Category: Sports/Hockey/NHL

Tampa Bay Lightning captain Steven Stamkos finally broke through for his team.

The Maple Leafs are still waiting for their leader to do the same.

John Tavares has yet to register a point at 5-on-5 in Toronto’s first-round playoff series with Tampa Bay, which sits tied 2-2 following Sunday’s 7-3 blowout loss at the hands of the two-time defending Stanley Cup champions at Amalie Arena.

Not including last spring’s opener against the Montreal Canadiens when he suffered a devastating injury following a scary collision that ruled him out for the rest of the Original Six matchup, the 31-year-old has one goal in his last seven post-season games.

Tavares, with three more seasons left on a contract that carries an $11-million US salary cap hit, has two assists against the Lightning — one on a power play and another with the teams playing 4-on-4 when Sunday’s contest was out of reach — through four games.

“I haven’t been able to produce offensively as I’d like,” he said in the wake of that ugly defeat. “I would still like to create more.”

The centre has done his job in the faceoff circle — he won 10 of 11 draws on Sunday — and has been a contributor in Tampa’s zone once Toronto gets its cycle going.

But a regular-season issue has continued into the playoffs after Tavares finished sixth on the Leafs with 39 even-strength points (15 goals, 24 assists) in 2021-22.

WATCH l Maple Leafs fall to Lightning in Game 4:

Ross Colton leads the way as Lightning even up series with Leafs

17 hours ago

Duration 1:31

A pair of goals by Ross Colton lifts Tampa Bay to a 7-3 win over Toronto, evening the series at 2-2. 1:31

Stamkos, who played minor hockey with his opposite No. 91 as a kid, scored his first goal of these playoffs a minute into Sunday to spark his team.

And with Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner smothered at 5-on-5 in Games 3 and 4 when Tampa had the last change and could roll out Anthony Cirelli’s line and Victor Hedman on the back end against Toronto’s two offensive catalysts, the inability of the Leafs captain to impose his will has been magnified.

“He’s working, he’s trying,” said head coach Sheldon Keefe. “It’s a tough series out there.”

Good at handling adversity

That it certainly is. It’s also been one without much game-to-game momentum.

The teams have alternated victories, with the side that scores first building at least a three-goal lead on the way to securing the win.

Toronto, which hosts Game 5 of the best-of-seven set Tuesday, has handled adversity when challenged time and again this season, but still has ghosts of recent playoff failure hanging over a club that hasn’t advanced to the second round since 2004.

“We just believe in our team,” Keefe said when asked why he’s confident the Leafs will push back. “We believe in our team all series, all season. We’ve played well against [Tampa]. We responded the last time coming off a loss. That’s the type of series that it’s been.

“We’re going back home. We know we have to be better, and we will be.”

Tavares is also confident the Leafs will get back on track.

Our level of execution and detail needs to be strong through that to break through that pressure.— Tavares on the Lightning’s fast start in Game 4

“Just know the way we’ve played for many stretches throughout this series, even for parts of [Game 4], and certainly mostly in the games that we’ve won,” he said. “A chance to regroup.”

The No. 1 pick at the 2009 NHL draft, who signed with his hometown club in free agency in July 2018, said Toronto wasn’t ready for Tampa’s early thrust in Game 4.

“They were extremely aggressive and pressing up extremely hard early,” Tavares said. “Our level of execution and detail needs to be strong through that to break through that pressure. That allows us to really get our game going and get them chasing.

“We have to do a better job.”

Another area of concern is the number of penalties Toronto continues to take, not so much the scrums after the whistle Keefe predicted before the series, but rather stick and obstruction fouls.

The Leafs had been flagged for a league-high 32 playoff infractions through Sunday night, four more than the Lightning.

“It’s been pretty tight,” Toronto defenceman Jake Muzzin said of the officiating standard compared to past post-seasons. “We should know that by now.”

They also haven’t got enough from Tavares, who in fairness was far from the only culprit in Sunday’s embarrassing no-show, as the scene shifts back to Scotiabank Arena.

“I’d like to find more and generate more,” he said. “No doubt I expect more and want to be better.”

Barry Trotz was fired as head coach of the New York Islanders on Monday, with general manager Lou Lamoriello saying he felt the team needed a new voice.

Trotz lost his job after four seasons with the Islanders and the first without a playoff appearance. The 59-year-old Winnipeg native, who ranks among the most successful coaches in NHL history and won the Stanley Cup with Washington in 2018, guided the Islanders to the Eastern Conference final each of the previous two years before losing to eventual champion Tampa Bay.

Lamoriello declined to explain why he thought “a new voice” was necessary.

“I’d rather not get into any of the reasons because that’s my job upon the information that I have and I experienced to make these type of decisions,” the 79-year-old longtime hockey executive said on a conference call. “Those are not questions that I will answer as far as what I thought. It’s obviously that I thought quite a bit to make this type of a decision.”

A series of events outside Trotz’s control contributed to the Islanders missing the playoffs this year. While their new arena was being finished, they opened the season on a 13-game road trip and were hit with a string of coronavirus-related absences and injuries that derailed their season.

Lamoriello said the choice to move on from Trotz was not made primarily about what happened this past season. He said, “This is certainly a business decision as far as hockey and winning.”

Trotz had one year remaining on his contract, which would have put him in the same situation he was in with the Capitals. They decided in the summer of 2018 not to rework Trotz’s contract despite the championship and granted him his release.

Flyers, Red Wings, Jets without coaches

Days later, he joined the Islanders, who had just put Lamoriello in charge of a franchise that had not won a championship since its early 1980s dynasty. New York went 152-102-34 in the regular season and 28-21 in the playoffs under Trotz, the organization’s most success in more than two decades.

Lamoriello said Trotz’s contract status did not factor into his decision. A message sent to Trotz’s agent seeking comment was not immediately returned.

