Maple Leafs' playoff woes continue as Lightning embarrass Buds in series opener

Brayden Point scored twice as the visiting Tampa Bay Lightning humiliated the Toronto Maple Leafs 7-3 in Game 1 of their first-round playoff series Tuesday.

Nikita Kucherov and Corey Perry both added a goal and two assists for Tampa, while Anthony Cirelli and Ross Colton chipped in with a goal and assist each.

Pierre-Edouard Bellemare also scored for Tampa, which connected on four power plays. Andrei Vasilevskiy made 28 saves in his 100th playoff start.

Ilya Samsonov allowed six goals on 29 shots before getting replaced by Joseph Woll to start the third period. The rookie netminder finished with four stops.

The Lightning, who bested the Leafs in seven games at the same stage last spring on the way to their third consecutive Stanley Cup appearance, can take a 2-0 series lead Thursday back at Scotiabank Arena.

BRAYDEN POINT.<br><br>THAT'S IT. THAT'S THE TWEET. <a href="https://t.co/EetJeIAQV4">pic.twitter.com/EetJeIAQV4</a>

Toronto is desperately looking to end an ugly string of post-season failures that has seen the Original Six franchise fail to advance since 2004.

The Leafs have lost seven straight series dating back to 2013, including six in a row with the talented core led by Matthews, Marner and Nylander. Toronto captain John Tavares has gone 0-5 since signing on in 2018.

The battle-tested Lightning, meanwhile, won the Cup in both 2020 and 2021 before falling to the Colorado Avalanche in last year's final.

One team looked confident Thursday. The other froze at the first opportunity to once again — finally — flip its long playoff narrative that includes 55 years without a championship.

The Lightning, who struggled down the stretch without much to play for and knowing they were locked into a Toronto rematch, made it