Game 2 between the Toronto Maple Leafs vs the Tampa Bay Lightning took an unusual turn Thursday night when the Leafs returned the favor on the scoreboard, winning the contest by a score of 7-2 against the Lightning.
This was Toronto’s game from the get-go. They never looked back in this contest despite Tampa scoring two goals on a brilliant performance by goaltender Ilya Samsonov who saved 19/21 shots on goal, with a save percentage of .905 in the game.
Andrei Vasilevskiy had his hands full against the Leafs’ potent offense that saw him let in seven goals in what was a lopsided affair once again, this time in the Toronto Maple Leafs’ favor.
The Tampa Bay Lightning became more agitated as the game progressed, taking undisciplined penalties, which eventually cost them Game 2.
The Toronto Maple Leafs offense led the way against the Tampa Bay Lightning.
Toronto’s Mitch Marner opened the scoring in the game on a powerplay, which brought the Scotiabank Arena to life. He scored a second goal later in the game to give them some insurance. He is becoming a notable stat leader in the series, now with six points in the post-season.
Tampa was on their heels all game as they had no answer for Toronto’s complete game that came with a resurgence after Game 1.
The captain of the Toronto Maple Leafs John Tavares recorded a hat-trick which has complimented his game all season long and gave the Leafs that push to win the contest with the help of three other core members.
Meanwhile, Morgan Reilly set a franchise record of four assists in a playoff game for the Leafs.
The main story of the night was the Toronto Maple Leafs, who were subject to harsh criticism after Game 1 had finished. They bounced back fashionably to even the series at one apiece.
As this series heads back to Tampa with the series tied and as it progresses, I believe we will see more animosity at both ends of the ice, and these two teams will give it all they have going the distance.