TAMPA – SPORTS – The Toronto Maple Leafs staged an incredible comeback to beat the Tampa Bay Lightning 5-4 in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference First Round.
Alexander Kerfoot who scored the winning goal states “That’s what you dream about, scoring goals in overtime in the playoffs.”
The Maple Leafs, who were down 4-1 after two periods, rallied in the third period, scoring three goals to tie the game at 4-4, sending it to overtime. Auston Matthews, who scored twice in the game, said, “The attitude and the mindset in the locker room was to just go out there and chip away.”
William Nylander, who had three assists for the Maple Leafs, said, “We knew we could come back. We had the belief in the room, and we just kept pushing.”
The Lightning, who had led 4-1 going into the third period, were disappointed with the loss. “We were on pucks, we were getting pucks behind them and strong with our forecheck and we made it hard on them,” said Tampa Bay forward Anthony Cirelli. “I think we got away from that a little bit in the third period, too much sitting back.”
Despite the loss, Lightning coach Jon Cooper said his team had played well for most of the game. “It was all going good, but in the end special teams became a factor in the game,” he said. “They got two big power-play goals in the end, and we didn’t cash in on our chance early in the third.”
The Maple Leafs now lead the best-of-seven series 3-1, with Game 5 set to take place in Toronto on Thursday.
