TORONTO — The Lightning knew one game doesn’t win a playoff series, not in the NHL and not against a team as talented as the Maple Leafs.
Still, after taking the series opener on the Leafs’ home ice, the Lightning certainly had a mental edge going into Game 2. They had planted a seed of doubt in a team that hasn’t won a postseason series in 17 seasons.
The worst thing the Lightning could do was give Toronto life, but they did so almost immediately Thursday night, and the script flipped quickly in an ugly 7-2 loss.
