Nylander scores OT winner for Maple Leafs
TORONTO – William Nylander scored on the facility play at 3:43 of extra time because the Toronto Maple Leafs defeated the Tampa Bay Lightning 2-1 on Thursday night time to choose up their fourth straight win.
John Tavares had the opposite objective for Toronto (6-4-1), which obtained 24 stops from Jack Campbell. Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner had two assists every.
Patrick Maroon replied for Tampa Bay (5-3-2). Andrei Vasilevskiy made 32 saves because the Lightning noticed their three-game profitable streak snapped.
Tavares tied the sport off a setup from Marner and Matthews with 41.1 seconds left in regulation with Campbell on the bench for an additional attacker after Vasilevskiy had annoyed the house facet all night time.
Tavares was slashed on a breakaway by Lightning captain Victor Hedman within the additional interval, and Nylander blasted his team-leading fifth objective of the season on a one-timer to safe the win.
The Leafs and Lightning final performed March 10, 2020 — a 2-1 Toronto victory at Scotiabank Area over its Atlantic Division rival — earlier than the COVID-19 pandemic shuttered a lot of the sports activities world two days later.
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Tampa, nevertheless, performed 15 video games contained in the Toronto bubble as a part of the league’s summer time restart, together with a five-overtime victory over the Columbus Blue Jackets in Recreation 1 of the groups’ first-round playoff sequence.
The Lightning would go onto win the Stanley Cup in Edmonton towards the Dallas Stars earlier than repeating in July towards the Montreal Canadiens.
After the Lightning hit two posts inside the sport’s first 4 minutes, Tampa jumped in entrance at 13:16 of the opening interval.
The Leafs tried to work a set play following offensive zone faceoff, however the guests raced the opposite means on an odd-man rush, with Corey Perry feathering a cross to Maroon for the massive winger to bury his first of the season shortside on Campbell.
Toronto didn’t have a lot vitality till late within the interval when Hedman hooked Marner earlier than blue-line accomplice Mikhail Sergachev instantly adopted with an unlawful test to the pinnacle on the Leafs winger.
The following 5-on-3 energy play for 2 minutes might have been a second to raise a crowd in search of one thing to get enthusiastic about heading into the intermission, however was misplaced because of a disjointed sequence that noticed Toronto fail to actually threaten Vasilevskiy.
Campbell made a pleasant cease on Brayden Level early within the second earlier than Vasilevskiy denied Matthews and Wayne Simmonds on good possibilities in tight.
Simmonds had one other nice alternative with beneath a minute to go within the interval when he was sprung on the breakaway, however the Tampa goaltender denied his transfer to the backhand.
Vasilevskiy flashed the leather-based on Toronto defenceman Rasmus Sandin seven minutes into the third earlier than William Nylander additionally examined him glove facet.
Campbell stored his crew in it with an excellent cease on a Level break later within the interval, and Travis Dermott blocked Mathieu Joseph on the rebound earlier than Tavares tied it late.
Notes: Leafs defenceman Justin Holl was a wholesome scratch for the third straight sport. … Toronto continues its five-game homestand Saturday towards the Boston Bruins. … Tampa visits the Ottawa Senators within the nation’s capital Saturday afternoon.
This report by The Canadian Press was first printed Nov. 4, 2021.
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