The Maple Leafs made those plays in Game 1. Game 2 was not a completely different game, but this time it was the Leafs making the critical mistakes. One or two errors each period swung the game in Tampa’s direction, and ultimately, they buried Toronto in a hole so deep that they couldn’t recover.
Game 1 was, as I described it then, a best-case scenario for the Leafs. Everything went perfectly, and the Leafs delivered the proverbial punch that knocked Tampa to the ground.
The expectation was a better Lightning squad would brush themselves off and push back in Game 2, and while that was indeed the case, I wouldn’t say that Tampa’s performance was overwhelming or suffocating in Game 2.