SUNRISE, Fla. — Florida briefly restricted ticket gross sales for his or her sequence towards Toronto to followers with U.S. bank cards, a call that some Maple Leafs followers thought was designed to maintain them from coming to Games 3 and 4.
The Panthers may be capable of maintain them from a Game 5 in Toronto, too.
Sam Reinhart scored 3:02 into additional time and the Panthers – who needed to battle simply to squeak into the playoffs, then shocked Boston in Round 1 – are on the point of their first convention finals look since 1996. Florida topped Toronto 3-2 on Sunday evening, taking a 3-0 lead of their Eastern Conference semifinal sequence.
“We’ve had a lot of guys stepping up at big moments,” Reinhart stated.
None larger than he did to win it. Reinhart dumped the puck off the boards behind the online to arrange his game-winner, then headed behind the purpose to take a go again from Anton Lundell. Reinhart twirled his approach to the entrance, tapped the puck house and identical to that, Florida had its first sequence lead in 27 years.
“There’s a lot of things going our way,” stated Florida defenseman Aaron Ekblad, whose crew has received six consecutive playoff video games for the primary time in franchise historical past. “We’re just trying to take it day by day … just doing the right things to make us successful.”
PHOTOS: Reinhart the hero, as Panthers prime Leafs in OT for 3-0 lead
Anthony Duclair and Carter Verhaeghe scored for Florida. Sam Lafferty and Erik Gustafsson scored for Toronto, which had loads of followers there – ticket gross sales for all opened 24 hours after the web buying window opened final week. They left disillusioned; Florida’s left thrilled.
“They’ve been good,” Panthers coach Paul Maurice stated of Florida’s followers. “Now they’re excited.”
Sergei Bobrovsky stopped 22 photographs for the Panthers. Joseph Woll stopped 18 of the 21 he confronted for the Maple Leafs after he relieved starter Ilya Samsonov, who stopped all eight photographs he noticed earlier than leaving early within the second interval with an harm.
Game 4 is Wednesday evening, with Florida in place for a sweep and a spot within the convention finals towards Carolina or New Jersey.
“Got to win one game,” Leafs coach Sheldon Keefe stated. “That was the mission here tonight. Got to start with one and give yourself a chance. They’re in full control here; it’s up to us to make it uncomfortable for them and not go away. We still have tremendous belief in our group.”
Reinhart’s purpose for that 3-0 lead means it’s time for the Maple Leafs to spend the following three days listening to about essentially the most dreaded of stats three video games right into a best-of-seven – the one about how solely 4 golf equipment have erased such a deficit in hockey historical past. Toronto is a kind of 4, coming from 3-0 all the way down to beat Detroit within the 1942 Cup closing.
“Obviously, it’s do-or-die now,” Leafs heart Auston Matthews stated. “So, it starts with one game.”
And they could have a brand new beginning goalie as properly. Samsonov left the ice 37 seconds into the second interval with an undisclosed harm. He was dominated out earlier than the third interval began and Keefe had no postgame replace on his situation.
The play began with Samsonov stopping a shot by Duclair, as Verhaeghe got here down the slot chasing the rebound.
Verhaeghe received tripped by Toronto’s Luke Schenn, and Schenn additionally crashed into Samsonov on the identical play. Samsonov remained down for greater than a minute, ultimately received to his toes and skated to the Toronto bench – going straight down the tunnel to the Maple Leafs’ locker room.
Woll changed Samsonov, coming in chilly to face the Florida energy play. Woll stopped the primary shot he confronted, however Duclair scored with 1 second left on the ability play to tie the sport at 1-1.
Toronto led 1-0 and 2-1, solely to see Florida come again with the tying purpose every time.
Lafferty one-timed a go from David Kampf house simply 2:26 into the competition to complete off a 2-on-1 and open the scoring. Gustafsson’s wrister made it 2-1 when it caromed in off Marc Staal’s stick halfway by the second. Verhaeghe tied it 5 minutes later and to the third they went, tied at 2-2.
It stayed that manner till Reinhart determined they’d performed sufficient.
“Really happy for him,” Maurice stated.
AROUND THE RINK
Matthews took a puck off the surface of his proper wrist within the third interval, was shaken up and remained within the recreation – showing to not even miss a shift. … Toronto is now 34-47 all-time in Game 3s. Florida is now 5-8. … There have been solely two penalties referred to as in regulation, each towards Toronto within the second interval.
WOLL TIES
There is one large tie between Woll and the Panthers – he was Boston College’s go-to netminder for 3 years, earlier than Spencer Knight took over for the Eagles within the 2019-20 season.
Knight has been with the Panthers for components of three seasons and has been out since February within the NHL’s participant help program.
THE CAPTAIN
Miami Heat captain Udonis Haslem – carrying a Duclair jersey – was on the recreation with some teammates together with Heat guard Gabe Vincent, and did his half to get followers engaged by beating a drum at one finish of the rink shortly earlier than recreation time.
“I got cool with Duclair a couple years ago, and told him that when I had time I would come out,” stated Haslem, whose Heat lead New York in a second-round sequence 2-1 with Game 4 in Miami on Monday. “It’s amazing here right now. South Florida sports, we always feel like the underdogs, but these guys on the Panthers, the heart they play with, it’s inspiring to see.”
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