TORONTO (AP) — Auston Matthews scored his NHL-major 61st and 62nd ambitions of the year to go together with an guide as the Toronto Maple Leafs built a 4-target direct in advance of hanging on late to down the Florida Panthers 6-4 in a prospective very first-spherical playoff preview Monday.
Nicholas Robertson and Matthew Knies also had a aim and an aid each individual for Toronto, even though Tyler Bertuzzi and David Kampf offered the relaxation of the offense.
Ilya Samsonov designed 26 will save for the Leafs, who have been with out five regulars — such as star winger Mitch Marner (significant ankle sprain) for an 11th straight video game.
Vladimir Tarasenko experienced a goal and two assists for Florida. Sam Reinhart, Sam Bennett and Brandon Montour also scored. Sergei Bobrovsky authorized five goals on 16 pictures as a result of two intervals just before acquiring the hook. Anthony Stolarz manufactured 6 saves in relief.
The Leafs, who sit third in the Atlantic Division and would have played Florida if the playoffs started out Monday, experienced a opportunity to clinch a submit-time berth for an eighth consecutive yr, but success in other places did not go their way.
The Panthers, meanwhile, could have overtaken the Boston Bruins for initially in the Atlantic with a victory.
Toronto, which fell to Florida in an emphatic 5 video games in the second spherical of very last spring’s publish-year on the Panthers’ march to the Stanley Cup final, opened the scoring at 13:59 of the first interval when Robertson scored on a breakaway subsequent a turnover at the Leafs’ blue line.
Matthews, who grew to become just the ninth distinctive player in NHL background to twice strike 60 targets in a year Saturday, doubled the lead 33 seconds later on when TJ Brodie circled Florida’s net and observed the sniper in front for his 61st.
Florida acquired on the board 47 seconds into the next when Montour’s energy via a display screen defeat Samsonov for his seventh, but Bertuzzi took a move from Matthews at the lip of Bobrovsky’s crease 39 seconds later on to bag his 19th.
Samsonov then produced a massive quit on Anton Lundell that experienced the Scotiabank Arena group on its toes.
Kampf scored his seventh for a 4-1 advantage at 8:32 after Leafs enforcer Ryan Reaves won a puck battle at the rear of Florida’s internet.
Knies, who fed Robertson’s breakaway go on Toronto’s opener, included his 13th off a Pontus Holmberg set up for a 5-1 guide by means of 40 minutes.
Tarasenko got one back again at 2:12 of the third when he tipped 22nd — and fifth given that being obtained from the Ottawa Senators forward of very last month’s trade deadline — on a wonderful deflection from the slot.
Reinhart built it 5-3 with 8:02 left in regulation with his 52nd as the Panthers continued to thrust prior to Bennett obtained Florida inside of 1 with 1:50 remaining with his ninth.
But Matthews scored his 62nd into an vacant web to seal it after some nervy moments.
UP Next
Panthers: Pay a visit to Montreal on Tuesday.
Maple Leafs: Host Tampa Bay on Wednesday.
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