Leafs HC Craig Berube is all praise for captain Auston Matthews after clinching series against Senators

Auston Matthews and the Toronto Maple Leafs advanced to the second round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs with a 4-2 win over the Ottawa Senators in Game 6 on Thursday. With 5:39 left in the third period, Max Pacioretty scored the go-ahead goal. His wrist shot from above the left faceoff circle beat Ottawa’s goalie, Linus Ullmark.

Leafs coach Craig Berube praised his team’s effort, especially the leadership of captain Matthews.

"Work ethic and competitiveness for the whole game," Matthews said (via mapleleafshotstove.com). "It was high-end. I don’t know what his faceoff percentage is right now, but it is high. I didn’t see him lose too many draws. It starts there.

"He was just heavy, physical, and worked. He was competing. He touched all areas of the game for us tonight in a good way — PK, and he scored a big goal on the power play. As I said, he led the way," Matthews added.

Matthews also performed well in the faceoff circle, winning 72.7% of his draws. His power-play goal in the first period gave Toronto a 1-0 lead, which was crucial for the team.

Pacioretty’s goal was important, especially considering his return to the lineup after missing 27 regular-season games due to injury. After making his comeback in Game 3, Pacioretty had an immediate impact in Game 6.

The Senators fought hard. Brady Tkachuk and David Perron scored for Ottawa. Perron’s goal tied the game 2-2 in the third period. But the Leafs pulled ahead with Pacioretty’s clutch goal, and Nylander sealed the win with an empty-net goal.

Auston Matthews talked about team confidence after Leafs’ game 6 win against Senators

Auston Matthews was focused on his team's confidence after the Leafs beat the Senators 4-2 in Game 6. He said external factors didn’t matter, only the belief within the team.

“I thought we had great energy this morning, just the confidence in ourselves,” Matthews said (via NHL.com). “You know, like I kind of talked about, nothing else really matters; all the outside stuff doesn’t really matter. "

Matthews added that it was important to compete with one another.

"It’s about the 20, 25 guys that are in our room and the belief in one another, doing it for one another and just going out there and competing. This one feels good,” Matthews said.

Matthews and the Leafs will now face the Florida Panthers in the second round.