The Toronto Maple Leafs were defeated in the fifth and final game of their qualifying series against the Columbus Blue Jackets after a 3-0 loss Sunday night at Scotiabank Arena.
Sheldon Keefe’s men are thus eliminated, while those of John Tortorella advance to the playoffs. They will face the Tampa Bay Lightning in the round of 16.
Bubble-city residents were unlucky this summer, as the Edmonton Oilers also had to pack their bags from their Rogers Place after being knocked out by the Chicago Blackhawks.
Goalkeeper Joonas Korpisalo was perfect in front of Columbus’ cage, replacing injured Elvis Merzlikins. The Finnish goalkeeper resisted in front of the 33 shots of the opposing players to go for his second victory of the competition.
In addition to Merzlikins, the Blue Jackets were concerned about the state of health of defenseman Zach Werenski. The latter finally had the agreement of the doctors and proved that he was in no way affected by the pain by scoring the first goal of the match.
At 6:29 minutes into the first period, his shot deflected at defenseman Tyson Barrie, before making his way behind Frederik Andersen.
Young Liam Foudy added to the third twenty with his first career goal in the National Hockey League (NHL). His net allowed the Jackets to breathe better late in the game, as the team defended 6 against 5. Nick Foligno took the opportunity to score in an empty net.
Andersen only faced 22 shots in that game, blocking 20.
Jake Muzzin news
Leafs defenseman Jake Muzzin was forced to miss the last three games of the team’s season after sustaining an injury in Game 2 against the Jackets. Close to his net, the full-back had fallen head first against an opponent’s knee and was stunned.
“Jake is doing well, he finally finds a little freedom, indicated to LNH.com coach Sheldon Keefe, Sunday. He got out of his hotel room this morning for the first time and he skated. It’s obviously positive, considering what he’s been through. “
“We’re lucky to see him recover so quickly because we believed the worst when we saw him on the stretcher,” he continued. So it’s great to see him with us today. ”
The return to the game will however have to wait until the 2020-2021 season.
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