‘Tkachuk, Senators believe they can come back from 0-3 down’: Hanna on Game 4 mindset

how exciting the first beside two reporters of the 2025 Stanley Cup playoffs it is our Ottawa Bureau chief Claire Hannah beside our Toronto Maple Leafs reporter Mark Masters beside me you guys look fantastic together let’s start with you Mark Masters it’s fascinating because it’s another unlikely hero for the Maple Leafs that has them one win away from advancing to the second round what a story Jay simone Benois the defensive defenseman now remember he had a great play in game two to set up the Max Doi overtime winner i asked him about that this morning and he said “I forgot about it.” He wouldn’t talk about it i asked him “Does it give you more confidence to be part of a play like that?” He’s like “No I’m not even talking about it.” So he had his game face on and he wasn’t sure how to respond uh you know react when the goal goes in because it’s such an unlikely situation and it’s been quite the season for him because he became a first-time father in training camp and struggled a bit in terms of trying to find the right balance he wasn’t getting a lot of sleep and he appreciates that the team was patient with him and let him kind of figure things out uh he played his best hockey down the stretch and he’s continued that into the playoffs teammates absolutely thrilled for him to see him get a moment like that now I am not sure he scored that goal uh it looked it was initially credited to Matthew Nice I think and then we asked Matthew nice about it after the game and he smiled and said “We’re giving that one to Benny.” So we’re giving it to Ben i think it got tipped in i like Anyway I I it might have it might have gone in off Matthew N but it’s a better story if it’s Simone and Ben’s goal and Jay we never let the facts get in the way of a good story absolutely we’re storytellers I’m told here at TSN listen uh Claire I have a question for you brady Kachchuck before this game you said it’s a dream of his and it’s been a dream of his ever since he stepped foot in Ottawa to see those white rally towels going at the Canadian Tire Center in a playoff game and the crowd went absolutely wild when he sent this game to overtime how did he describe that moment after game three well there aren’t a lot of players that have played over 500 NHL games and are making their playoff debut after that amount of games and he said that when he first came onto the ice for warm-ups he had immediate goosebumps he looked around he saw all the white towels it was just a big moment for him and he also had his family in the crowd we know how close the Kachchuck family is we’ve seen Brady support his brother Matthew in the playoffs we saw him there when he won a Stanley Cup with Florida last year and he said it was emotional having his family in the crowd watching him in the playoffs of course Matthew’s not here because he’s doing his own playoff run uh but Brady also mentioned after the game that this team still has a lot of belief and he brought up the fact that he has recently watched the documentary where the Red Sox were down three nothing to the Yankees came back and won in game seven and that the team is going to have to have that belief that they want to beat the Leafs because right now they’ve definitely got their backs against the wall uh that’s a a great point kind of leads me to my la next question and maybe Mark I’ll start with you it is an elimination game for Saturday night what’s the mindset for each of your respective teams going in and again Mark I’ll start with you jay I’d actually like to defer to Claire on this one because I’m curious what what are the sends they got their backs to the wall you tell me okay well Clo Jaru after the game mentioned that the Senators on a couple of different occasions this season have won over four games in a row so that there is the belief that they can do it cloeru was also part of the Philadelphia Flyers team back in 2010 that was down three nothing to the Boston Bruins came back and won in game seven to go to the next series so the belief is strong amongst these veterans and Mark it’s not like the Leafs have any demons when it comes to the playoffs right here we go hey 3 nothing is not 3-1 okay they’ve never they’ve never blown a three nothing lead 3-1 against the Montreal Canadians of course uh you know back in 2021 and I it so that’s different and it does feel different this year okay it feels like the Lisa figured out the secret sauce under Craig Bupe here they’re playing really well defensively very hard for Ottawa to generate anything and then special teams and goalending anthony Stolars solid as a rock back there very composed s’s trying to get under his skin he told the referees “You look after me you have my back i’ll behave tonight.” No sort of kind of lumberjack routine on Ridley Greg in front and then the special teams another power play goal you know I know the five on three goal goes in but the penalty kill they’re happy with that matthew Nes on the power play he says I just get my big butt in front and let the four superstars do their thing around me the vibes are good Jay uh the Leafs are in a good spot they just want to keep the positive train going here and they you know it’s it’s hard for me to see them losing you sound pretty defensive for how confident your facts are i’m just saying three nothing is not 3-1 and it does feel different jay I could listen to you two talk all day i love the chemistry here i hope this series goes seven so we get a little bit more of between oh I’m sorry besides two reparters Yes [Music]

Mark Masters and Claire Hanna join SC with Jay Onrait for the latest edition of Beside Two Reporters, where they discuss Simon Benoit’s unlikely overtime heroics for the second straight game, how Brady Tkachuk described the moment in Ottawa when he scored to tied it in the third period, and the mindset of both teams heading into Game 4 Saturday night.

41 comments

  3. Yeah, seriously what do you expect Tkhachuk / Giroux to say? "Yeah dude we're hosed"? Everyone knows the odds here, especially those guys in the room – back-to-back (heartbreaking) OT losses…and I don't hear anyone whining about the refs going in the Sens favour today, because you know damn well it was tilted the Sens way no matter how you look at it in Game 3, so what's your excuse/cope now?

  7. Leafs can brag all they want and well deserved they’re up 3-0 but the sens outplayed them games 2 and 3 it could have went either way this series could change in favour for Ottawa it’s not over yet

  9. Sens fan here. We’re cooked. That being said, if there is a team with a history of playoff collapse, it’s the Leafs. Not gonna hold on to that too hard though. My guys gotta start by winning at least one damn game 😭

  12. Leafs have to end this series on Saturday. If not then, game 5. If the leafs lose both those games, I feel the Sens have a great chance of coming back. That being said, GO LEAFS GO!!!

  16. Sens are the most embarrassing franchise in the league. Garbage person of a captain. They complain about the refs, but dive all the time. They're getting fined for pre game shenanigans against Stolarz. Like, grow tf up. You don't belong in the playoffs. GTFO, enjoy the first round exits losers.

  19. I love you mark, but I'd trade you that smoke show Claire Hanna in an instant 😍 almost makes me hope Ottawa wins the next two games so we see her again in game 6…

  22. Crazy talk, haven't shown enough desire to compete. They often completely change their strategy come playoffs. I think there has been some overthinking in regards to that, because they are failing on some pretty simple hockey plays and positioning, shockingly that hasn't even been the tale of the series, but it's there.

  23. Not a chance in "Hell," that the Sens can win 4 in a row! Maybe 1 or 2, maximum? The Leafs are a far superior and experienced team, than the Sens, period! GO LEAFS GO !!!!

  25. I thought Sens fans were delusional. Then I heard the Sens players talk. The Leafs are not even trying to score in half of these games (because they have the lead most of the time) and they are winning. You are going to have score at least 3 goals in a game to beat the Leafs and we all know that’s not happening four games straight. Stolarz has a higher level than he has shown so far. What is Ullmark’s save percentage in this series again? .800. 🥴 Yeah, you’re toast.

  33. To be honest this series at 3-0 is a little deceiving the first game was a write off and the second and third could have been so different just from these past two games going to overtime anything could have happened, this series could easily be 2-1 sens or 2-1 leafs just unfortunate I don't think well come back hopefully we can get at least one win boost our confidence for next year.

  37. i don't get it, only 6 goals in his career. if he can make a slapshot, like the one he just cranked here, there's going to be goals. does he simply never take that slapshot? and if so, why did he take this one? come on reporters, ask the obvious questions please.

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