Maple Leafs vs. Panthers Wednesday NHL playoffs Game 4 odds: Joseph Woll tries to save Toronto's season as Florida eyes first-ever sweep

The first ticket can be punched to the NHL's Conference Finals on Wednesday night when the Florida Panthers look to complete an unlikely four-game sweep in the Eastern Conference semifinals against the Toronto Maple Leafs, who because of injury will go with third-string goaltender Joseph Woll in net for Game 4. Rather surprisingly, the Leafs are -120 road favorites at Caesars Sportsbook – but they have been favored in every game.

Leafs No. 1 netminder Ilya Samsonov left Sunday's 3-2 overtime loss against Florida early in the second period following a collision with teammate Luke Schenn. The Russian goalie had stopped all eight shots he had faced at that point and was replaced by Woll, who stopped 18 of 21 shots in relief. The Leafs aren't saying what Samsonov is dealing with – hockey teams never say – only that he's simply out for Game 4.

Wednesday will be Woll's first career playoff start and third appearance. He also saw action in relief of a struggling Samsonov in Game 1 of the last round vs. Tampa Bay and stopped four of five shots in the loss. During the regular season, the 24-year-old Woll was 6-1-0 with a 2.16 GAA and .932 SV. Those latter two numbers are better than what Samsonov or usual No. 2 Matt Murray had. Murray hasn't played since April 2 due to injury but should serve as the backup Wednesday.

Frankly, it won't matter who is in net if the Leafs can't score more than two goals, which they have yet to do in a game this series. The team's "Core Four" of Auston Matthews, John Tavares, Mitchell Marner and William Nylander – who combine to make around $40 million this year -- has just four points in the series and no goals. During the season, the four averaged 4.4 points per game.

Toronto hasn't won the Cup since 1967, the longest drought in the league -- which seems likely to continue. Don't be surprised if there are major changes if the Leafs are swept, starting with coach Sheldon Keefe. For what it's worth, the 1942 Maple Leafs were the first team in NHL history to win a playoff series after trailing 3-0 when they beat Detroit in seven in the Stanley Cup Final. It has been done a few times since (not by Toronto or in the Final), most recently in 2014 when L.A. beat San Jose.

The Panthers have never swept a team and this is the first time they've been up 3-0 lead when the series started on the road. Their only other 3-0 lead was in the 1996 first round vs. Boston, which Florida won in five. That team reached the Stanley Cup Final but was swept by Colorado.  Florida can become the fourth team in the NHL's expansion era (since 1967-68) to complete a sweep at any point of a postseason after entering as the lowest-seeded team.

Florida has four comeback wins this postseason, two of which have come in this series, and has won six straight overall. That's the fourth-longest playoff winning streak in the past decade of any club. Sergei Bobrovsky's six-game winning streak is the longest for a goaltender since Colorado's Pavel Francouz also had six last year. Alex Lyon, not Bobrovsky, opened the playoffs as the Panthers' starter in net.

The Panthers had been +350 favorites Caesars Sportsbook to win their first Stanley Cup, but are now +380 and behind Carolina (+300) after the Hurricanes won at the Devils on Tuesday to take a 3-1 lead in that series. Florida won't have home-ice advantage in the Eastern Conference Finals against either Carolina or New Jersey, but the Panthers didn't have it in Round 1 vs. record-setting Boston (Florida trailed 3-1) or in this round, either. 

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