In Sunrise, the Toronto Maple Leafs held a 5-1 lead over the Panthers on Tuesday and ended up needing a late goal to force overtime on a 6-6 score.
John Tavares scored off the power play midway through the third period to get the Maple Leafs even, 6-6, after the Panthers rallied back for a 6-5 lead.
Jonathan Huberdeau scored his second goal of the game midway through extra time to complete the Panthers rally for the 7-6 win.
“It’s exciting to come back again,” Florida;s Alexander Barkov said. “But we’ve got to work so we’re not down 5-1 or 6-2. We’ve got to figure out how to manage the game the right way.”
Sergei Bobrovsky got the start for the Panthers, but was given the hook after yielding four goals and making just 10 saves.
“We go from having a chance on a breakaway to go up 6-1 to taking a too-many-men-on ice penalty right after,” Maple Leafs coach Sheldon Keefe said. “That starts the snowball. We had pretty terrible penalty killing. I’m not going to focus on all that stuff, I’m going to focus on the fact we played a good hockey game today.”
Spencer Knight made 19 saves in relief for the win.
“A lot of milestones, but it’s cool doing that when we win,” Huberdeau said. “It’s been a fun year. It’s been fun, but we haven’t done anything in the playoffs. The last 10 games we’ve got to tighten up defensively and it’s going to carry into the playoffs.”
Mitchell Marner hit for a double for the Maple Leafs, once off the power play and once on a shorthanded goal.
Colin Blackwell and Jake Muzzin added single markers for the Maple Leafs.
“You don’t want wild swings in a game where we had control,” the Maple Leafs’ Jason Spezza said. “When we have control like that, you want to lock it down. You have to learn from it. It’s a team we’re likely to see again.”
Sam Reinhart hit for a pair of power-play goals for the Panthers.
Claude Giroux scored his first marker with the Panthers, and Radko Gudas also scored for Florida.
“My teammates were doing a good job of reminding me I didn’t have a goal yet,” Giroux said. “So, it’s nice to be able to get a goal and help the team have a comeback like we did tonight.”
Erik Kallgren started for the Maple Leafs and made 20 saves, he left the ice after being hit the mask with a shot in the middle frame.
Jack Campbell made 21 saves in relief.
You must be logged in to post a comment.