Maple Leafs players have words for Joseph Woll

The Toronto Maple Leafs were able to keep their season alive in a must-win situation on Wednesday night, avoiding being eliminated from the Stanley Cup Playoffs by the Florida Panthers thanks to a 2-1 victory in what was their first win of the series. 

The work doesn't stop, however. Toronto remains in "must-win" mode, as one more loss will signal the official beginning of the offseason. Meanwhile, all the Panthers need to punch their ticket to their first Eastern Conference Final since 1996 is a win over the Leafs. 

Game 5 between the two teams will get underway tonight from Toronto's Scotiabank Arena, and it will be third string goaltender Joseph Woll once again between the pipes for the host Leafs. It was his 24 saves Wednesday in his first career playoff start that propelled Toronto to victory, and he even set a bit of team history in the process, becoming the 1st goalie in team history to win 10 of his first 12 starts (dating back to the regular season). 

And needless to say, Woll's teammates are impressed with what he's brought to their team as he's briefly taken over from starter Ilya Samsonov. 

"First and foremost he's a really good guy and his work ethic, he works extremely hard, he's looked good all year, regular season and obviously stepped up big [on Wednesday]. Everybody's happy for him, got his first playoff win," explained Timothy Liljegren.

Additionally, 2019 Conn Smythe Trophy winner Ryan O'Reilly, who knows a thing or two about clutch postseason performances, spoke about Woll's poise in net. 

"Just watching him, the way he warms up and stuff, how even keel he is, confident but calm in there at all times, it's so impressive to come in for that pressure of a game and do what he did," O'Reilly said. "It's an amazing thing." 

Woll and the Leafs will once again attempt to keep their season alive tonight starting at 7:00 PM EST.