Trotz could immediately become a candidate for vacancies in Philadelphia, Detroit and Winnipeg, plus others that open up because of his availability. Joining the Flyers would keep Trotz in the Metropolitan Division, while the Jets would represent a return home.

Trotz coached the Nashville Predators for their first 15 seasons, helping them reach the playoff seven times. His 914 regular-season wins rank third among coaches in NHL history.

The Islanders begin a coaching search with the franchise in the midst of contending window. Asked what he was looking for in a replacement, Lamoriello said he couldn’t answer specifically and added there was no timeline.

Lamoriello said players were not consulted about the firing, which was known only by ownership before he delivered the news to Trotz on Monday morning.

“These type of decisions are made for going forward,” Lamoriello said. “With this group we have — and they are on notice right now — that the new voice is what’s necessary for us to have success, in my opinion. And unfortunately or fortunately, my opinion is what has to make these decisions.”

Jonathan Quick stopped all 31 shots he faced and the L.A. Kings rebounded from a pair of lopsided losses to blank the Edmonton Oilers 4-0 in Game 4 of their first-round playoff series on Sunday in Los Angeles.

His most stunning came near the end of the second period, where, playing without his glove, the netminder used his blocker to knock down a shot from Oilers sniper Evander Kane.

Carl Grundstrom scored twice in the third period, Troy Stecher had a goal and an assist and Phillip Danault had a goal for the Kings.

WATCH | Oilers have no answer for Quick in loss to Kings:

Grundstrom and the Kings shut down Oilers, even series at 2-2

7 hours ago

Duration 2:57

Carl Grundstrom’s two goals helped Los Angeles shut out Edmonton 4-0, as the series is now tied 2-2. 2:57

Mike Smith stopped 42-of-45 shots for the Oilers, who were outshot 46-31.

The series will return to Edmonton for Game 5 on Tuesday with Game 6 set to go in L.A. on Thursday.

Chaos following Grundstrom goal

The Oilers amped up the pressure late in the third, but Grundstrom escaped the zone with the puck and made his way up the ice under pressure from Darnell Nurse.

Nurse fell to the ice near the hash marks, dragging Grundstrom down with him, but the Swedish winger managed to send a sliding shot between the post and Smith’s skate.

Video review determined the goal was good but Oilers head coach Jay Woodcroft opted to challenge for goaltender interference. Again, the goal was held up after official review and Edmonton was handed a penalty.

The Kings went one for three with the man advantage on Saturday and the Oilers were 0-of-3.

Oilers’ missed opportunities

The Oilers had a prime opportunity to cut into the deficit early in the third after L.A. defenceman Mikey Anderson was called for tripping.

Zach Hyman tried to send in a wrist shot from the top of the crease but Quick got his stick on it to preserve the shutout.

Edmonton seemed poised to score late in the second, too, when Kailer Yamamoto fired a shot from the top of the crease, and Quick, playing without his glove, got a piece of the puck and sent it up into the crossbar.

Yamamoto caught the post with his rebound, but Kane cleaned up the loose puck and sent another quick shot on net. Quick, still gloveless, deftly knocked the puck down with his blocker.

Danault nearly put away his second of the game on an Oilers power play early in the second after Sean Durzi was called for holding.

Danault picked off an Edmonton pass and streaked away for a short-handed breakaway. Smith came out of his creased and made the stop, with the puck deflecting off his pads and out of harm’s way.

Stecher launched a blast from the top of the faceoff circle and the puck hit the stick of Oilers defenceman Duncan Keith in front before trickling in through Smith’s legs.

It was his first goal for the Kings. L.A. acquired the 28-year-old defenceman from the Detroit Red Wings at the trade deadline in exchange for a seventh-round draft pick.

Stecher was playing in his first game of the series, slotting in for Jordan Spence.

Danault set up the first goal of the night, picking up a puck after a battle along the boards and sending a backhanded pass to Moore at the top of the crease. Moore elevated a shot over Smith’s outstretched leg for his second goal of the playoffs 8:03 into the game.

Jay Woodcroft says his Edmonton Oilers simply need to be better.

After posting a pair of lopsided wins and taking a 2-1 lead in their first-round playoff series against the Kings, the Oilers faltered Sunday, falling 4-0 to L.A. in Game 4.

It’s no surprise that L.A. rebounded with a big push, said Woodcroft, Edmonton’s head coach.

“I think they’re a competitive hockey team any time they play and that’s not unexpected,” he said. “We know the level we have to compete at and we certainly have more to give. To a man we can all be better.”

Edmonton outscored L.A. 16-2 in Games 2 and 3 but couldn’t get a single puck past Jonathan Quick on Sunday.

WATCH | Oilers have no answer for Quick in loss to Kings:

Grundstrom and the Kings shut down Oilers, even series at 2-2

14 hours ago

Duration 2:57

Carl Grundstrom’s two goals helped Los Angeles shut out Edmonton 4-0, as the series is now tied 2-2. 2:57

The 36-year-old goalie made 31 saves and posted the 10th playoff shutout of his career as the Kings evened the best-of-seven series at 2-2.

“He’s a good goalie. He’s been a good goalie in this league for such a long time,” said Oilers defenceman Darnell Nurse. “He’s not just going to come back and feel bad (about himself). He’s going to play his butt off, and he did tonight.”

Carl Grundstrom scored twice in the third period, and Troy Stecher and Trevor Moore each had a goal and an assist.

Mike Smith made 42 saves for the Oilers, who were outshot 46-31.

“I think everyone in our room was tired of giving up that many goals,” said Kings defenceman Mikey Anderson. “So as a whole, I think we tried to lock it down more to get back to our identity, being harder to play against and trying to give up less than we’ve been giving up the last couple of games.”

Series returns to Edmonton

The series will return to Edmonton for Game 5 on Tuesday. Game 6 will go Thursday back in L.A.

Whichever team wins two out the next three games will move on to round two.

“We just focus on the next one. That’s a big one,” Nurse said. “We’re not looking too far ahead. We’ve got to make sure that we come out and have the right effort on home ice.”

