed to Toronto for a day he certainly never expected.

While attending Game 2, Maslakow was shown briefly on the televised broadcast, his face painted with a Maple Leafs logo, his beard dyed blue and an unlit cigarette dangling from his mouth. At that moment, pictures of Maslakow flooded the internet and a legend was born. Maslakow became known to Maple Leafs fans everywhere as "Dart Guy" -- dart is slang for any cigarette.
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Since then, Maslakow has been overwhelmed with media requests.
"Absolutely, I am," Maslakow said, when asked if he was surprised by his sudden notoriety. "It's all still a little bit surreal. I can't really put it into words how awesome this is."
The Maple Leafs caught on to the hype over "Dart Guy" and offered Maslakow a pair of tickets to Game 3, though he's not yet sure where the seats will be.
"They could put me in standing room only and I'd be quite happy," Maslakow said.
The best-of-7 series is tied 1-1.
Maslakow will also appear on stage at the Maple Leafs' tailgate party prior to Game 3 outside Air Canada Centre in Maple Leaf Square to pump up the crowd that will gather to watch the game on a giant video screen.
"It was absolutely amazing of the team to get on board with this and offer me the tickets. I'm quite excited," Maslakow said.

Over the years Maslakow has attended a handful of Maple Leafs regular-season games -- he figures four or five a season -- but he had never been to a playoff game. Fearing tickets would be too expensive or impossible to come by in Toronto, Maslakow and a couple of friends decided to drive to Washington D.C for Game 2. They left around midnight Saturday and arrived about 9:30 a.m.
The face paint that made Maslakow famous was not something he does every time he goes to a game. Just like the players, Maslakow thought it was time to raise his game for the postseason.
"That was just for the playoffs," Maslakow said. "I really had to get behind my boys there for that game."
A die-hard Maple Leafs fan for at least 32 years, Maslakow was just as excited about their success against the Capitals as he has been about his own sudden fame.
"Honestly, I think I'm one of the few people who is not surprised by what's going on here," Maslakow said. "The Leafs are a good, young, fast team and I knew that it wasn't going to be a cake walk for Washington."
Even forward Auston Matthews, who will be looking for his first playoff goal, was quite impressed by Maslakow's dedication to supporting the Maple Leafs.
"I saw him on Twitter a little bit," Matthews said. "It's pretty cool. Interesting facemask and everything. I didn't know they let cigarettes in the building."
In Maslakow's defense, he did not light it up inside the building but it did not take him long to finish it off as soon as Game 2 ended.
"The minute I got outside, that baby got lit up," Maslakow said.