Paul Maurice says Game 7s represent 'freedom.' It awaits the Panthers and Leafs on Sunday night

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) — Before every series, Florida coach Paul Maurice talks to his team about what it needs to do along the way to get ready for Game 7.

The reason: If a series goes the distance — like this NHL second-round matchup with the Toronto Maple Leafs has — he doesn’t want his club to be surprised.

“You want to win in four. You do, 100%,” Maurice said Saturday. “But the Game 7s, you’ll remember. Those are the ones. There’s not a lot of them. The further into the playoffs, the more intense they are. But there’s a freedom in Game 7 that’s not anywhere else.”

Welcome to freedom. Game 7 awaits.

A spot in the NHL’s final four is at stake Sunday night in Toronto, when the Panthers and Maple Leafs play the deciding game of their Eastern Conference semifinal series. The winner will face Carolina in the East final starting Tuesday; the loser goes into the offseason.

“It’s an opportunity to make a name for ourselves again,” Panthers forward Matthew Tkachuk said. “We enjoy these games and we enjoy these moments.”

And why wouldn’t they? The last time the Panthers played a Game 7, NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman handed Florida captain Aleksander Barkov the Stanley Cup. There’s no Cup at stake on Sunday, just a chance to move one round closer to winning hockey’s greatest prize.

“When I was growing up and all the people that I knew growing up, they always dreamed about a Game 7,” Toronto coach Craig Berube said. “They’re big games obviously, and a lot on the line. I mean, everything’s on the line.”

Florida is trying to get to the conference finals for a third consecutive season. Toronto is trying to get there for the first time since 2002.

For the Panthers, Sunday represents a chance to continue defense of the title. For the Leafs, it’s a chance to avoid heading into another summer with the “same old Leafs” tag that has dogged the franchise in plenty of playoff flameouts over the years.

“Yes, we feel the pressure, obviously,” Florida defenseman Aaron Ekblad said. “But the motivation, the pride that you have coming to the rink … it’s second to none. It’s a full body tingling experience when you get off the ice for the first time.”

The back-and-forth of this series and similarities within the matchup are truly something to behold:

— The Maple Leafs won Games 1 and 2 at home. The Panthers won Games 3 and 4 at home.

— Florida went on the road to win Game 5. Toronto went on the road to win Game 6.

— Florida’s Sergei Bobrovsky had a 2-0 shutout win to tie the series at 2-2. Toronto’s Joseph Woll had a 2-0 shutout win to tie the series at 3-3.

— Florida’s leading scorer in the series is Sam Bennett with three goals. Toronto’s leading scorer in the series is William Nylander with three goals.

— Bobrovsky’s save percentage so far: .895. Woll’s save percentage so far: .893.

“The job's only going to get harder,” Toronto forward Mitch Marner said.

Woll was on the Toronto bench to start its first-round series against Boston last year, then went 2-1 in Games 4-6 to help the Leafs get into Game 7. But he got hurt in that Game 6 win, couldn’t go in Game 7 and the Bruins wound up beating Toronto and Ilya Samsonov 2-1 in overtime.

“It sucked not being able to play last year, for sure,” Woll said. “And I think this is just a pretty special opportunity for our team.”

When/Where to Watch: Game 7, Sunday, 7:30 p.m. EDT (TNT/truTV/Max)

Series: Tied, 3-3.

A breakdown of key Game 7 stats and notes:

— All-time record: Florida 3-1 (2-0 road), Toronto 12-15 (7-3 home)

— The Marchand effect: Florida’s Brad Marchand has played in 12 Game 7s, his Boston teams going 7-5 in those games and 4-0 against Toronto.

— The Leafs drought: Toronto hasn’t won a Game 7 since 2004. The Leafs are 0-6 in ultimate games since then, the worst record in the league over that span. Mitch Marner, Auston Matthews and William Nylander have played in five previous Game 7s together and never won.

— The coaches: Maurice is 5-0 in Game 7s. Berube is 2-1. Both have one Stanley Cup, and both had to win a Game 7 in the title series to get those championships (Berube with St. Louis in 2019, Maurice with Florida last year).

— This year: It's the third Game 7 of this year's playoffs. Winnipeg beat St. Louis and Dallas beat Colorado in Round 1.

