The spring months are an exciting time for sports as both the NBA playoffs and the NHL playoffs are in full swing. One team that is a frequent participant in the NHL playoffs is the Boston Bruins. The Bruins are consistently one of the best teams in hockey, and that is once again the case this season. They are currently taking on the Toronto Maple Leafs in the first round of the postseason, and they missed out on a good opportunity to advance on Tuesday night.

Game five between the Bruins and the Maple Leafs took place on Tuesday night and the game took place in Boston. The Bruins came into the game with a 3-1 lead in the series, so a win at home would’ve punched their ticket to the next round. The Maple Leafs needed to pull off a difficult road win to keep their season alive, and they got the job done.

Both teams scored in the first period but that was all either team would get in regulation. The game ended up going into overtime, and the Maple Leafs were able to find the back of the net to get the win and extend the series.

It was surprising to see there Bruins lose this one, and Brad Marchand knows that his team let an opportunity slip away at home.

“They came and they left it all out there,” Brad Marchand said, according to an article from ESPN. “We need to be better. That’s all it is.”

Maple Leafs react to big win

On one side, this was a missed opportunity and a very deflating loss after being up 3-1 in the series. On the other side, there is new life. Going down 3-1 is never good, but now the Maple Leafs need to just win a game at home to send this series to game seven. They had a plan coming in for how they wanted to attack Tuesday night’s game, and they left with a W.

“The aggression, the assertiveness that we played from the start,” Maple Leafs head coach Sheldon Keefe said. “We didn’t feel sorry for ourselves. We didn’t mail it in. We went out and tried to take charge of the hockey game in the first period.”

Going on the road and winning an elimination game in the playoffs as the underdog is not an easy thing to do, but the Maple Leafs got the job done. Getting that win was not easy, and they know that they have an uphill climb in this series. The series if now shifting back home for the Maple Leafs, but Keefe knows that things are going to get more difficult.

“As difficult as this one was here tonight, the next one is going to be be even harder,” Keefe said. “No matter where the game is played.”

Game six will take place in Toronto on Thursday night. The Bruins are trying to finish off the series and advance to the next round, and the Maple Leafs are hoping that they can force a game seven back in Boston.