OTTAWA — The puck dropped in the Canadian Tire Centre on May 1, 2025, with the Toronto Maple Leafs squaring off against the Ottawa Senators in a do-or-die Game 6 of their first-round Stanley Cup playoff series. The first period unfolded with the kind of raw, nervy energy you’d expect from a team one win away from the second round and another fighting to keep their season alive. Toronto, leading the series 3-2, came out swinging, but Ottawa wasn’t about to roll over on home ice.
Early in the frame, the Leafs set the tone. Auston Matthews, Toronto’s captain and resident goal-scoring machine, snapped a wrist shot past Senators goaltender Linus Ullmark just 3:42 into the period, putting the visitors up 1-0. The goal came off a crisp passing play, with Mitch Marner threading a no-look feed to Matthews, who was parked in the slot. The arena, packed with red-clad Sens fans hoping for a miracle, fell quiet for a moment—until the home team answered.
Ottawa, desperate to force a Game 7, pushed back hard. Brady Tkachuk, the Senators’ heart-and-soul captain, was everywhere, throwing hits and buzzing around Toronto’s net. At the 8:15 mark, Ottawa’s power play got a chance when Leafs defenseman Morgan Rielly was sent to the box for cross-checking. The Sens didn’t waste it. Tim Stützle, cool as ever, rifled a one-timer from the right circle, tying the game at 1-1. The crowd erupted, and you could feel the building shake as Ottawa fed off the momentum.
Toronto wasn’t rattled, though. William Nylander, who’s been a postseason sparkplug, nearly restored the Leafs’ lead with a breakaway at 12:30, but Ullmark’s glove snagged the puck like it was magnetized. The period ended with both teams knotted at one, shots even at 12 apiece, and a sense that this game could hinge on a single bounce. Toronto’s been here before—infamously 1-13 in closeout games during the Matthews era, a stat that hangs over them like a storm cloud. Ottawa, meanwhile, is chasing history, trying to become just the fifth NHL team to claw back from a 3-0 series deficit.
As the teams headed to the locker rooms, the ice was littered with the scars of a period that felt more like a street fight than a hockey game. Toronto’s top line was clicking, but Ottawa’s grit and special teams kept them in it. The second period loomed large, with the Leafs hunting a ticket to face the Florida Panthers and the Senators scrapping for survival.
The game is broadcast on TBS/Max in the U.S. and Sportsnet/CBC in Canada, starting at 7 p.m. ET. Toronto’s lineup remained unchanged from Game 5, with Anthony Stolarz in net for his sixth straight start. Ottawa stuck with the same roster that blanked the Leafs 4-0 in Game 5, leaning on Ullmark’s 29-save shutout performance. Faceoffs were dead even at 50% through the first 20 minutes. Penalties: one minor to Toronto, none to Ottawa.