The Kings dominated from the beginning of the first period on Sunday, outshooting the Oilers 20-10 across the opening frame.

Grundstrom put away his second of the night 18:39 into the third, scoring on the empty net in a power play after the Oilers pulled Smith in favour of the extra attacker.

The Oilers amped up the pressure late in the third, but Grundstrom escaped the zone with the puck and made his way up the ice under pressure from Nurse.

Nurse fell to the ice

Nurse fell to the ice near the hash marks, dragging Grundstrom down with him, but the Swedish winger managed to send a sliding shot between the post and Smith’s skate.

“He was strong. He made a good play,” Nurse said.

A scrum erupted along the end boards moments after, resulting in game misconducts for Edmonton winger Evander Kane and L.A. defenceman Alex Edler.

Video review determined the goal was good but Woodcroft opted to challenge for goaltender interference. Again, the goal was held up after official review and Edmonton was handed a penalty.

The Kings went 1 for 3 with the man advantage on Saturday and the Oilers were 0 for 3.

Edmonton seemed poised to score late in the second, too, when Kailer Yamamoto fired a shot from the top of the crease, and Quick, playing without his glove, got a piece of the puck and sent it up into the crossbar.

Yamamoto caught the post with his rebound, but Kane cleaned up the loose puck and sent another quick shot on net. Quick, still gloveless, deftly knocked the puck down with his blocker.

“You just see the puck, you’re just trying to get something in front of it,” said the netminder.

Danault nearly put away a short-handed tally early in the second after Sean Durzi was called for holding.

Danault picked off an Edmonton pass and streaked away for a breakaway. Smith came out of his crease and made the stop, with the puck deflecting off his pads and out of harm’s way.

The Kings took advantage of some open ice midway through the second after Edmonton’s Tyson Barrie and L.A.’s Brendan Lemieux were called for roughing.

Stecher launched a blast from the top of the faceoff circle and the puck hit the stick of Oilers defenceman Duncan Keith in front before trickling in through Smith’s legs.

It was his first goal for the Kings. L.A. acquired the 28-year-old defenceman from the Detroit Red Wings at the trade deadline in exchange for a seventh-round draft pick.

Stecher was playing in his first game of the series, slotting in for Jordan Spence.

Danault set up the first goal of the night, picking up a puck after a battle along the boards and sending a backhanded pass to Moore at the top of the crease. Moore elevated a shot over Smith’s outstretched leg for his second goal of the playoffs 8:03 into the game

Jay Woodcroft says his Edmonton Oilers simply need to be better.

After posting a pair of lopsided wins and taking a 2-1 lead in their first-round playoff series against the Kings, the Oilers faltered Sunday, falling 4-0 to L.A. in Game 4.

It’s no surprise that L.A. rebounded with a big push, said Woodcroft, Edmonton’s head coach.

“I think they’re a competitive hockey team any time they play and that’s not unexpected,” he said. “We know the level we have to compete at and we certainly have more to give. To a man we can all be better.”

Edmonton outscored L.A. 16-2 in Games 2 and 3 but couldn’t get a single puck past Jonathan Quick on Sunday.

WATCH | Oilers have no answer for Quick in loss to Kings:

Grundstrom and the Kings shut down Oilers, even series at 2-2

7 hours ago

Duration 2:57

Carl Grundstrom’s two goals helped Los Angeles shut out Edmonton 4-0, as the series is now tied 2-2. 2:57

The 36-year-old goalie made 31 saves and posted the 10th playoff shutout of his career as the Kings evened the best-of-seven series at 2-2.

“He’s a good goalie. He’s been a good goalie in this league for such a long time,” said Oilers defenceman Darnell Nurse. “He’s not just going to come back and feel bad (about himself). He’s going to play his butt off, and he did tonight.”

Carl Grundstrom scored twice in the third period, and Troy Stecher and Trevor Moore each had a goal and an assist.

Mike Smith made 42 saves for the Oilers, who were outshot 46-31.

“I think everyone in our room was tired of giving up that many goals,” said Kings defenceman Mikey Anderson. “So as a whole, I think we tried to lock it down more to get back to our identity, being harder to play against and trying to give up less than we’ve been giving up the last couple of games.”

Series returns to Edmonton

The series will return to Edmonton for Game 5 on Tuesday. Game 6 will go Thursday back in L.A.

Whichever team wins two out the next three games will move on to round two.

“We just focus on the next one. That’s a big one,” Nurse said. “We’re not looking too far ahead. We’ve got to make sure that we come out and have the right effort on home ice.”

The Kings dominated from the beginning of the first period on Sunday, outshooting the Oilers 20-10 across the opening frame.

Grundstrom put away his second of the night 18:39 into the third, scoring on the empty net in a power play after the Oilers pulled Smith in favour of the extra attacker.

The Oilers amped up the pressure late in the third, but Grundstrom escaped the zone with the puck and made his way up the ice under pressure from Nurse.

Nurse fell to the ice

Nurse fell to the ice near the hash marks, dragging Grundstrom down with him, but the Swedish winger managed to send a sliding shot between the post and Smith’s skate.

“He was strong. He made a good play,” Nurse said.

A scrum erupted along the end boards moments after, resulting in game misconducts for Edmonton winger Evander Kane and L.A. defenceman Alex Edler.

Video review determined the goal was good but Woodcroft opted to challenge for goaltender interference. Again, the goal was held up after official review and Edmonton was handed a penalty.

The Kings went 1 for 3 with the man advantage on Saturday and the Oilers were 0 for 3.

Edmonton seemed poised to score late in the second, too, when Kailer Yamamoto fired a shot from the top of the crease, and Quick, playing without his glove, got a piece of the puck and sent it up into the crossbar.

Yamamoto caught the post with his rebound, but Kane cleaned up the loose puck and sent another quick shot on net. Quick, still gloveless, deftly knocked the puck down with his blocker.

