Maple Leafs Outscore Panthers

     The Toronto Maple Leafs handled the Florida Panthers 5-2 at Scotiabank Arena on Sunday night. The Panthers finished off a seven-game road trip that lasted two weeks. The Cats return home on Tuesday against the Montreal Canadiens. 

     Toronto(41-19-5) rocketed out to a 1-0 lead just 49 seconds into the first quarter. Morgan Rielly lifted a shot from the high slot for his seventh goal of the campaign. 

     Florida(44-15-6) tied it up 1-1 with 9:49 remaining in the first. Brandon Montour got his eighth goal of the year as he rifled a left-circle shot on assists from Sam Bennett and Jonathan Huberdeau. 

     The Panthers took a 2-1 lead at the 1:27 mark of the second period. Ryan Lomberg chalked up his sixth tally and Eetu Luostarinen had the only assist on the play. 

     The Maple Leafs regained the lead 3-2 later in the frame. John Tavares compiled power-play goals at 5:10 and at 11:12. He now has 22 goals in the 2021-22 season. 

     In the third period, the Leafs added more goals. Ilya Mikheyev got his 14th goal midway into the stanza at 9:12 for a 4-2 lead. Auston Matthews scored his 48th goal of the season into an empty net with less than one second left in the contest.