Tampa Lightning, Toronto Maple Leafs Again Providing Plenty Of Entertainment In First-Round Series

This year’s Lightning and Maple Leafs collectible series puck features images of Steven Stamkos and Auston Matthews. That is appropriate as the captains dropped their gloves during the third period of Game 3 of the opening-round matchup between the teams.

Tampa Bay and Toronto had not met in the postseason until last spring. That’s too bad because the teams have put on quite a show, including the aforementioned scrap. Even in one-sided games, the Bolts and Leafs have supplied reason to continue viewing.

If last year’s opening-round seven-game series was not captivating enough, a series the Lightning won while on their way to a third consecutive Stanley Cup final appearance, the first three games of this year’s series have supplied many rewind-the-DVR moments.

The series, which the Maple Leafs lead 2-1 following a 4-3 overtime victory in Game 3, saw each team win big in Toronto. While there was no drama as far as the outcome in the first two games at Scotiabank Arena, there were headline-making moments led by Michael Bunting’s hit to the head of Erik Cernak that has resulted in both missing games. The former is eligible to return for Game 5 following a three-game suspension while the status of the latter, out since the hit and out for Game 4, remains unknown after sustaining what was likely a concussion.

Game 3 was one that will not soon be forgotten. For one, Leafs fans must feel good that their team won a playoff game in which it was outplayed. Goalie Ilya Samsonov did what the guy at the other end, Andrei Vasilevskiy, has done numerous times in recent years: be the difference.

“Over the last number of years, we’ve lost this (kind of) game a lot of times,” said Toronto coach Sheldon Keefe. “Tampa Bay was better than us in a lot of areas, but our guys stuck right there.”

What transpired 5:04 into the third period had everybody in the building on their feet. Brayden Point had a scary moment after crashing into the boards as he and Morgan Rielly chased the puck. Point, with his hand to his chest, had to be helped off the ice. Rielly was assessed a major, only to have the call overturned to no penalty. Stamkos and Nikita Kucherov both dropped the gloves with Matthews and Ryan O’Reilly, respectively.

Not only did Tampa Bay, leading 3-2 at the time, have to make do without the services of Stamkos and Kucherov for about eight minutes – same for Toronto with Matthews and O’Reilly — thanks to the first stoppage following the conclusion of the majors not taking place for another couple of minutes, and Point for about six minutes before he surprisingly returned, the Lightning found themselves shorthanded because Kucherov also picked a roughing minor.

Because they were going to come out of the scrum having to kill a penalty, Keefe felt the Lightning took advantage of the situation by getting Matthews and O’Reilly to occupy the visitor’s penalty box.

“It’s a classic example of a veteran championship team like Tampa Bay manipulating the officials and taking advantage of a situation,” he said. “They know we’re basically already going on the powerplay because of the Kucherov (minor), so it’s a free for all. They can do whatever they want and they know because of the way games get called, they are not going to get another penalty.

“Credit to Tampa for recognizing that situation,” continued Keefe, whose team got the game-winning goal from Rielly with 45 seconds left in overtime. “It’s a free pass and you can do what you want. Not only do they get out of it unscathed, but they take Matthews and O’Reilly with them to the box. Brilliant play by the Lightning in that situation.”

For the record, the scrap was the seventh of Stamkos’ career and second in as many postseasons after dropping the gloves with the Rangers’ Jason Lafreniere in the Eastern Conference Final last June. Kucherov and Matthews? The 19,092 at Amalie Arena witnessed a first for both.

The Lightning, who had defenseman Victor Hedman back in the lineup after he exited Game 1 (undisclosed injury) and missed Game 2, maintained a 3-2 lead during the ensuing penalty kill. It was a lead they thought should have been two. It appeared as though Point put the Lightning up by a pair of goals with 4:19 remaining in the second period when he poked home a loose puck that was at Samsonov’s skates. After review, it was determined a whistle was blown.

“I have zero idea why he blew the whistle,” said Jon Cooper, whose team has lost three straight playoff games on home ice dating to last year’s Cup final against the Avalanche. “It was shocking. The entire building, there were 20,000 people that saw (the puck) sitting right there. I don’t know what the ref had to gain by blowing the whistle. I don’t get it.”

On top of everything else, Sam Lafferty, acquired by the Leafs from Chicago at the trade deadline, was assessed a fine ($3,108) for cross checking Ross Colton up high in the second period.

The way these teams have gone at it in their brief playoff history against each other, it would not surprise if plenty of hockey remains in this series.

“It’s a seven-game series,” said the Bolts’ Brandon Hagel. “A long way to go for them, a long way to go for us.”