Reaves taunts Tkachuk, then wants to show off his body on post-game

The Toronto Maple Leafs managed to hold on to a lead and nurse it to victory this evening in a potential playoff preview match against the Florida Panthers. 

Leafs head coach Sheldon Keefe elected to dress Reaves for the divisional matchup this evening and, if results are what matter, it was a smart decision. Reaves was a factor physically and clearly got under the skin of Panthers superstar Matthew Tkachuk.

Check out this exchange between the two:

While the Panthers made things closer than the Leafs would have liked with three consecutive goals, it was the Leafs who got the last laugh in earning a 6-4 victory.

After the game, Reaves was all smiles in an interview with Sportsnet's Shawn McKenzie. Reaves joked that he should be allowed to conduct his interviews shirtless in an effort to "start catching the NFL and NBA."

Check it out:

Reavo is in peak post-season agitation mode.

Read below for our earlier published report on the Leafs and their signing of 22 year old NCAA star Jacob Quillan.

This just in, the Toronto Maple Leafs have signed 22 year old forward Jacob Quillan from the NCAA's Quinnipiac Bobcats.

Check it out:

The Dartmouth, Nova Scotia native was recently named as the NCAA's playoff MVP following a national championship last season.

More from the Leafs' official press release announcement:

The Toronto Maple Leafs announced today that the hockey club has signed forward Jacob Quillan to a two-year entry-level contract with an Average Annual Value of $875,000 beginning in 2024-25.

Quillan, 22, skated in 39 games for Quinnipiac University this season, registering 46 points (17 goals, 29 assists) and was the recipient of the ECAC Gladiator Best Defensive Forward Award. In 116 NCAA games, the 6’0, 201-pound centre recorded 93 points (38 goals, 55 assists). Last season, the Dartmouth, NS native scored the overtime winning goal to secure the 2023 NCAA Championship for Quinnipiac and was awarded the Frozen Four Most Outstanding Player Award.

Read below for our earlier report on the Leafs, published this morning.

Don't look now but the Toronto Maple Leafs now officially have fewer than 10 games to sort themselves out before the Stanley Cup Playoffs. 

For head coach Sheldon Keefe, he'll be spending the next 9 games zeroing in on his roster and making some difficult decisions. Perhaps the biggest decision Keefe makes though is who gets the start in goal? Does Keefe go with Ilya Samsonov, Joseph Woll or perhaps even Matt Murray for the post-season?

Putting all of the health issues aside with Murray, it seems unlikely that he'll be back in the fold, right? Even if he's medically cleared to return to action, I can't see the Leafs wanting to throw him to the wolves in a first round playoff match. So... let's just assume that Keefe is looking at either Samsov or Woll for the job.

More from Leafs insider Nick Kypreos of Sportsnet and The Toronto Sun:

With 11 games left in the regular season, the question of who starts in net for Game 1 of the playoffs remains very much open-ended. And that’s a problem.

Part of that comes down to health and reliability. While Woll missed 85 days with a high-ankle sprain this season, Samsonov has shown signs of wear and tear of late.

It’s one thing to play well. It’s another to believe in a goaltender’s durability and reliability when the games really count. A big part of becoming a playoff hero is not disappearing when the team needs you most. That may be harsh when a player can’t control injuries, but a team doesn’t care if you can’t be counted on — they will simply move on to the next in line.

- Nick Kypreos

I've got to say... this might be the first time in my life I've agreed with Nick Kypreos.

He's bang on in his assessment of the situation, he stops just short of calling out Samsonov and/or Woll, however. To me, it's up to one of these goaltenders to grab the bull by the horns over the next two weeks.

Today though, Keefe made a very clear statement by naming Samsonov the starter for tonight's potential playoff preview against the Florida Panthers.

Check it out:

To me, it looks like Keefe has chosen his man. Now it's up to Samsonov to simply keep the job.