Maple Leafs defeat Lightning in OT in back-and-forth game

TORONTO -- Calle Jarnkrok scored his second goal 46 seconds into overtime for the Toronto Maple Leafs, who recovered for a 6-5 win against the Tampa Bay Lightning in a back-and-forth game at Scotiabank Arena on Monday.

Jarnkrok redirected in a pass from Morgan Rielly at the right post. William Nylander had the secondary assist on the play to extend his season-opening point streak to 12 games (six goals, 10 assists).

“It’s tough for [Auston Matthews] to have a hat trick every game, so I guess it’s good for us to get a couple in too,” Jarnkrok said.

“I didn’t think we played that bad in the first, they got two on the power play. Down 4-1 coming into the second, I think we had probably our best period of the season so far. We played good in the third. I thought we deserved to win in regulation, but we got it done in OT.”

Mitchell Marner had a goal and three assists, Matthews had two goals and an assist, and Matthew Knies had a goal and two assists for the Maple Leafs (6-4-2), who had lost four in a row (0-2-2).

Ilya Samsonov allowed four goals on 12 shots before being replaced in the first period by Joseph Woll, who made 18 saves. Samsonov was also pulled in Toronto's 4-3 overtime win against Tampa Bay on Oct. 21, when he allowed three goals on four shots.

"The result helps, of course,” Maple Leafs coach Sheldon Keefe said. “If we fell short here tonight, I'm leaving here feeling good. That second period to me was the best period I think we've played all season."

Nikita Kucherov had two goals and two assists, Victor Hedman had a goal and two assists, and Brayden Point and Brandon Hagel each had a goal and an assist for the Lightning (5-3-4), who have lost three of four (1-1-2). Jonas Johansson made 27 saves.

Knies gave Toronto a 1-0 lead at 3:42 of the first period when he knocked down a pass from Marner at the edge of the crease and scored glove side with a backhand.

Hedman scored 35 seconds later to tie it 1-1, beating Samsonov glove side from the left circle.

Kucherov put Tampa Bay ahead 2-1 at 6:11 with a one-timer from the top of the right circle off a pass from Hagel. He then scored on another one-timer from the right circle to make it 3-1 at 11:27, this one coming off a pass from Hedman on a power play.

Point extended the lead to 4-1 at 15:13 with his own power-play goal. He took a pass from Kucherov in the high slot and scored blocker side on Samsonov.

“I don’t think anyone was pouting in the intermission,” Knies said. “Everyone was just really excited to get back out there and prove people wrong and just do well, simplify and play to our strengths. Everyone chipped in today and everyone did a great job.”

Matthews made it 4-2 at 2:22 of the second period when his shot from the point deflected in off the stick of Lightning defenseman Calvin de Haan. He then cut it to 4-3 at 5:42, scoring five-hole from in front off a spinning backhand pass from Knies.

“After the first, the energy and boos (we received), rightfully so,” Matthews said. “I didn’t want [the crowd] to go to sleep quite yet.”

Jarnkrok tied it 4-4 at 1:55 of the third period, putting in the rebound of Nicholas Roberston’s shot.

Marner scored eight seconds later at 2:03 to put the Maple Leafs ahead 5-4, but Hagel tied it 5-5 at 17:34 when he knocked in the rebound of de Haan's shot, which had trickled behind Woll.

"Everyone's just got to want to go through the wall for the guy right next to you,” Lightning coach Jon Cooper said. “I think, at times, we know how to do it. We do do it at times. And then, at times, we just get comfortable. It's costing us a ton of points throughout the season already. Yeah, we got a point, but we can't be giving up a 4-1 lead, giving up six goals and having to tie it with under two minutes left. That just explains itself.

“The Leafs turned it up a notch and we sat back and watched them. That was pretty much it.”

NOTES: Marner, who also had a goal and three assists in a 6-4 loss to the Buffalo Sabres on Saturday, has 13 points (four goals, nine assists) during a seven-game point streak. It was also his 15th four-point NHL game, tying Frank Mahovlich for second in Maple Leafs history. Darryl Sittler is first with 26. ... Matthews has scored six goals in his past three games. ... Robertson, who was recalled from Toronto of the American Hockey League on Monday, finished with one assist in 11:34 of ice time in his season debut. ... Kucherov has nine points (three goals, six assists) in his past two games. ... Lightning forward Tyler Motte had three shots in 16:36 of ice time in his return after missing the previous 10 games with an upper body injury.