AP NHL playoffs: https://apnews.com/hub/stanley-cup and https://apnews.com/hub/nhl

Toronto Maple Leafs goaltender Joseph Woll (60) is congratulated by his teammates after winning Game 6 of a second-round NHL hockey playoff series against the Florida Panthers, Friday, May 16, 2025, in Sunrise, Fla. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)

Toronto Maple Leafs center John Tavares, center, falls to the ice as goaltender Joseph Woll (60) defends the goal against Florida Panthers center Sam Bennett (9) during the third period in Game 6 of a second-round NHL hockey playoff series, Friday, May 16, 2025, in Sunrise, Fla. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)

Toronto Maple Leafs head coach Craig Berube, rear, talks with left wing Matthew Knies (23) during the third period in Game 6 of a second-round NHL hockey playoff series against the Florida Panthers, Friday, May 16, 2025, in Sunrise, Fla. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)

Florida Panthers head coach Paul Maurice, center, rear, talks with players during the third period in Game 6 of a second-round NHL hockey playoff series against the Toronto Maple Leafs, Friday, May 16, 2025, in Sunrise, Fla. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — U.S. President Donald Trump said Iran wants to negotiate with Washington after his threat to strike the Islamic Republic over its bloody crackdown on protesters, a move coming as activists said Monday the death toll in the nationwide demonstrations rose to at least 544.

Iran had no immediate reaction to the news, which came after the foreign minister of Oman — long an interlocutor between Washington and Tehran — traveled to Iran this weekend. It also remains unclear just what Iran could promise, particularly as Trump has set strict demands over its nuclear program and its ballistic missile arsenal, which Tehran insists is crucial for its national defense.

Meanwhile Monday, Iran called for pro-government demonstrators to head to the streets in support of the theocracy, a show of force after days of protests directly challenging the rule of 86-year-old Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Iranian state television aired chants from the crowd, who shouted “Death to America!” and “Death to Israel!”

Trump and his national security team have been weighing a range of potential responses against Iran including cyberattacks and direct strikes by the U.S. or Israel, according to two people familiar with internal White House discussions who were not authorized to comment publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity.

“The military is looking at it, and we’re looking at some very strong options,” Trump told reporters on Air Force One on Sunday night. Asked about Iran’s threats of retaliation, he said: “If they do that, we will hit them at levels that they’ve never been hit before.”

Trump said that his administration was in talks to set up a meeting with Tehran, but cautioned that he may have to act first as reports of the death toll in Iran mount and the government continues to arrest protesters.

“I think they’re tired of being beat up by the United States,” Trump said. “Iran wants to negotiate.”

He added: “The meeting is being set up, but we may have to act because of what’s happening before the meeting. But a meeting is being set up. Iran called, they want to negotiate.”

Iran through country's parliamentary speaker warned Sunday that the U.S. military and Israel would be “legitimate targets” if America uses force to protect demonstrators.

More than 10,600 people also have been detained over the two weeks of protests, said the U.S.-based Human Rights Activists News Agency, which has been accurate in previous unrest in recent years and gave the death toll. It relies on supporters in Iran crosschecking information. It said 496 of the dead were protesters and 48 were with security forces.

With the internet down in Iran and phone lines cut off, gauging the demonstrations from abroad has grown more difficult. The Associated Press has been unable to independently assess the toll. Iran’s government has not offered overall casualty figures.

Those abroad fear the information blackout is emboldening hard-liners within Iran’s security services to launch a bloody crackdown. Protesters flooded the streets in the country’s capital and its second-largest city on Saturday night into Sunday morning. Online videos purported to show more demonstrations Sunday night into Monday, with a Tehran official acknowledging them in state media.

In Tehran, a witness told the AP that the streets of the capital empty at the sunset call to prayers each night. By the Isha, or nighttime prayer, the streets are deserted.

Part of that stems from the fear of getting caught in the crackdown. Police sent the public a text message that warned: “Given the presence of terrorist groups and armed individuals in some gatherings last night and their plans to cause death, and the firm decision to not tolerate any appeasement and to deal decisively with the rioters, families are strongly advised to take care of their youth and teenagers.”

Another text, which claimed to come from the intelligence arm of the paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, also directly warned people not to take part in demonstrations.

“Dear parents, in view of the enemy’s plan to increase the level of naked violence and the decision to kill people, ... refrain from being on the streets and gathering in places involved in violence, and inform your children about the consequences of cooperating with terrorist mercenaries, which is an example of treason against the country,” the text warned.

The witness spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity due to the ongoing crackdown.

The demonstrations began Dec. 28 over the collapse of the Iranian rial currency, which trades at over 1.4 million to $1, as the country’s economy is squeezed by international sanctions in part levied over its nuclear program. The protests intensified and grew into calls directly challenging Iran’s theocracy.

Nikhinson reported from aboard Air Force One.

In this frame grab from video obtained by the AP outside Iran, a masked demonstrator holds a picture of Iran's Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi during a protest in Tehran, Iran, Friday, January. 9, 2026. (UGC via AP)

In this frame grab from footage circulating on social media from Iran shows protesters taking to the streets despite an intensifying crackdown as the Islamic Republic remains cut off from the rest of the world in Tehran, Iran, Friday, Jan. 9, 2026.(UGC via AP)

In this frame grab from footage circulating on social media from Iran showed protesters once again taking to the streets of Tehran despite an intensifying crackdown as the Islamic Republic remains cut off from the rest of the world in Tehran, Iran, Saturday Jan. 10, 2026. (UGC via AP)