This playoff heartbreak felt different for the Maple Leafs.
A team that had so often stumbled in big moments went toe-to-toe with the two-time defending Stanley Cup champions.
In the end, however, the result was the same 鈥� and perhaps even more crushing because of what might have been.
Nick Paul scored twice, including an incredible individual effort on the winner late in the second period, as the Tampa Bay Lightning topped Toronto 2-1 in Game 7 on Saturday to win the team鈥檚 first-round playoff series 4-3.
鈥淚t鈥檚 hard to explain,鈥� Leafs captain John Tavares said in the wake of another devastating post-season setback for a franchise that hasn鈥檛 reached the second round since 2004. 鈥淚t鈥檚 frustrating, hard to fathom.
鈥淚t stings, it hurts, it鈥檚 disappointing.鈥�
Andrei Vasilevskiy made 30 saves for a team not yet ready to relinquish its crown despite losing star winger Brayden Point to an apparent leg injury late in the first period.
鈥淎 game of inches,鈥� said Leafs star Auston Matthews, who scored 60 goals during the regular season and four more in playoffs. 鈥淯nfortunately we鈥檙e on the bad side of things tonight. It鈥檚 really frustrating.
鈥淓very guy in there competed and gave it their all. They made one more play than us.鈥�
Toronto had Tampa Bay, which will now meet the Presidents鈥� Trophy-winning Florida Panthers in the next round, on the ropes in Thursday鈥檚 Game 6 before the Lightning, as they so often have during their consecutive title runs, found a way to punch back.
鈥淭hey鈥檝e been through a lot of tough losses, heartbreak,鈥� Matthews added. 鈥淎nd they鈥檝e climbed the way to the top two years in a row.
鈥淲e鈥檙e right there 鈥� we鈥檙e right there.鈥�
Morgan Rielly replied for Toronto, which hasn鈥檛 moved onto the second round in 18 years and is 0-9 in games where it can eliminate an opponent over the last five post-seasons. Jack Campbell stopped 23 shots.
Despite their best efforts, the Leafs were once again unable to push through and finally flip an long, ugly narrative of playoff failures for a franchise that has now lost its last seven series, including six straight dating back to 2017.
鈥淲e鈥檙e getting sick and tired feeling like this,鈥� Toronto winger Mitch Marner said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 gonna sting for a while.鈥�
Leafs head coach Sheldon Keefe was behind the bench for the 2020 post-season loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets in the bubble and a seven-game collapse against the Montreal Canadiens last spring after building a 3-1 lead 鈥� a pair of series where the group鈥檚 character was called into question by fans and media alike.
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There鈥檚 unlikely to be any such qualms in 2022.
鈥淭his one hurts more because this was a really good team that really played hard,鈥� Keefe said. 鈥淵ou can debate the merits of any sort of credit that you might want to give our team. But I don鈥檛 know if you can debate anything that you give the Tampa Bay Lightning, and who they are and what they stand for and what they鈥檝e accomplished.
鈥淎nd we鈥檙e right there standing with them.鈥�
Lightning captain Steven Stamkos said the series was one of the toughest his club has faced over the last three playoffs.
鈥淎 great hockey team,鈥� he said of the Leafs. 鈥淭hey鈥檝e got all the pieces. It鈥檚 not easy this time of the year.
鈥淲e鈥檝e had some failures in the past 鈥� you just move on and you just gotta get over that hump.鈥�
Down 1-0 after 20 minutes Saturday, the Leafs appeared to tie the game at 11:28 of the second when Tavares roofed a shot on Vasilevskiy, but the goal was disallowed after Toronto defenceman Justin Holl was whistled for interference.
Campbell had to make a couple of desperation stops on the ensuing penalty kill to set the stage for Rielly鈥檚 equalizer off setup from Marner and Matthews to score his third of the playoffs at 6:35 to send the crowd of 19,316 into a chaotic frenzy.
