Maple Leafs fans won’t be fooled into heartbreak during dominant Game 1

The Toronto Maple Leafs led the Tampa Bay Lightning huge entering second intermission of Game 1. Fans decided to take a victory lap.

The Toronto Maple Leafs are looking to end their Stanley Cup drought, which has gone on since they won it all back in 1967. Toronto hopes this is finally the year that it comes to an end. But, they have to get past the Tampa Bay Lightning in the first round. Tampa Bay, of course, have won the Stanley Cup the past two seasons.

Game 1 began on Monday, May 2, and Toronto got out to a 4-0 lead over Tampa Bay after two periods. Even so, Maple Leafs fans were not getting too far ahead of themselves. Instead of boasting, fans implored the team to keep it up in the third period.

Maple Leafs fans won’t be fooled into heartbreak during dominant Game 1

Maple Leafs fans have experienced tons of heartbreak in the playoffs as of late. Most notably was Game 7 of their first round series against the Boston Bruins in 2013, where they blew a 4-1 lead in the third period and lost 5-4 in overtime to be eliminated.

Toronto got off to the best possible start in Game 1, as Jake Muzzin got on the board late in the first period. That lead grew in the second period following goals by Auston Matthews, David Kampf and Mitchell Marner. In fact Marner’s goal was his first playoff score since 2019.

Matthews scored another goal in the third period to help clinch Toronto’s 5-0 victory and to take a 1-0 series lead.

The Maple Leafs are not only looking to win the Stanley Cup for the first time since 1967, but also to make it past the first round for the first time since 2004.