Maple Leafs' Auston Matthews, Craig Berube makes their feelings known after abysmal Game 5 loss pushes them towards elimination

Toronto Maple Leafs coach Craig Berube and captain Auston Matthews shared their thoughts following Wednesday's disappointing 6-1 blowout loss to the Florida Panthers in Game 5.

Despite the Scotiabank Arena rallying loudly behind their team, the Maple Leafs delivered an underwhelming performance, particularly from their star players, in a crucial game. Frustrated by the lackluster effort, fans expressed their disappointment by throwing an Auston Matthews jersey onto the ice.

Reflecting on the poor performance, coach Berube noted that the Panthers didn't play with more intensity than in previous games, but rather the Leafs allowed them to dominate by standing idle and failing to engage.

He expressed confidence in the team's ability to rebound, as they have done before:

"I don’t think they came any harder than they have, to be honest with you. I think we let them come tonight," said Berube. "We stood around and watched. You can’t do that. We have responded in the past. I expect a response from our team. But it is more about a mindset going into this Game 6. It is not Xs and Os."

The Toronto Maple Leafs started the series strongly, winning the first two games against the Florida Panthers. However, they have since lost three consecutive games. Matthews expressed confidence in the team's resilience, emphasizing that everyone, including himself, must reflect on their performance and step up.

"Everybody's got to look in the mirror, myself included," Matthews said. "Everybody wants to be better. Everybody wants to obviously win. We've been a great road team all season long. There's always going to be a belief in this group. ... it's got to be our best game of the year."

The Toronto Maple Leafs will aim to rebound in Game 6 on the road against the Florida Panthers, with their star players needing to elevate their performance to avoid yet another playoff failure. Game 6 takes place on Friday.

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Auston Matthews yet to score against the Panthers in ongoing series

Auston Matthews has posted a -7 plus/minus rating in Games 5 through 7 at home across his playoff career. He's yet to score against the Florida Panthers in their current second-round Eastern Conference series.

The Leafs captain has been pointless in the last two games. He has recorded three assists in the series, contributing to his total of 10 points (two goals and eight assists) in 11 playoff games this postseason.