William Nylander scored in the second and third periods as the Toronto Maple Leafs earned a 2-1 win over the visiting Boston Bruins on Thursday to even their Eastern Conference first-round playoff series at three victories apiece.
Game 7 is set for Saturday night in Boston.
Nylander broke the game’s long scoreless deadlock with 54.8 seconds left in the second before doubling Toronto’s lead on a breakaway with 2:13 to go in regulation.
Morgan Rielly assisted on both goals.
Before netting his first goal, Nylander had been on a 13-game scoring drought dating back to the regular season.
“(Nylander is) a heck of a game breaker,” the Maple Leafs’ John Tavares said. “When he’s got the puck on his stick, he can make something happen at any time. Two elite finishes for us tonight, obviously came at a great time in a huge way, so not surprising. We love having him here.”
Joseph Woll stopped 22 of the 23 shots he faced in his second straight start for the Maple Leafs, coming within 0.1 seconds of a shutout. He recorded 12 saves in the second period alone.
Morgan Geekie scored just before the final buzzer and Jeremy Swayman made 24 saves for the Bruins, who will play a first-round Game 7 after surrendering a 3-1 series lead for the second straight season.
Last year, the Bruins, who posted the NHL’s best record in the regular season, were ousted by the Florida Panthers in the opening round of the postseason.
Toronto played a tight game in the first period of a second straight game, holding a 12-1 shot advantage. Boston’s lone shot came on a Jake DeBrusk short-handed try at the 11:38 mark.
“I think (the Leafs’) defensive game was good in the first four games of the series,” Bruins coach Jim Montgomery told NESN. “I think where they’ve made a little bit of adjustments would be in the offensive zone, which has led to them having a little more O-zone time than previously.”
The Bruins’ penalty kill remained strong in the early going, especially when it was tasked with combating David Pastrnak’s double-minor penalty for high-sticking just 1:10 into the second. The hosts managed only two shots during the four-minute sequence.
Nylander’s go-ahead goal gave Toronto its first second-intermission lead of the series.
After Nylander was not called for a hit from behind on Boston defenseman Mason Lohrei that was followed by an immediate icing, Nylander curled at the right point, moved back into the circle and fired a wrist shot that deflected off a body in front and past a screened Swayman.
With a 1-0 lead, Woll thwarted one of Boston’s most dangerous stretches just before the 7:00 mark of the third. After Brad Marchand could not handle Geekie’s pass through to the crease, the Toronto netminder withstood a flurry and covered up two Charlie Coyle chances from tight range.
“Once they started to get their push, (Woll) looked extremely good,” Toronto coach Sheldon Keefe said.
Just over a minute after Swayman stopped a Max Domi breakaway, a chip-out and Matthew Knies feed led to Nylander jumping ahead for a backhand finish that doubled the Toronto lead with 2:13 left in regulation.
Geekie knocked home the Bruins’ goal in the crease in the final tenth of a second.
Toronto’s Auston Matthews, who led the league with 69 goals in the regular season, sat out a second consecutive game due to an illness.
–Field Level Media
