The Toronto Maple Leafs fell in game five of the Stanley Cup Finals as the Tampa Bay Lightning look to put the Leafs on the mat. After winning game four, the Leafs were forced to fight back in order to win the series. However, the game was a sloppy affair as the Lightning were able to tie the game up early and put the Leafs on the back foot. The Leafs were not able to gain the lead and eventually fell to the Lightning, losing game five. The Leafs will look to bounce back and win game six to force a game seven.
The Toronto Maple Leafs and the Tampa Bay Lightning are set to play a pivotal Game 5 of their first round Stanley Cup playoff series on Saturday (May 10th) in Toronto. The Leafs look to tie the series at two games apiece and get their first win against the Lightning in Game 5, while the Lightning need to win the game to extend their series lead to 3-1.
Never doubt that the Toronto Maple Leafs can find new and exciting ways to disappoint their fans and fail in the postseason. Star John Tavares injured losing the first game, winning three games in a row and then losing three games in a row to the heavily underdog Montreal Canadiens in their first playoff game in 43 years? This is new. Meanwhile, the Tampa Bay Lightning will try to take a 2-0 lead in the series against the Carolina Hurricanes on Tuesday night. Teams that lead the best-of-seven series 1-0 have a record of 496-224 and are 6-2 in the 2021 Stanley Cup Playoffs. Visit ESPN NHL Playoffs Daily to follow each day of the postseason until the Stanley Cup is awarded in July. More: Central Playoff Schedule 
Tuesday games
Game 2: Tampa Bay Lightning vs. Carolina Hurricanes at 7:30 pm. (Lightning leads 1-0) Coach Rod Brind’Amour says it is very, very doubtful that striker Nino Niederreiter will return in the second round because of an upper-body injury. He had already missed the first game, in which the Canes scored just one goal against the Lightning. He’s a goal scorer, Brind’Amour said. There’s no substitute for that. He’s also on the power play. It’s an offensive weapon coming out of the game, but it’s the playoffs. It’s the next person. We have to fill the shoes. Jordan Martinook drew with Vincent Trochek and Martin Nekas yesterday. Meanwhile, the Lightning are looking to win 2-0 for the third time in their last four playoffs.
About last night
Montreal Canadiens 3, Toronto Maple Leafs 1 (Canadiens win 4-3). The Canadiens lost the series 3-1 before winning three games in a row to destroy the Maple Leafs, who lost their eighth game in a row to end the series. The score was 3-1 thanks to goals from Brendan Gallagher, Corey Perry and an empty-net goal from Tyler Toffoli, not Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner, who combined for one goal in the series. Carey Price faced 31 shots and stopped 30. He saved his best game for the series finale and played his best hockey as a penalty killer in the third period. The Leafs were without John Tavares and Jake Muzzin in Game 7, and Nick Foligno was far from 100 percent, according to coach Sheldon Keefe. But they had three chances to beat a lesser opponent and win their first playoff series since 2004, and they squandered that chance. These are the leaves. Montreal advances to the North Division final against Winnipeg on Wednesday. Full review. 2 Connected 
New York Islanders 4, Boston Bruins 3 (OT) (1-1 tie). The Islanders won in extension, when it already looked like they would lose. New York led 3-1 in the third period after Josh Bailey, Kyle Palmieri and Jean-Gabriel Pajo scored in the second. But Patrice Bergeron and Brad Marchand scored for Boston in the third period to send the game to overtime. Then Casey Cizikas ended it at 14:48, bringing the game to 1-1. Semyon Varlamov made 39 saves in his first game since Game 3 of the first round against Pittsburgh. Full review.
Three star nights
1. Cary Price, G, Montreal Canadiens Price was nearly impenetrable in Game 7, turning the puck over until William Nylander scored at 18:24 of the third period. He made 30 saves to stop the Leafs. As usual, he bragged after the game. This is the best team game we’ve played this season, Price said. 
2. Casey Cizikas, F, New York Islanders. The foundation of Chizika’s game is defense, so naturally that led to her win in extension of Game 2. The Islanders’ attacker forced Bruins defenseman Jeremy Lauzon into a turnover, then went in pursuit and beat Tuukka Rask with a high shot on a blocker. Prior to Game 2, he had just one assist in seven playoff games. It’s a victory of character for us. And there’s no one in our locker room with more character than Casey. When he came in, our room exploded with guys hugging him, Islanders coach Barry Trotz said. play 0:27 Casey Cizikas scored in overtime to give the Islanders a 4-3 victory over the Bruins and tie the series. 
3. Brendan Gallagher, F, Montreal Canadiens The first goal of the seventh game should be decisive. Gallagher, who has yet to score a goal in a series against the Leafs, outplayed Jack Campbell in the second period to give Montreal the lead and put the Leafs in trouble. More importantly, his line with Phillip Dano and Jack Evans continued to block Matthews and Marner.
Celebration of the day
POV: You’re in a power plant…. pic.twitter.com/wH5kJGPmQc – Spittin’ Chiclets (@spittinchiclets) June 1, 2021 Trotz mentioned Borrelli’s Restaurant on Hempstead Turnpike in his post-game press conference and said he saw a video of everyone standing around jumping during the extension. Barry Trotz mentions Borrelli in his post-game press conference. That’s great. @FrankieBorrelli pic.twitter.com/0ta772XAQ9 – Rob Taub (@RTaub_) 1. June 2021
Quote of the day
It’s just hard. I think about how hard our team fought and the fact that this is the worst goal of my career, and then for it to happen in the seventh game, is unacceptable. The team is counting on me to improve, and I know I can improve a lot. So I’m going to go back to work and get better. — Jack Campbell, goalie of the Toronto Maple Leafs, during an emotional press conference after Game 7.
Daylight
After Montreal won Game 7 and the series with Winnipeg, the final four NHL teams were determined (the winners of the four divisions are seeded for the semifinals based on the sum of their points for the regular season):
- The winner of the Colorado Avalanche (82 points) – Vegas Golden Knights (82 points) series is seeded first and will face the winner of the Jets (63 points) – Canadiens (59 points) series, which is seeded fourth.
- The winner of the Bruins (73 points) – Islanders (71 points) series will take third place. Places and plays the next round on the outside against the 2. Place, either Carolina (80 points) or Tampa Bay (75 points).
