Toronto Maple Leafs thump Lightning in Game 1

TORONTO – Auston Matthews scored twice as a part of a three-point night time and Jack Campbell made 23 saves to register the second playoff shutout of his profession because the Toronto Maple Leafs defeated the Tampa Bay Lightning 5-0 in Recreation 1 of their first-round collection Monday.

Mitch Marner snapped a protracted post-season aim drought to go together with two assists, whereas Jake Muzzin and David Kampf, on a short-handed breakaway, additionally scored for Toronto, which killed off 5 Lightning energy performs – together with an early five-minute main – inside an electrical Scotiabank Area.

Andrei Vasilevskiy stopped 29 photographs for the two-time defending Stanley Cup champions, who will look to rebound in Recreation 2 on Wednesday.

Groups that take the opener of a best-of-seven collection maintain an all-time document of 499-228 (. 686), together with a 9-6 mark final season.

Toronto head coach Sheldon Keefe predicted a “borderline violent” collection, and that is precisely what occurred seven minutes into the primary interval when Leafs winger Kyle Clifford pasted Tampa’s Ross Colton from behind into the boards to earn a five-minute main and a sport misconduct.

Having already killed off one minor penalty, Toronto had the higher probabilities down a person with Clifford taking an early bathe, together with an Alexander Kerfoot shot off the publish on a 2-on-1.

The Leafs could not join on two subsequent energy performs, however pushed forward with 1:41 left within the interval when Muzzin’s level shot by a display screen beat Vasilevskiy to just about blow the roof off Scotiabank Area.

William Nylander nearly made it 2-0 late within the interval on a breakaway after blocking a shot, however could not remedy Vasilevskiy by the five-hole.

The Leafs referred to as a timeout forward of a 5-on-3 energy play in second after which took simply 11 seconds to attach with 5 forwards on the ice when Marner fed Matthews for the 60-goal man to blast a one-timer shortside on Vasilevskiy.

The rabid crowd responded with chants of “M-V-P! M-V-P!” for Matthews, who received his second straight Maurice (Rocket) Richard Trophy.

Tampa received its fourth man benefit later within the interval, however Kampf beat Victor Hedman to a free puck as Toronto as soon as once more confirmed its superior velocity earlier than beating Vasilevskiy to make it 3-0 at 9:27.

Campbell needed to be sharp on the different finish on one other Lightning energy play when he made a pleasant blocker cease on Brayden Level off a Nikita Kucherov feed. Steven Stamkos then heeled a one-timer with the Toronto goaltender at his mercy, which prompted jeers for the Tampa captain and Markham, Ont., native.

The Leafs put issues to mattress at 16:39 when Marner snapped his lengthy playoff aim drought. The winger took a slick move from Morgan Rielly off the push and outwaited Vasilevskiy to attain within the post-season for the primary time since April 11, 2019 – a stretch of 18 video games.

The house facet saved its foot on the gasoline to start out the third to maintain the battle-tested champs on their heels, with Matthews making it 5-0 when Vasilevskiy misplayed the puck behind his web to offer the sport’s finest goal-scorer his second at 8:16.

The sport took one other violent flip halfway by the interval with a number of fights on one shift. Rielly reduce Lightning defenceman Jan Rutta in a single skirmish, whereas Tampa’s Pat Maroon and Corey Perry, and Toronto’s Wayne Simmonds and Ilya Lyubushkin had been additionally despatched to the locker rooms with misconducts.

The Leafs, who’ve misplaced seven straight post-season collection and have not superior to the second spherical since 2004, suffered a crushing seven-game loss final spring when the Montreal Canadiens stormed again from a 3-1 deficit to down Toronto, kick-starting a run that will finish with a loss to the Tampa within the last.

The Lightning, in the meantime, have received eight straight collection since a shocking sweep by the hands of the Columbus Blue Jackets in 2019 following a 128-point marketing campaign and the franchise’s first Presidents’ Trophy.

The Leafs, who hit the ice for Recreation 1 on the 55-year anniversary of the franchise’s final Stanley Cup, had winger Ondrej Kase within the lineup after he missed the final 20 regular-season video games with a concussion. Prime-line winger Michael Bunting sat out a fourth straight contest with an undisclosed damage.

Notes: Toronto ahead Jason Spezza was a wholesome scratch for Toronto. … Blue-liner Zach Bogosian sat out for the Lightning. … Video games 3 and 4 go Friday and Sunday in Tampa.

This report by The Canadian Press was first revealed Might 2, 2022.