The Toronto Maple Leafs once again will attempt to win their first Stanley Cup Playoff Series in 17 years when they play the Montreal Canadiens in Game 6 of the Stanley Cup First Round at Bell Centre on Saturday.
The Maple Leafs have lost five straight chances to close a series since 2018, including a 4-3 overtime loss in to the Canadiens in Game 5 at Scotiabank Arena on Thursday.
A win would send the Maple Leafs to the Stanley Cup Second Round against the Winnipeg Jets. Toronto has not won a postseason series since defeating the Ottawa Senators 4-3 in the best-of-7 Eastern Conference First Round in 2004.
Coach Sheldon Keefe said the Maple Leafs are not bothered by the past, instead focusing on their present.
"We feel good about our team," he said. "We feel good about our chances. We feel good about how we've played in this series. We just have to go out and execute."
Teams that hold a 3-2 lead are 328-87 (79.0 percent) winning a best-of-7 series, including 4-0 this season.
Forward Brendan Gallagher said the Canadiens are confident and not worried that the odds are against them. But he stopped short of making any promises.
"Nothing's guaranteed," he said. "I don't think you're going to get a Mark Messier quote from me. But I've said it all year: No matter what this group has gone from ... belief has never been an issue."
Messier, then a forward with the New York Rangers, guaranteed a victory against the New Jersey Devils in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Final, then scored a hat trick in New York's 4-2 victory.
Here are 3 keys for Game 6: