Leafs Take Care of Business in Ottawa, Senators Left Licking Wounds

The Maple Leafs rolled into the Canadian Tire Centre and did exactly what a playoff-hungry squad should do against a rebuilding rival, dispatching the Senators 4-2 in a game that was more controlled than the final score suggests. Toronto jumped out to an early lead and never truly looked threatened, even when Ottawa managed to scrape together a pair of consolation tallies late to make things momentarily interesting.

This was textbook road hockey from the Leafs—get the lead, suffocate the neutral zone, and let your superior depth do the talking. The Senators showed flashes of that young, scrappy energy we've seen all season, but flashes don't win hockey games against teams built for April and May. Toronto's defensive structure was airtight when it mattered, and their goaltender faced minimal high-danger chances through two periods of play.

The Battle of Ontario continues to be decidedly one-sided this season, and Wednesday night was just another reminder that these two franchises are operating in completely different stratospheres right now. Ottawa's rebuild has promise, sure, but the Leafs are in win-now mode, and nights like this are supposed to be layups. Mission accomplished. Two points, minimal drama, next.