Joseph Woll of Dardenne Prairie, Missouri recorded his first National Hockey League playoff shutout on Friday night. He accomplished the feat in a 2-0 Toronto Maple Leafs win over the Florida Panthers at the Amerant Bank Arena in Sunrise, Florida.
Inside Look at the Shutout
Woll made 22 saves for the shutout. He made only two saves in the first period, 12 saves in the second period and eight saves in the third period. Canadians Aaron Ekblad of Windsor, Ontario and Carter Verhaeghe of Toronto, Ontario led the Panthers with four shots on goal each.
Who scored for the Maple Leafs?
Two Americans scored for the Maple Leafs. Both goals came in the third period. Auston Matthews of San Ramon, California scored the game-winning goal at 6:20 of the third period from Mitch Marner of Markham, Ontario. Then at 14:17 of the final frame Max Pacioretty of New Canaan, Connecticut scored from Max Domi of Winnipeg, Manitoba and Bobby McMann of Wainwright, Alberta. Pacioretty and Matthews now have three goals each in the 2025 NHL postseason.
Woll’s third NHL shutout
Woll has two NHL regular season shutouts. The first came in a 3-0 Maple Leafs win over the New York Islanders on November 21, 2021. This was Woll’s second NHL game. In his NHL debut, Woll helped the Maple Leafs defeat the Buffalo Sabres 5-4 on November 13, 2021. Then on November 20, 2024 (almost three years after Woll’s first shutout), the Maple Leafs blanked the Vegas Golden Knights 3-0.
Bounce Back Team Win
What we saw on Friday night in south Florida from the Maple Leafs was mighty impressive. Considering the fact they were absolutely clobbered on home ice in game five as the Panthers won handily 6-1. In Friday’s win, the Maple Leafs deserve significant credit for their strong defensive structure in the opening period. Toronto limited Florida to only two shots on goal.