“You just see the puck, you’re just trying to get something in front of it,” said the netminder.

Danault nearly put away a short-handed tally early in the second after Sean Durzi was called for holding.

Danault picked off an Edmonton pass and streaked away for a breakaway. Smith came out of his crease and made the stop, with the puck deflecting off his pads and out of harm’s way.

The Kings took advantage of some open ice midway through the second after Edmonton’s Tyson Barrie and L.A.’s Brendan Lemieux were called for roughing.

Stecher launched a blast from the top of the faceoff circle and the puck hit the stick of Oilers defenceman Duncan Keith in front before trickling in through Smith’s legs.

It was his first goal for the Kings. L.A. acquired the 28-year-old defenceman from the Detroit Red Wings at the trade deadline in exchange for a seventh-round draft pick.

Stecher was playing in his first game of the series, slotting in for Jordan Spence.

Danault set up the first goal of the night, picking up a puck after a battle along the boards and sending a backhanded pass to Moore at the top of the crease. Moore elevated a shot over Smith’s outstretched leg for his second goal of the playoffs 8:03 into the game

Sheldon Keefe said Sunday morning his team had yet to produce its best hockey this spring.

Toronto’s head coach is still waiting.

Steven Stamkos scored one minute into the first period to spark an early barrage as the Tampa Bay Lightning steamrolled the Maple Leafs 7-3 to knot their first-round playoff series 2-2.

Ross Colton, with a pair, Pierre-Edouard Bellemare, Pat Maroon, Corey Perry and Ondrej Palat had the other goals for the two-time defending Stanley Cup champions. Nikita Kucherov and Brandon Hagel added two assists each for the Lightning, who led 3-0 inside the first eight minutes inside a raucous Amalie Arena.

“We had a great start,” Stamkos said. “That was one of our keys, to come out and play the right way.”

WATCH l Leafs fall to Lightning in Game 4:

Ross Colton leads the way as Lightning even up series with Leafs

10 hours ago

Duration 1:31

A pair of goals by Ross Colton lifts Tampa Bay to a 7-3 win over Toronto, evening the series at 2-2. 1:31

Andrei Vasilevskiy stopped 22 shots, improving to an eye-popping 16-0 in the last three post-seasons following a loss.

Tampa carried its dominant performance to close out Friday’s 5-2 defeat — Toronto scored two late empty-netters — into Game 4.

William Nylander scored twice for Toronto, while Jake Muzzin also beat Vasilevskiy with the game out of reach.

Jack Campbell allowed five goals on 16 shots before being pulled in favour of Erik Kallgren for the Leafs, who came out flat on a night they could have grabbed a 3-1 stranglehold in the best-of-seven matchup. Kallgren finished with 10 saves.

“It’s disappointing,” Muzzin said. “We battled hard the other night to be in the position we were in. We knew they were gonna come hard.

“Just weren’t ready for it.”

Toronto has taken an NHL-high 32 penalties through four contests, with the Lightning having connected on the power play five times, including once on Sunday.

“We’ve done a pretty good job of, for the most part, not getting involved in the stuff not in between the whistles,” Leafs captain John Tavares said. “But some of the obstruction is getting called tighter than probably we’ve been used to in the past.

“Something we have to adapt to.”

‘It’s one game’

The series now shifts to Scotiabank Arena for Tuesday’s Game 5, while Game 6 goes Thursday back at Amalie Arena. Game 7, if necessary, is scheduled for Saturday in Toronto.

“Scored on their first shot and took it to us, but it’s one game,” said Campbell, who’s allowed 12 goals in his last 145 minutes 25 seconds of action against the Lightning.

“Learn from it, be ready for the next one.”

Looking to get more out of a top line that was largely neutralized in Game 3 by Anthony Cirelli, Brayden Point and Alex Killorn with Tampa getting the last change, Keefe moved Alexander Kerfoot into Michael Bunting’s spot on the wing alongside Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner to begin the game.

The Leafs hadn’t even crossed centre when Stamkos — robbed by Campbell on a late one-timer in Game 3 — blasted another of his patented bullets a minute into the first to blow the roof off the sold-out rink after Toronto defenceman Justin Holl couldn’t clear the zone.

“They came out hard and we didn’t execute,” Tavares said. “We have to do a better job of being on our toes and being ready for that.

“We knew it was coming.”

The listless visitors went down 2-0 at 5:20 when Muzzin and Campbell couldn’t control a puck down low that popped out to Bellemare in the slot.

Tampa made it 3-0 as the onslaught continued with a second fourth-line goal when Maroon jumped on another miscue by a Toronto defender — Morgan Rielly was the culprit this time — and poked home his own rebound at 7:58 after Campbell made a terrific pad stop.

Matthews fired a wicked backhand off the crossbar before last season’s Conn Smythe Trophy winner as playoff MVP had to be sharp on a deflection down low.

But the Lightning put any thought of a comeback to bed at 3:17 of the middle period when Colton’s snapshot went off Campbell’s glove for the centre’s second goal in as many games.

Tampa followed that up with a Perry goal that made it 5-0 — the third from a Lightning fourth-liner — on a long 5-on-3 man advantage at 5:25 after Tavares was whistled for hooking and David Kampf fired the puck out of play nine seconds later for a delay-of-game call.

Campbell stayed in the game for a couple more minutes only to be pulled in favour of Kallgren following a TV timeout after a long chat with Keefe at the bench.

“I always want to battle,” said the goaltender. “But I always respect the coach’s decision.”

“I know he’s going to continue to battle,” Keefe added. “I just made it clear to him it’s obviously a long way to come back and we need him to be good to go for the next game.”

Nylander got Toronto on the board with a goal on the man advantage at 2:27 of the third to spoil Vasilevskiy’s bid for the seventh playoff shutout of his career before adding his second of the playoffs with the teams skating 4 on 4 at 12:05.

