The 33-year-old defenseman knows the culture in the Lightning locker room all too well, having been there in 2020 and 2021 when the team won the Stanley Cup.

“It’s a group that oozes confidence and knows they can beat anyone. And the players have proven that in the past,” explained Schön.

“There was never a game or series that they felt like they were going to lose. It comes with experience. They have a core of guys like Steven Stamko, Victor Hedman, Nikita Kutscherow, Andrei Vasilyevsky, Brayden point, Alex Killorn and all the others. Whenever success fell short, they found a way to turn the tide towards success.

“They’ve worked hard on their gameplay, but a lot of their success comes from what’s going on between the two ears. »

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It’s also one of the elements that will be the focus of discussions for this series, which begins Tuesday (7:30 p.m. ET; ESPN, CBC, SNE, SNO, SNP, TVAS, BSSUN) at the Scotiabank Arena.

On the one hand, there’s the Lightning, that veteran beast in the playoffs, as evidenced by their three Stanley Cup Final appearances in the last three years.

And on the other, there’s the beast with the fragile playoff confidence that is the Maple Leafs. Since 2018, the Torontonians have gone 0-9 whenever they have a chance to end a series, including four losses in Game 7. They also lost the fifth and final game of the qualifying series to the Columbus Blue Jackets in 2020.

Toronto is hoping for the addition of players like Schenn and Forward Ryan O’Reillywho won the 2019 trophy with the St. Louis Blues will help the Maple Leafs finally win their first series since 2004.

Aside from being a sandpaper-to-the-blue-line player, Schenn will act as a sort of scout to prepare his teammates to face the Lightning, who defeated the Maple Leafs in the seven-game first elimination round last year have eliminated. His experience could be invaluable.

So he was asked what would end up in his scouting report from his former team.

“There is of course Vasilevskiy, one of the best goalkeepers in the world,” said Schenn. They also have one of the best defenders in Hedman and great attack power with Stamkos, Kucherov and Point. And there are also players who do their role really well. Killorn has been around for a long time, and (Brandon) Hagel does a good job, as does (Anthony) Cirelli and others.

“You have so much depth. You have no weakness. And this is a group that knows what matters. »

Especially with a Jon Cooper behind the bench, a coach who always seems to find the right buttons to get his players producing.

“He always says the right thing at the right time,” said Schenn. He’s not a loudmouth, and he’s very good with words. He’s a motivator and makes good adjustments, whether in the series or at a specific point in the game. He has good instincts and understands the atmosphere in the dressing room well. »

“His successes are no coincidence. Since he knows a whole vein. And pretty much everything he says is thought out. »

After winning his second trophy with Tampa Bay, Schenn signed as a free agent with the Vancouver Canucks, where he played the last two seasons before being traded to the Maple Leafs on February 28, 2023 for a third-round pick. In 15 regular-season games with Toronto, he scored one goal and accumulated 13 penalty minutes.

One of those games was against the Lightning, a 4-3 win over the Maple Leafs on April 11th. And at the end of the first third of that encounter, Schenn threw the gloves at the striker Pat Maroon.

“Once the puck drops, there are only opponents, no friends,” he said.

Schenn was selected by Toronto with the fifth pick of the 2008 draft and scored 191 points in 933 regular season games with the Maple Leafs, Philadelphia Flyers, Los Angeles Kings, Arizona Coyotes, Anaheim Ducks, Canucks and Lightning . He also had six points in 31 playoff games.

After his first four seasons in the NHL, Schenn was traded from the Maple Leafs to the Flyers as a forward James van RiemsdykJune 23, 2012. He said his 11-year absence from Toronto helped him understand what it’s like to be a player in such a hockey-mad city, especially now that he has the opportunity to find out what it means to be in Toronto to play playoffs in Queen City.

“Somehow it’s probably good that this transaction [avec les Flyers] happens because I appreciate even more what it stands for. You know I was young and a little naive when I came to the league and I understand that means a lot more now.

“I don’t take anything for granted in this league and when I look back at everything that’s happened in my career it seems like everything has a reason. There are times when it’s been really tough, but you roll up your sleeves and get through without knowing exactly how to get there.

“Everything happens for a reason and I’m really grateful to be here now. »