TAMPA, Fla. — Going into Monday night’s game against Toronto, the Lightning talked about Maple Leafs star center Auston Matthews’ greatness as a goal scorer.
Then the Lightning proceeded to give the league’s leader too much open space in front of the net, and Matthews made the Lightning pay by notching a hat trick in sending them to a 6-2 loss.
The Lightning could see a lot more of the Maple Leafs in the coming weeks. In fact, they could meet in the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs.
Monday’s game offered the first of several measuring sticks for the Lightning this week. They also play playoff-bound Washington and Boston in their next two games.
The loss dropped Tampa Bay’s record to 7-10-3 against teams in the Eastern Conference.
The six goals allowed by Andrei Vasilevskiy were his most since Oct. 14, a 7-6 win over Detroit.
When Matthews scored his third goal, shooting from the slot through a crowd of players in front of the net to make the score 5-2 at the 7:08 mark of the third period, hats rained onto the ice from the seating bowl as Lightning fans made their way to the exits. Matthews’ 55 goals tied Toronto’s single-season record.
The Lightning were comfortable engaging in a physical game early — and they know that the key to winning in the postseason lies in playing hard-checking, disciplined and defensive hockey. But in the second period they allowed Toronto to skate in open ice, and the Maple Leafs utilized their speed.
Toronto scored two goals over a two-minute, 28-second stretch, opening up a tie game midway through the period.
The loss snapped a five-game point streak for the Lightning (44-19-7, 93 points) and gave Toronto (45-19-5, 95 points) sole possession of second place in the Atlantic Division standings.
