They limited scoring chances for Toronto, taking away the passing lanes while generating plenty of chances of their own.
Heading into this series, one of the biggest questions surrounding the Lightning was whether or not they'd be able to “flip the switch” and turn up the heat when it mattered most.
The Lightning delivered an assertive and confident start to the playoffs, dominating on the offensive front and ending with a 7-3 victory over the Maple Leafs in Toronto. Turns out, Stanley Cup Playoff experience does in fact mean something.
“I will never question the guys in that room. Again, as the coach, you always want the best, but deep down inside you know there’s a whole bunch of gamers in that room. And, this night, we knew that they would come out to play,” Lightning coach Jon Cooper said.
The Lightning started building momentum quickly, creating a 3-0 lead through the first period.
Their play was efficient in all three zones throughout the entire night. They limited scoring chances for Toronto, taking away the passing lanes while generating plenty of chances of their own.
Their physicality came at a costly price. Right as the second period started to pick up, the Lightning lost both Victor Hedman and Mikey Eyssimont to injuries. With 4:20 left in the period, Michael Bunting elbowed Erik Cernak in the head, causing him to leave the game early. Bunting was handed a match penalty, putting the Lightning on a five-minute major power play.
Bunting exited the box yelling at the referees. The NHL announced Tuesday night that he will have a hearing on Wednesday for an “Illegal Check to the Head / Interference.”
After Toronto scored twice with the man advantage to make it a one-goal game in the second, the Bolts lit it up with three unanswered power play goals of their own, giving themselves a comfortable buffer heading into the third period.
Andrei Vasilevskiy had a top-level performance, stopping 28 of 31 Toronto shots and getting his 100th playoff start.
“We’ve been there before,” Jon Cooper said. “We’ve been down this road. To be honest, you embrace these moments, and the atmosphere at the beginning of the game, the anthems and the crowd going nuts, it’s a wonderful experience. It’s not something you should shy away from, and we talked to the guys about that.”
The two teams will return to Scotiabank Arena for Game 2 on Thursday night.