The Leafs pulled Kallgren with under six minutes left in regulation, but Palat scored in into an empty net before Muzzin found the back of the net at 15:41 to make it 6-3.

Toronto hasn’t won a playoff round since 2004 — before the NHL instituted a salary cap and two lockouts ago — and is looking to take a step towards ending a Cup drought dating back 54 years following a string of post-season failures.

Toronto fans gathered around the team’s tunnel leading to the ice surface and started “Go Leafs Go” chants half an hour before warmups.

Tampa’s game operations crew, meanwhile, trolled the visitors by showing a “1967” sign on the rink’s massive scoreboard ahead of the opening faceoff before the Lightning imposed their will early and often.

‘We’ll be better next time’

“We got the split,” Keefe said in trying to take a positive out of Sunday’s disaster. “It was a best-of-five with three games in this building and two at home. Now it’s best-of-three with two in our building. It’s a successful road trip in that sense. Whether you lose the game 2-1 or in the manner that we did tonight, it doesn’t matter.

“You wash it, you move on. We’ll be better next time.”

If not, the Leafs will face another hostile environment Thursday

Sheldon Keefe said Sunday morning his team had yet to produce its best hockey this spring.

Toronto’s head coach is still waiting.

Steven Stamkos scored one minute into the first period to spark an early barrage as the Tampa Bay Lightning steamrolled the Maple Leafs 7-3 to knot their first-round playoff series 2-2.

Ross Colton, with a pair, Pierre-Edouard Bellemare, Pat Maroon, Corey Perry and Ondrej Palat had the other goals for the two-time defending Stanley Cup champions. Nikita Kucherov and Brandon Hagel added two assists each for the Lightning, who led 3-0 inside the first eight minutes inside a raucous Amalie Arena.

“We had a great start,” Stamkos said. “That was one of our keys, to come out and play the right way.”

WATCH l Leafs fall to Lightning in Game 4:

Ross Colton leads the way as Lightning even up series with Leafs

17 hours ago

Duration 1:31

A pair of goals by Ross Colton lifts Tampa Bay to a 7-3 win over Toronto, evening the series at 2-2. 1:31

Andrei Vasilevskiy stopped 22 shots, improving to an eye-popping 16-0 in the last three post-seasons following a loss.

Tampa carried its dominant performance to close out Friday’s 5-2 defeat — Toronto scored two late empty-netters — into Game 4.

William Nylander scored twice for Toronto, while Jake Muzzin also beat Vasilevskiy with the game out of reach.

Jack Campbell allowed five goals on 16 shots before being pulled in favour of Erik Kallgren for the Leafs, who came out flat on a night they could have grabbed a 3-1 stranglehold in the best-of-seven matchup. Kallgren finished with 10 saves.

“It’s disappointing,” Muzzin said. “We battled hard the other night to be in the position we were in. We knew they were gonna come hard.

“Just weren’t ready for it.”

Toronto has taken an NHL-high 32 penalties through four contests, with the Lightning having connected on the power play five times, including once on Sunday.

“We’ve done a pretty good job of, for the most part, not getting involved in the stuff not in between the whistles,” Leafs captain John Tavares said. “But some of the obstruction is getting called tighter than probably we’ve been used to in the past.

“Something we have to adapt to.”

‘It’s one game’

The series now shifts to Scotiabank Arena for Tuesday’s Game 5, while Game 6 goes Thursday back at Amalie Arena. Game 7, if necessary, is scheduled for Saturday in Toronto.

“Scored on their first shot and took it to us, but it’s one game,” said Campbell, who’s allowed 12 goals in his last 145 minutes 25 seconds of action against the Lightning.

“Learn from it, be ready for the next one.”

Looking to get more out of a top line that was largely neutralized in Game 3 by Anthony Cirelli, Brayden Point and Alex Killorn with Tampa getting the last change, Keefe moved Alexander Kerfoot into Michael Bunting’s spot on the wing alongside Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner to begin the game.

The Leafs hadn’t even crossed centre when Stamkos — robbed by Campbell on a late one-timer in Game 3 — blasted another of his patented bullets a minute into the first to blow the roof off the sold-out rink after Toronto defenceman Justin Holl couldn’t clear the zone.

“They came out hard and we didn’t execute,” Tavares said. “We have to do a better job of being on our toes and being ready for that.

“We knew it was coming.”

The listless visitors went down 2-0 at 5:20 when Muzzin and Campbell couldn’t control a puck down low that popped out to Bellemare in the slot.

Tampa made it 3-0 as the onslaught continued with a second fourth-line goal when Maroon jumped on another miscue by a Toronto defender — Morgan Rielly was the culprit this time — and poked home his own rebound at 7:58 after Campbell made a terrific pad stop.

Matthews fired a wicked backhand off the crossbar before last season’s Conn Smythe Trophy winner as playoff MVP had to be sharp on a deflection down low.

But the Lightning put any thought of a comeback to bed at 3:17 of the middle period when Colton’s snapshot went off Campbell’s glove for the centre’s second goal in as many games.

Tampa followed that up with a Perry goal that made it 5-0 — the third from a Lightning fourth-liner — on a long 5-on-3 man advantage at 5:25 after Tavares was whistled for hooking and David Kampf fired the puck out of play nine seconds later for a delay-of-game call.

Campbell stayed in the game for a couple more minutes only to be pulled in favour of Kallgren following a TV timeout after a long chat with Keefe at the bench.

“I always want to battle,” said the goaltender. “But I always respect the coach’s decision.”

“I know he’s going to continue to battle,” Keefe added. “I just made it clear to him it’s obviously a long way to come back and we need him to be good to go for the next game.”

Nylander got Toronto on the board with a goal on the man advantage at 2:27 of the third to spoil Vasilevskiy’s bid for the seventh playoff shutout of his career before adding his second of the playoffs with the teams skating 4 on 4 at 12:05.

The Leafs pulled Kallgren with under six minutes left in regulation, but Palat scored in into an empty net before Muzzin found the back of the net at 15:41 to make it 6-3.