The goal was the first surrendered by Vasilevskiy and the Lightning in their last six series-deciding games.
William Nylander then missed high on a breakaway before the Tampa goaltender robbed Matthews with the Leafs buzzing.
Paul scored his second of the night 鈥� and second ever in the playoffs 鈥� moments later with 3:28 remaining in the period on a terrific play where he kicked the puck from his skate to his stick.
鈥淭he electricity in this building was nuts,鈥� said the native of Mississauga, Ont. 鈥淭o come in and work as hard as we did, there was no doubt in our game. We stuck together.鈥�
Vasilevskiy was under siege throughout a Leafs鈥� power play just over six minutes into the third, but kept the home side at bay despite some furious pressure.
Toronto continued to press inside an anxious, tension-filled rink as the clock ticked down.
The Leafs, however, just couldn鈥檛 find a way through with Campbell on the bench for an extra attacker.
鈥淟ots of reasons to be proud,鈥� Keefe said. 鈥淵et lots of reasons to be devastated and upset.鈥�
Toronto will rue the latter stages of Game 6 when Tampa didn鈥檛 have much going on down 3-2 in the third period until connecting on a long 5-on-3 man advantage following consecutive high-sticking penalties.
The Leafs then had plenty of chances to win the series in OT, but couldn鈥檛 capitalize before Point forced Game 7.
鈥淲e had opportunities to finish them in Game 6 and failed to do so,鈥� Keefe said. 鈥淭his one鈥檚 tough because I really feel like we鈥檙e a lot closer than it appears.鈥�
Tavares nearly opened the scoring early Saturday on a great chance in close where Vasilevskiy shot out his left pad before the 2019 Vezina Trophy winner denied Marner.
Campbell then held the fort on a Lightning power play on a couple of great looks.
Point, who scored the winner in Tampa鈥檚 Game 6 victory to extend the series, was injured late in the first when his right leg got caught underneath him as he fell to the ice. He tried to return after the intermission, but shut it down after a brief shift.
鈥淲hen Pointer got hurt it seemed to lock the entire team in,鈥� Lightning head coach Jon Cooper said. 鈥淚 don鈥檛 think we looked back.鈥�
Tampa went up 1-0 moments after Point was injured when Paul, who had a number of chances in Game 5 with his team ahead before Toronto roared back, scored his first.
Campbell made the initial stop on Ross Colton鈥檚 one-timer off the rush that nicked Rielly鈥檚 stick, but the rebound fell to Paul at 1:36 as Toronto surrendered the first goal for a fourth straight game.
The Lightning were playing in just their second Game 7 since the start of the 2020 playoffs after defeating the New York Islanders 1-0 in the semifinals last June.
Toronto鈥檚 last Game 7 at home with fans 鈥� the club鈥檚 2021 loss against Montreal was played in front of 550 health-care workers because of COVID-19 restrictions 鈥� was all the way back in 2004 when Joe Nieuwendyk scored twice to oust the Ottawa Senators for the team鈥檚 last series win.
The Leafs didn鈥檛 make the playoffs again until 2013 when they collapsed in Game 7 against the Boston Bruins. Toronto鈥檚 new generation of stars made the post-season for the first time in 2017, but has since suffered a string of heartbreak that continued Saturday.
鈥淏ecause the feeling is the same, the outcome is the same, whether or not there鈥檚 differences or more positives or whatever, it鈥檚 going to take some time to figure that out,鈥� Rielly said of if this sixth straight series loss.
鈥淯ltimately, the outcome is the same, which is very disappointing.鈥�
Keefe said the tone of the handshake line, however, was different from past playoff setbacks.
鈥淲e鈥檙e certainly earning respect in the league,鈥� he said. 鈥淏ut we鈥檙e not in the respect game. We鈥檙e in the winning game. We鈥檝e got to find a way.鈥�
That quest starts anew in the fall.
Joshua Clipperton, The Canadian Press
