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Fans reacted as the Toronto Maple Leafs evened their first-round playoff series against the Boston Bruins with a hard-fought 3-2 victory on the road in Game 2 on Monday.
Auston Matthews led the charge for the Leafs, scoring the game-winning goal in the third period and adding two assists
Fans across social media praised the Maple Leafs and Matthews for the win over the Bruins.
One fan commented:
"Auston Matthews is god in human form." Over Matthews strong performance in this game.
Another fan gave a detailed observation on the Toronto Maple Leafs' win over the Bruins:
"The Leafs had to overcome the refs (7v5 all night) and some good play by the Bruins. Toronto earned this one. Matthews is an absolute warrior! He's unstoppable! He would've had 4 goals tonight if it wasn't for Linus. Gotta give credit where it's due to the Bruin's netminder"
Here are some fan reactions:
"AM showing up when it matters most." One fan wrote on X.
"Matthews played amazing. Big win for the boys." a user wrote.
"That’s a full 60 minutes! That’s the passion and heart. Well played. Hard fought victory! #Leafsforever" another fan wrote.
"LETS RIDE BOYS. 1/16TH OF THE WAY THERE. WE WANT THE CUP!!!!!!!" a fan wrote.
"Let’s freaking goooo stayed up till 6 am all the way from dubai go leafs go." a user wrote.
"The Franchise comes through." one fan wrote.
Max Domi and John Tavares also found the back of the net for the Toronto Maple Leafs, while goaltender Ilya Samsonov stood tall between the pipes, making 27 saves to keep the Bruins at bay.
On the other side of the ice, David Pastrnak and Morgan Geekie scored for the Bruins. Despite a strong 30-save performance from Bruins goaltender Ullmark, the Maple Leafs emerged victorious.
How Toronto Maple Leafs beat the Boston Bruins
The Bruins opened the scoring 10 minutes into the first period. Morgan Geekie capitalized on the power play, firing in a pass from Brad Marchand. However, the Leafs responded just 14 seconds later as Max Domi found the equalizer.
David Pastrnak restored Boston's lead with a late first-period goal, sending the Bruins to the break up 2-1.
In the second, Toronto appeared to tie it on a Tyler Bertuzzi power play goal, but it was called back on an offside challenge. Despite that setback, John Tavares would come through on the man advantage later in the period to make it 2-2.
Matthews got behind the Boston defense on a breakaway and skillfully deked goaltender Linus Ullmark to put Toronto ahead 3-2, which turned out to be the winner.
The Toronto Maple Leafs were missing top winger William Nylander due to an undisclosed injury. The Maple Leafs next face the Bruins on Wednesday in Toronto in Game 3.