Toronto hasn’t won a playoff round since 2004 — before the NHL instituted a salary cap and two lockouts ago — and is looking to take a step towards ending a Cup drought dating back 54 years following a string of post-season failures.

Toronto fans gathered around the team’s tunnel leading to the ice surface and started “Go Leafs Go” chants half an hour before warmups.

Tampa’s game operations crew, meanwhile, trolled the visitors by showing a “1967” sign on the rink’s massive scoreboard ahead of the opening faceoff before the Lightning imposed their will early and often.

‘We’ll be better next time’

“We got the split,” Keefe said in trying to take a positive out of Sunday’s disaster. “It was a best-of-five with three games in this building and two at home. Now it’s best-of-three with two in our building. It’s a successful road trip in that sense. Whether you lose the game 2-1 or in the manner that we did tonight, it doesn’t matter.

“You wash it, you move on. We’ll be better next time.”

If not, the Leafs will face another hostile environment Thursday

Sheldon Keefe said Sunday morning his team had yet to produce its best hockey this spring.

Toronto’s head coach is still waiting.

Steven Stamkos scored one minute into the first period to spark an early barrage as the Tampa Bay Lightning steamrolled the Maple Leafs 7-3 to knot their first-round playoff series 2-2.

Ross Colton, with a pair, Pierre-Edouard Bellemare, Pat Maroon, Corey Perry and Ondrej Palat had the other goals for the two-time defending Stanley Cup champions. Nikita Kucherov and Brandon Hagel added two assists each for the Lightning, who led 3-0 inside the first eight minutes inside a raucous Amalie Arena.

“We had a great start,” Stamkos said. “That was one of our keys, to come out and play the right way.”

WATCH l Leafs fall to Lightning in Game 4:

Ross Colton leads the way as Lightning even up series with Leafs

10 hours ago

Duration 1:31

A pair of goals by Ross Colton lifts Tampa Bay to a 7-3 win over Toronto, evening the series at 2-2. 1:31

Andrei Vasilevskiy stopped 22 shots, improving to an eye-popping 16-0 in the last three post-seasons following a loss.

Tampa carried its dominant performance to close out Friday’s 5-2 defeat — Toronto scored two late empty-netters — into Game 4.

William Nylander scored twice for Toronto, while Jake Muzzin also beat Vasilevskiy with the game out of reach.

Jack Campbell allowed five goals on 16 shots before being pulled in favour of Erik Kallgren for the Leafs, who came out flat on a night they could have grabbed a 3-1 stranglehold in the best-of-seven matchup. Kallgren finished with 10 saves.

“It’s disappointing,” Muzzin said. “We battled hard the other night to be in the position we were in. We knew they were gonna come hard.

“Just weren’t ready for it.”

Toronto has taken an NHL-high 32 penalties through four contests, with the Lightning having connected on the power play five times, including once on Sunday.

“We’ve done a pretty good job of, for the most part, not getting involved in the stuff not in between the whistles,” Leafs captain John Tavares said. “But some of the obstruction is getting called tighter than probably we’ve been used to in the past.

“Something we have to adapt to.”

‘It’s one game’

The series now shifts to Scotiabank Arena for Tuesday’s Game 5, while Game 6 goes Thursday back at Amalie Arena. Game 7, if necessary, is scheduled for Saturday in Toronto.

“Scored on their first shot and took it to us, but it’s one game,” said Campbell, who’s allowed 12 goals in his last 145 minutes 25 seconds of action against the Lightning.

“Learn from it, be ready for the next one.”

Looking to get more out of a top line that was largely neutralized in Game 3 by Anthony Cirelli, Brayden Point and Alex Killorn with Tampa getting the last change, Keefe moved Alexander Kerfoot into Michael Bunting’s spot on the wing alongside Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner to begin the game.

The Leafs hadn’t even crossed centre when Stamkos — robbed by Campbell on a late one-timer in Game 3 — blasted another of his patented bullets a minute into the first to blow the roof off the sold-out rink after Toronto defenceman Justin Holl couldn’t clear the zone.

“They came out hard and we didn’t execute,” Tavares said. “We have to do a better job of being on our toes and being ready for that.

“We knew it was coming.”

The listless visitors went down 2-0 at 5:20 when Muzzin and Campbell couldn’t control a puck down low that popped out to Bellemare in the slot.

Tampa made it 3-0 as the onslaught continued with a second fourth-line goal when Maroon jumped on another miscue by a Toronto defender — Morgan Rielly was the culprit this time — and poked home his own rebound at 7:58 after Campbell made a terrific pad stop.

Matthews fired a wicked backhand off the crossbar before last season’s Conn Smythe Trophy winner as playoff MVP had to be sharp on a deflection down low.

But the Lightning put any thought of a comeback to bed at 3:17 of the middle period when Colton’s snapshot went off Campbell’s glove for the centre’s second goal in as many games.

Tampa followed that up with a Perry goal that made it 5-0 — the third from a Lightning fourth-liner — on a long 5-on-3 man advantage at 5:25 after Tavares was whistled for hooking and David Kampf fired the puck out of play nine seconds later for a delay-of-game call.

Campbell stayed in the game for a couple more minutes only to be pulled in favour of Kallgren following a TV timeout after a long chat with Keefe at the bench.

“I always want to battle,” said the goaltender. “But I always respect the coach’s decision.”

“I know he’s going to continue to battle,” Keefe added. “I just made it clear to him it’s obviously a long way to come back and we need him to be good to go for the next game.”

Nylander got Toronto on the board with a goal on the man advantage at 2:27 of the third to spoil Vasilevskiy’s bid for the seventh playoff shutout of his career before adding his second of the playoffs with the teams skating 4 on 4 at 12:05.

The Leafs pulled Kallgren with under six minutes left in regulation, but Palat scored in into an empty net before Muzzin found the back of the net at 15:41 to make it 6-3.

