Lightning rolls over Leafs in decisive post-Olympic win

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The Maple Leafs’ much-ballyhooed final sprint was stalled in the starting blocks.

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Their first game back from the Olympic break was as tough as advertised in division-leading Tampa Bay, which had Brayden Point back from injury, Nikita Kucherov hot as ever, and with all the Lightning further inspired to win for their absent coach, Jon Cooper, after the death of his father.

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Had William Nylander made good on one of his two early breakaways, the Leafs might have disrupted the momentum of a team that quickly recovered its pre-break pace (19-1-1). But goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy twice tracked Nylander’s multiple dekes as part of Tampa Bay’s 4-2 victory on Wednesday.

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Toronto’s late-game goals began on a 6-on-4 by John Tavares with Anthony Stolarz pulled and after Jake Guentzel hit the post of the empty net. After Brayden Point’s second of the game quickly answered, Matthew Knies made it close again.

The Leafs had hoped to make a quick dent in their six-point playoff deficit, but now down to 24 games remaining and with multiple teams to jump over, will have to try again Thursday in Sunrise against the Florida Panthers, part of three games in four nights to reconvene the NHL schedule.

Auston Matthews, coming back from Milan with a gold medal as captain of Team USA, played more than 20 minutes. He didn’t get a shot on net until the third period, though he blocked three and drew a penalty before assisting on the goal by Knies. Coach Craig Berube put Matthews and Nylander together after the Leafs fell behind and later, had Matthews with left winger Knies.

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Returning Olympians on both sides had to keep pace with re-charged teammates coming off a full two-week holiday in a fast-paced first period. Toronto’s video crew of Jordan Bean and Sam Kim was 2-for-2 in the period, detecting Brandon Hagel offside on a Kucherov goal then Kucherov himself going in ahead of the puck when Point scored.

According to Sportsnet, their combined four eyes have allowed coach Craig Berube to successfully challenge seven straight offsides this season and 21 consecutive, going back a few years.

But the Leafs couldn’t take advantage, as Vasilevskiy foiled Nylander, Oliver Ekman-Larsson and two short-handed chances by the forward combo of Scott Laughton and Steven Lorentz.

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Point twice teamed up with Kucherov to weave through the Leafs, each scoring off one-touch lateral passes, while linemate Gage Goncalves beat Stolarz on a breakaway. Kucherov, who collected his 700th NHL assist in the game, is averaging almost two points a night in the second half of the season.

Tampa Bay improved to 19-9 at home this season, while the Leafs’ three-game road winning streak from early February ended. Toronto, led by Stolarz making 30 saves, was able to kill four Lightning power plays, but a league-worst 5-on-5 goals against continue to plague it.

Lhornby@postmedia.com
X: @sunhornby

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