OTTAWA — The Toronto Maple Leafs are one win away from crushing the Ottawa Senators’ playoff dreams, thanks to a gritty 3-2 overtime victory in Game 3 on April 24, 2025, at a roaring Canadian Tire Centre. Simon Benoit, a third-pair defenseman not exactly known for lighting the lamp, turned hero when he rifled a slap shot through traffic just 1:19 into the extra frame, sending the Leafs to a commanding 3-0 series lead in this Eastern Conference first-round clash.
The game was a slugfest from the drop of the puck, with both teams trading blows in a physical, tight-checking affair. Ottawa struck first on a 5-on-3 power play in the second period, when Claude Giroux’s wrist shot from the point slipped past a screened Anthony Stolarz at 1:38, giving the Senators a 1-0 edge. The home crowd, starved for playoff hockey since 2017, erupted, hoping this was the spark to turn their series around.
Toronto answered back swiftly. Matthew Knies, on a power play of their own, saw his centering pass carom off Senators forward Shane Pinto’s skate and trickle past Linus Ullmark, tying it at 1-1 later in the second. Then, just 32 seconds into the third, Auston Matthews pounced. Morgan Rielly dumped the puck behind the net to Mitch Marner, who zipped a no-look pass to Matthews for a one-timer that beat Ullmark clean, putting the Leafs up 2-1.
But the Senators weren’t done. Brady Tkachuk, Ottawa’s heart-and-soul captain, took a Giroux feed on a rush and snapped a wrist shot past Stolarz’s blocker at 11:22 of the third, knotting the score at 2-2. The Canadian Tire Centre shook as fans sensed a chance to steal one. Overtime loomed, and with it, the weight of a series hanging in the balance.
In the extra period, Toronto’s captain made the difference. Matthews won a crucial faceoff in the offensive zone, kicking the puck back to Benoit. The 26-year-old from Laval, Quebec, who’d scored just one goal in 78 regular-season games, wound up and unleashed a rocket that screamed through a maze of bodies and past Ullmark. The Leafs’ bench exploded, players spilling over the boards to mob their unlikely savior.
Toronto’s power play, a sore spot in past postseasons, has been a weapon this series, clicking on five of nine chances, including Knies’ goal. The Leafs also dominated the faceoff circle for the third straight game, winning 32 of 51 draws, a 62.7% clip. Stolarz, steady as ever, stopped 18 shots, while Ullmark made 17 saves for Ottawa.
The Senators, back in the playoffs for the first time in eight years, now face elimination in Game 4 on April 26 in Ottawa. Toronto, which hasn’t swept a series since 2001 against these same Senators, can close it out and advance to the second round. The Leafs won Game 1 on April 20 by a 6-2 score and took Game 2 on April 22 in another 3-2 overtime thriller, with Max Domi netting the winner.
Ottawa’s faithful, who waited 2,891 days for playoff hockey to return to their city, showed up in droves, drowning out Leafs fans who’d been expected to invade the rink. Despite the loss, the Senators outshot Toronto 28-21 and led in high-danger chances, 9-6. But Toronto’s knack for clogging the middle, blocking shots, and capitalizing on key moments has left Ottawa teetering on the brink.
Game 4 is set for April 26 at 7 p.m. ET. A Toronto win would mark their second playoff series victory in the last two decades, the first being a six-game triumph over Tampa Bay in 2023. Ottawa last won a playoff game at home on May 23, 2017, a 2-1 victory over Pittsburgh in the Eastern Conference Final.