The Toronto Maple Leafs bounced back in a big way in the second game of the series against the Columbus Blue Jackets. Here are 3 takeaways from Game 2.
Game 1 was played with the style that fit perfectly for the Columbus Blue Jackets while Game 2 suited the Toronto Maple Leafs much better.
The Leafs dominated offensively and took the game by a score of 3-0. Here are three takeaways from the second game of the series.
1. Goalie duels continue
If it weren’t for Joonas Korpisalo‘s superhuman effort in net, the score would have been way more lopsided. He faced a barrage of shots from the Maple Leafs, stopping 36 of 38 through all kinds of traffic and tips. The two goals he allowed were a nasty tip-in from Auston Matthews and a breakaway shot from John Tavares who had a total of 8 shots this afternoon.
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Andersen had a strong game as well and finally got the goal support that he lacked from Game 1. With the Leafs spending prolonged periods of time in Columbus’ zone, it left Andersen having to make some huge saves after minutes of no action. He was perfect and stopped all 21 shots thrown his way. These two goaltenders are locked in a goalie duel and it will take some really good chances to get the puck past them.
2. Specialty teams continue to struggle
The two teams combined for 11 powerplays (6 for Toronto, 5 for Columbus) and no one had a power-play goal. For the Maple Leafs, they were getting their chances but were unable to get anything past Korpisalo as he turned away all 11 shots he faced on the power play. Columbus, on the other hand, barely got any chances and mustered just 3 shots on Andersen.
These two teams are in a locked in a very close fight at even strength and the team that is able to start producing on the man advantage will find the upper hand in this series.
3. Jake Muzzin went down with a scary injury
Late into the third period, the Maple Leafs were defending their lead on the penalty kill. Jake Muzzin got hit from behind and his head awkwardly hit the knee of Oliver Bjorkstrand. At first, it didn’t seem that bad but Muzzin was unable to get up and needed the help of a stretcher to get off the ice.
The good news is that he was able to move his fingers and legs which is a really promising sign. The bad news is the Maple Leafs could be missing one of their star defencemen in a series where defense is king. He was great in Game 2, laying out big hits, killing penalties, and playing a total of 17:06 of ice-time. This is a huge injury for Toronto and could swing the series favor Columbus’ way.
Game 2 is not something John Tortorella will be happy about. His team was a step slower and were unable to establish their strong forecheck. The Maple Leafs bounced back in a big way after a loss in Game 1 and I expect the Blue Jackets to respond huge in Game 3.