For the second straight game, the Lightning delivered a subpar defensive performance. This game also featured a rare subpar outing from Andrei Vasilevskiy. As a result, the Maple Leafs broke open a 1-1 game with three goals in the first half of the second period. They added a fourth second-period goal later in the frame and led comfortably for the rest of the night.
The Leafs charged out of the gates in the opening minutes and applied heavy pressure. They netted the game’s first goal at 3:57 when William Nylander finished an open look from the slot. But as the period progressed, the Lightning pushed back and leveled the ice. On the shift after killing a penalty, they evened the score. Victor Hedman fed Nick Paul with a breakaway pass. Anthony Stolarz stopped Paul’s shot, but defenseman Simon Benoit fell to the ice and knocked the puck into the net at 15:57. The Lightning carried play for the remainder of the period but couldn’t grab the lead.
Toronto received its second power-play chance early in the second and converted. After a Lightning clear, Stolarz fed the puck up ice as the Lightning attempted to complete a line change. The Leafs took advantage of the rush chance — Mitch Marner had a Grade-A look from the right circle. Vasilevskiy stopped the shot but didn’t control the puck. It dropped to his skates, where Auston Matthews swatted it in at 1:56. The Leafs grabbed momentum over the next several minutes, and the Lightning didn’t handle the Toronto surge well. A Tampa Bay neutral zone turnover led to a two-on-one chance for Nylander and Max Domi. Nylander wristed a shot in between Vasilevskiy’s pads at 7:33. Less than two minutes later, Max Pacioretty wristed one from just inside the offensive blue line that beat Vasilevskiy high on the stick side. It’s not often that Vasilevskiy gets pulled from a game, but it happened after the Pacioretty goal. Jonas Johansson’s first shot faced was a Matthew Knies breakaway (that occurred after Conor Geekie and J.J. Moser collided at center ice). Knies finished his chance at 14:02, extending the Toronto lead to 5-1.
The Lightning had some good looks in the second period on Stolarz but were unable to score. They received a full two-minute five-on-three on which they registered six shots on net. Stolarz made 16 saves in the frame.
Brayden Point’s third-period power-play goal at 14:53 cut the deficit to 5-2, but the Lightning would get no closer.
The Lightning wrap up the back-to-back game on Tuesday in New Jersey.
Lightning Radio Three Stars of the Game:
- William Nylander — Maple Leafs. Two goals and assist.
- Anthony Stolarz — Maple Leafs. 32 saves.
- Max Domi — Maple Leafs. Assist.
