As the Battle of Ontario shifts to Ottawa for Games 3 and 4, the Toronto Maple Leafs want to keep their foot on the gas. Their new-look fourth line of Steven Lorentz, Scott Laughton, and Calle Jarnkrok, especially.
The trio has been one of the strong points for Toronto throughout the series. According to NaturalStatTrick, at five-on-five, Lorentz, Laughton, and Jarnkrok have attempted more shots than their opponents, 14-12, and have an expected goals-for percentage of 50.38, the second-best among Maple Leafs lines in the series.
They even assisted in starting the series on a positive note, with Laughton and Jarnkrok tallying the two assists on Oliver Ekman-Larsson's goal.
"We're on the same page right now, and that's what makes it easy to go out there," Lorentz said on Wednesday.
"We're not always going to be in the O-zone. Sometimes we get to match up and we're against their top lines, and we're very comfortable out there doing that. I think we're all confident in our defensive abilities, and we kind of know where each other are going to be, and we've created that chemistry.
"It's nice going out there, and you don't feel nervous like you're on your heels. We can kind of take it to those lines and kind of hem them in the offensive zone as well."
'Probably, I Haven't Made My Mind Up Yet': Maple Leafs Likely To Stick With Same Lineup For Game 3 Against SenatorsThe Toronto Maple Leafs are a perfect 2-0 in the 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs, so it wouldn't be unreasonable for head coach Craig Berube to keep his lineup the same as their first-round series against the Ottawa Senators shifts to Canada's capital.
What's most intriguing about this fourth line is that head coach Craig Berube is deploying it like a third line.
Max Domi's line with Nick Robertson and Bobby McMann combined for 34:41 in Game 2 against the Senators, while Laughton's line combined for 35:18, nearly a minute more. They've played the second-most minutes among Toronto's lines at five-on-five during the series, according to NaturalStatTrick.
Berube also started the fourth line for Game 2 against the Senators. He did the same with the St. Louis Blues in the Stanley Cup Finals, where he iced his fourth line of Alexander Steen, Ivan Barbashev, and Oskar Sundqvist at the start of three of the seven games in the series.
‘Couldn’t Be Happier For Him’: Max Domi Plays Overtime Hero, Scores Game-Winning Goal To Lift Maple Leafs Over Senators In Game 2 VictoryIt was another overtime classic etched into the history of the Battle of Ontario on Tuesday night at Scotiabank Arena – and it was a hometown player who sealed the deal.
"I think it's highly important. You need everybody in playoffs. You need everybody to do the job," Berube said on Wednesday.
"In 2019, our fourth line was very effective for us. Not only defensively and matchups and doing things like that, but they scored goals, and they scored big goals. and you need that in playoffs. Laughton's line has been very good for a while now, and going to keep using them."
It's not the first time Lorentz has started during the playoffs. In Lorentz's first postseason in the NHL, Carolina Hurricanes head coach Rod Brind'Amour would throw his fourth line out for the beginning of the game.
"I's not always power on power, line one on line one. It's the checking guys that you want to get the energy and the crowd going in the building. It might just take a big hit on the first shift," Lorentz said.
"That's a tactical game that the coaches play. Our line, we've been comfortable. It doesn't matter what line we see. We went out there just ready at puck drop to be able to go out and make an impact."
Throughout the first two games of Toronto's series against Ottawa, Lorentz, Laughton, and Jarnkrok have averaged more time on ice than McMann, Domi, and Robertson. Whether that'll continue with the series shifting to Ottawa remains to be seen.
"We Stayed With It': Maple Leafs Halt Senators' Comeback Bid To Take 2-0 Series LeadMax Domi scored the overtime winner as the Toronto Maple Leafs defeated the Ottawa Senators 3-2 to take a 2-0 lead in their best-of-seven series on Tuesday.
But it's a positive sign that Berube can rely on a line aside from the Maple Leafs' top-six in the postseason. It'll only get tougher from here on out with Game 3 going down in Ottawa on Thursday night.
"We’ve been pretty good," Jarnkrok said. "Working hard out there. Working for each other, trying to help the team as best as we can."
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