The Maple Leafs held a media availability at their hotel in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. on Saturday. The Panthers held an optional practice at the Baptist Health Iceplex.

Leafs centre Auston Matthews is still looking for his first goal of the second round.

"I'm not too worried about him," said linemate Matthew Knies. "I think he's doing the right things. He's getting looks."

On the first shift of Friday's game, Matthews deflected a shot off the crossbar, which Knies then deposited into an empty net. Matthews also assisted on a goal by defenceman Morgan Rielly in the third period. He has three assists in the three games so far against Florida.

"He's getting chances, so it's bound to fall for him," Knies added.

Entering Saturday's slate of games, Matthews ranked second in playoff shots (32). He's also leading the league in shots that missed the net (20).

"Obviously, he's a great scorer," said coach Craig Berube. "We all know that. I'm not too worried about it. I mean, it is what it is. Like, yeah, he needs to hit the net. He's trying to hit the net. He's not trying to miss the net. He's trying to hit the net. So, you know, I'm not going to elaborate on that too much."

Matthews scored twice in the first round series against the Ottawa, including a power-play goal in the clinching game.

Even though the goals haven't fallen for him as frequently as usual, Matthews continues to make a positive impact. Entering Saturday, he was third in blocked shots among all forwards in the playoffs. He made a diving clearance during a penalty kill late in Game 3. Matthews is also winning 57 per cent of his faceoffs.

"He's playing all over the ice extremely well," said winger Max Pacioretty. "And, as a teammate, that's what you notice, first and foremost. So, it'll come ... For us in that room, it's not about looking at the stat sheet and the goal column. It's what you do all over the ice and doing the little things to help the team win. And eventually all those numbers seem to sort itself out."

The Leafs are outscoring the Panthers 6-3 with Matthews on the ice so far in the series (5-2 in 5-on-5 play).

The Panthers certainly don't think they've done anything special to contain the three-time Rocket Richard Trophy winner.

"He’s always creating whether or not he’s on the scoreboard," said defenceman Aaron Ekblad. "We see that and it’s a tough job for sure."

"He’s got the puck on his stick, I’m not feeling very good about it behind the bench," said coach Paul Maurice. "It doesn’t go, I feel a lot better about it. It’s the opposite emotions with Sam Reinhart. He cracked that bar last night on the power play. They’re playing the same game. It’s inevitable for both players. They’re both going to score."

Reinhart, who led the Panthers with 39 goals in the regular season, scored his first goal of the series in Game 3.

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The Matthews........

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