After the Toronto Maple Leafs took control of the series, the Florida Panthers needed to win game 3. After all, despite Ottawa’s best efforts at making an epic comeback, the initial 3-0 series lead proved too much to overcome against the Leafs. However, things continued to look shaky again, with the Leafs matching Florida’s physicality. The Panthers found goals, but so did the Leafs, forcing the game into overtime. And just when it looked like everything could go south again, Brad Marchand prevailed.

Marchand, who is no stranger to facing the Leafs in the playoffs, lined up the puck and took his shot with 4 minutes left in OT. It was a long shot, with three Leafs and one Panthers player between the NHL veteran and Joseph Woll. Yet, Marchand’s shot took a deflection off a Leafs player and went into the back of the net. Turns out, Marchand is to the Leafs what Kryptonite is to Superman.

“Marchand breaking the heart of Toronto fans. Some things never change,” posted Bruins reporter Conor Ryan. Throughout his 16 seasons with the Boston Bruins, Brad Marchand has scored a game-winning overtime goal against the Leafs on multiple occasions. While the jersey he wears may be different now, it’s as they say: Old habits die hard. You might be wondering how many times Marchy has pulled this off.

Associated Press Sports writer Josh Dubow had fans covered on X. The sports journalist revealed that Marchand now has “5 career game-winning goals in playoffs vs. Maple Leafs,” on X. What more? This isn’t just a personal milestone, but a league-wide achievement that puts the 36-year-old in an elite club. Only four players have more game-winning playoff goals against one opponent.

“Brett Hull 8 vs. Blackhawks, Maurice Richard 7 vs. Red Wings, Glenn Anderson 6 vs. Kings, Stephane Richer 6 vs. Bruins,” revealed Josh Dubow. So Brad Marchand once again proved that he thrives when things get chaotic. And things have been chaotic between the Leafs and Panthers since Game 1. The Panthers and Leafs have landed some huge hits on one another, and it didn’t stop tonight.

Marchand’s teammate Anton Lundell took a whack to the face. The hit and the no-call infuriated Panthers coach Paul Maurice, who “had a long talk with the stripes.” as per Panthers’ Sr. Digital Content Manager Jameson Olive. That being said, winning game three was a huge deal for the entire Panthers squad.

Brad Marchand and Co. got a confidence boost

To say they needed to win this game would be an understatement. For two consecutive games, the defending champions seemed unable to deal with the Leafs’ defense. Although they continued with that struggle in Game 3, the Florida Panthers managed to unleash their offense. “It was huge, you know. It’s a very tough hole to climb out (of),” Marchand said about the win.

And he wasn’t kidding. ESPN shed light on the fact that Toronto was almost unbeatable when they took a two-goal lead during the regular season. The Leafs went 30-3-0 when they took the lead in the third period. In fact, this was the first lead they blew in the 2025 NHL playoffs, as per ESPN. “I loved our resilience tonight,” Brad Marchand said in a post-game interview.

“We didn’t have the best start. They came out extremely hard but we just stuck with it,” added the former Boston Bruins captain. Marchand also explained that the Panthers entered Game 3 with a lot of determination, and it paid off. The defending champion now has to build off this momentum. Their defense is still struggling to keep the Leafs at bay, and Sergei Bobrovsky isn’t having the best series.

The Panthers’ goalies did have a slightly better save percentage tonight, though. Bobrovsky ended the night with a .871 SV%, which was better than the .800 during the last game. Safe to say, Brad Marchand and Co. need ‘Big Game Bob’ to turn up right about now. It’s also safe to say that we have a series on our hands.