Toronto hasn’t won a playoff round since 2004 — before the NHL instituted a salary cap and two lockouts ago — and is looking to take a step towards ending a Cup drought dating back 54 years following a string of post-season failures.

Toronto fans gathered around the team’s tunnel leading to the ice surface and started “Go Leafs Go” chants half an hour before warmups.

Tampa’s game operations crew, meanwhile, trolled the visitors by showing a “1967” sign on the rink’s massive scoreboard ahead of the opening faceoff before the Lightning imposed their will early and often.

‘We’ll be better next time’

“We got the split,” Keefe said in trying to take a positive out of Sunday’s disaster. “It was a best-of-five with three games in this building and two at home. Now it’s best-of-three with two in our building. It’s a successful road trip in that sense. Whether you lose the game 2-1 or in the manner that we did tonight, it doesn’t matter.

“You wash it, you move on. We’ll be better next time.”

If not, the Leafs will face another hostile environment Thursday

St. Louis goalie Jordan Binnington didn’t lose any sleep when he was informed by coach Craig Berube that he would be starting for the first time this post-season on Sunday.

“He’s always the same, he doesn’t give me much of a reaction,” Berube said.

Instead, Binnington let his play do the talking.

Jordan Kyrou and David Perron each scored twice and Ryan O’Reilly added a goal and two assists. Perron also had an assist for St. Louis.

Kirill Kaprizov and Matt Boldy scored for Minnesota. Marc-Andre Fleury made 29 saves.

Game 5 is Tuesday night at St. Paul, Minnesota, before returning to St. Louis for Game 6 on Thursday.

Binnington, who had lost his previous nine post-season starts, picked up his first playoff win since beating Boston in Game 7 of the 2019 Stanley Cup Final. He denied Kaprizov from point-blank range late in the second period. Binnington also stopped Mats Zuccarello on a 2-on-1 breakout midway through the final period.

“I felt prepared,” Binnington said. “I felt pretty good.”

Binnington had been supplanted by Ville Husso, who have up nine goals on 59 shots combined in Games 2 and 3 after shutting out the Wild with 37 saves in the opener.

Coach Craig Berube said he went with Binnington as a hunch.

“We wanted to make a switch and just change the momentum and luck a little bit,” Berube said.

Kyrou and Perron scored 54 seconds apart in the second period to break a 1-1 tie.,

Perron converted the go-ahead score on a shot that squeezed past Fleury towards the net. Minnesota forward Marcus Foligno tried to keep the puck from rolling across the line, but he flipped it off the back of Fleury and into the net.

Kyrou got his second of the game to push the lead to 3-1 with a shot off a pass from Ryan O’Reilly, who assisted on both second-period goals.

“Obviously, we wanted to come out hot, and come out strong,” Kyrou said. “We did that today and we should continue to do it all series long.”

Boldy cut the deficit to 3-2 by scoring off a scramble in from of the net 2:39 into the final period.

Perron added an empty net goal with 1:58 remaining, and O’Reilly had a power-play goal with 1 minute left to cap the scoring.

St. Louis struck first when Kyrou pounced on his own rebound just 4:19 into the game.

Kaprizov tied it 1-1 with his fifth goal of the series off a pass from Jared Spurgeon with 5:54 left in the opening period.

Kaprivoz, who recorded the first hat trick in post-season franchise history in Game 2, was wide open in the slot.

His five goals ties him with Wes Walz and Marian Gaborik for most goals in a series. Walz and Gaborik each scored five times in the 2003 Western Conference semifinals against Vancouver.

“It’s not one guy, it’s the Minnesota Wild that didn’t get to our game quick enough,” Minnesota coach Dean Evason said.. “In the third period we did. But it was a little too late.”

Marchand, Bergeron lead Bruins to series-tying victory

Brad Marchand raced toward the empty net, and there was nothing Carolina defenceman Tony DeAngelo could do except throw his stick at the puck. Forward Jesperi Kotkaniemi shattered his across the goal in frustration.

It’s the playoffs, and Marchand is at his best — scoring, passing and getting under his opponent’s skin.

“It’s a time he loves to play, and he shows it,” Bruins coach Bruce Cassidy said after Marchand’s two-goal, three-assist game in Boston’s 5-2 Game 4 victory over the Hurricanes on Sunday tied the first-round playoff series at 2.

Patrice Bergeron had a goal and two assists and drew a high-sticking double minor from Sebastian Aho at the end of the second period that gave the Bruins a 5-on-3 and left their captain with a black eye and several stitches.

Sixty-eight seconds after the penalty, and 44 seconds into the third period, Marchand scored to break a 2-2 tie.

Rookie Jeremy Swayman made 23 saves for his second straight win, and David Pastrnak had a goal and an assist.

The series returns to Carolina for Game 5 on Tuesday night.

And now, the Bruins are assured a Game 6 in Boston on Thursday.

“This is what every kid’s kind of hoping — to get that opportunity playing for that Cup,” Marchand said. “These are the most fun games to play in, when there’s high emotion, high intensity and the most is on the line. If you can’t play in these games, I don’t know what you’re playing for.”

Jake DeBrusk also scored for the Bruins, who scratched top defenceman Charlie McAvoy after he went into the NHL’s COVID-19 protocol about an hour before the opening faceoff. No. 2 defenceman Hampus Lindholm has been out since a hit to the head in Game 2.

“We’re playing for our season,” Marchand said. “It’s really tough when you lose guys like that, but here’s a lot of pride in the room, a lot of character We’ve always shown that.”

Brett Pesce and Jordan Staal scored for Carolina, and Antti Raanta returned to stop 23 shots for the Metropolitan Division champions.

Pesce gave Carolina the lead six minutes into the game, the fourth straight time the Hurricanes have scored first — the seventh time, if you count their three regular-season wins over Boston.

In the last 90 seconds of the second period, Marchand backhanded the puck into Raanta and it wound up in the crease just sitting there for DeBrusk to clean up.

