Auston Matthews picks up assist in his return to the lineup as Maple Leafs top Lightning 5-3
Toronto Maple Leafs center Auston Matthews (34) gets ahead of Tampa Bay Lightning left wing Brandon Hagel (38) and center Anthony Cirelli (71) during the first period of an NHL hockey game Saturday, Nov. 30, 2024, in Tampa, Fla. Credit: AP/Chris O'Meara
TAMPA, Fla. — Auston Matthews picked up an assist in his return to the lineup and Joseph Woll stopped 38 shots as the Toronto Maple Leafs beat the Tampa Bay Lightning 5-3 on Saturday night
Chris Tanev had a goal and an assist and Mitch Marner added two assists. Nick Robertson, John Tavares and William Nylander also scored for Toronto. Matthews assisted on Nylander's empty-net goal in the third period after missing nine games with an upper-body injury.
Mikey Eyssimont, Jake Guentzel and Cam Atkinson scored for Tampa Bay, which was without leading scorer Nikita Kucherov.
Toronto led 4-0 in the third before the Lightning scored three goals in just over a six minute span, cutting its deficit to a goal with 2:22 left.
Takeaways
Maple Leafs: Toronto has allowed two or fewer goals in seven of the past 11 games. … The Leafs are 207-36-36 all-time when both Matthews and Marner register a point in the same game.
Lightning: Victor Hedman recorded two assists to become the franchise leader with 590 career assists, passing Marty St. Louis. … Kucherov is listed as day-to-day with a lower body injury. Kucherov missed the second period on Friday in Nashville, but returned for the third period and overtime.
Key moment
Robertson scored 33 seconds after Chris Tanev to give the Maple Leafs a 3-0 lead at 8:39 of the second period. The goal was the first for Robertson since October 22, a span of 19 games.
Tampa Bay Lightning left wing Brandon Hagel (38) falls into the goal while chasing the puck behind Toronto Maple Leafs goaltender Joseph Woll (60) during the second period of an NHL hockey game Saturday, Nov. 30, 2024, in Tampa, Fla. Credit: AP/Chris O'Meara
Key stat
Maple Leafs RW Mitch Marner reached the 30-point mark to become the fourth player in franchise history with at least 30 points in each their first nine seasons, joining Dave Keon, Mats Sundi and Borje Salming.
Up next
Toronto hosts Chicago on Monday to open a three-game homestand. Tampa Bay hosts San Jose on Thursday.