Brind’Amour challenged for goalie interference, but the call stood. That gave Boston a power play, and it became a 5-on-3 when Aho cut Bergeron’s eye.

Boston still had 44 seconds on the 5-on-3 and 2:58 after that on the double-minor when the third period started. With one second left in the two-man advantage, Marchand wristed one into the net to give Boston its first lead of the day.

Pastrnak added an insurance goal five minutes later, and Marchand put in an empty-netter.

St. Louis goalie Jordan Binnington didn’t lose any sleep when he was informed by coach Craig Berube that he would be starting for the first time this post-season on Sunday.

“He’s always the same, he doesn’t give me much of a reaction,” Berube said.

Instead, Binnington let his play do the talking.

Jordan Kyrou and David Perron each scored twice and Ryan O’Reilly added a goal and two assists. Perron also had an assist for St. Louis.

Kirill Kaprizov and Matt Boldy scored for Minnesota. Marc-Andre Fleury made 29 saves.

Game 5 is Tuesday night at St. Paul, Minnesota, before returning to St. Louis for Game 6 on Thursday.

Binnington, who had lost his previous nine post-season starts, picked up his first playoff win since beating Boston in Game 7 of the 2019 Stanley Cup Final. He denied Kaprizov from point-blank range late in the second period. Binnington also stopped Mats Zuccarello on a 2-on-1 breakout midway through the final period.

“I felt prepared,” Binnington said. “I felt pretty good.”

Binnington had been supplanted by Ville Husso, who have up nine goals on 59 shots combined in Games 2 and 3 after shutting out the Wild with 37 saves in the opener.

Coach Craig Berube said he went with Binnington as a hunch.

“We wanted to make a switch and just change the momentum and luck a little bit,” Berube said.

Kyrou and Perron scored 54 seconds apart in the second period to break a 1-1 tie.,

Perron converted the go-ahead score on a shot that squeezed past Fleury towards the net. Minnesota forward Marcus Foligno tried to keep the puck from rolling across the line, but he flipped it off the back of Fleury and into the net.

Kyrou got his second of the game to push the lead to 3-1 with a shot off a pass from Ryan O’Reilly, who assisted on both second-period goals.

“Obviously, we wanted to come out hot, and come out strong,” Kyrou said. “We did that today and we should continue to do it all series long.”

Boldy cut the deficit to 3-2 by scoring off a scramble in from of the net 2:39 into the final period.

Perron added an empty net goal with 1:58 remaining, and O’Reilly had a power-play goal with 1 minute left to cap the scoring.

St. Louis struck first when Kyrou pounced on his own rebound just 4:19 into the game.

Kaprizov tied it 1-1 with his fifth goal of the series off a pass from Jared Spurgeon with 5:54 left in the opening period.

Kaprivoz, who recorded the first hat trick in post-season franchise history in Game 2, was wide open in the slot.

His five goals ties him with Wes Walz and Marian Gaborik for most goals in a series. Walz and Gaborik each scored five times in the 2003 Western Conference semifinals against Vancouver.

“It’s not one guy, it’s the Minnesota Wild that didn’t get to our game quick enough,” Minnesota coach Dean Evason said.. “In the third period we did. But it was a little too late.”

Marchand, Bergeron lead Bruins to series-tying victory

Brad Marchand raced toward the empty net, and there was nothing Carolina defenceman Tony DeAngelo could do except throw his stick at the puck. Forward Jesperi Kotkaniemi shattered his across the goal in frustration.

It’s the playoffs, and Marchand is at his best — scoring, passing and getting under his opponent’s skin.

“It’s a time he loves to play, and he shows it,” Bruins coach Bruce Cassidy said after Marchand’s two-goal, three-assist game in Boston’s 5-2 Game 4 victory over the Hurricanes on Sunday tied the first-round playoff series at 2.

Patrice Bergeron had a goal and two assists and drew a high-sticking double minor from Sebastian Aho at the end of the second period that gave the Bruins a 5-on-3 and left their captain with a black eye and several stitches.

Sixty-eight seconds after the penalty, and 44 seconds into the third period, Marchand scored to break a 2-2 tie.

Rookie Jeremy Swayman made 23 saves for his second straight win, and David Pastrnak had a goal and an assist.

The series returns to Carolina for Game 5 on Tuesday night.

And now, the Bruins are assured a Game 6 in Boston on Thursday.

“This is what every kid’s kind of hoping — to get that opportunity playing for that Cup,” Marchand said. “These are the most fun games to play in, when there’s high emotion, high intensity and the most is on the line. If you can’t play in these games, I don’t know what you’re playing for.”

Jake DeBrusk also scored for the Bruins, who scratched top defenceman Charlie McAvoy after he went into the NHL’s COVID-19 protocol about an hour before the opening faceoff. No. 2 defenceman Hampus Lindholm has been out since a hit to the head in Game 2.

“We’re playing for our season,” Marchand said. “It’s really tough when you lose guys like that, but here’s a lot of pride in the room, a lot of character We’ve always shown that.”

Brett Pesce and Jordan Staal scored for Carolina, and Antti Raanta returned to stop 23 shots for the Metropolitan Division champions.

Pesce gave Carolina the lead six minutes into the game, the fourth straight time the Hurricanes have scored first — the seventh time, if you count their three regular-season wins over Boston.

In the last 90 seconds of the second period, Marchand backhanded the puck into Raanta and it wound up in the crease just sitting there for DeBrusk to clean up.

Brind’Amour challenged for goalie interference, but the call stood. That gave Boston a power play, and it became a 5-on-3 when Aho cut Bergeron’s eye.

Boston still had 44 seconds on the 5-on-3 and 2:58 after that on the double-minor when the third period started. With one second left in the two-man advantage, Marchand wristed one into the net to give Boston its first lead of the day.

Pastrnak added an insurance goal five minutes later, and Marchand put in an empty-netter.