Tkachuk scores, Senators trail Maple Leafs 2-1 after two periods of Game 2
Published
Brady Tkachuk scored in the second period for the Ottawa Senators as they trail the Toronto Maple Leafs 2-1 after two periods of Game 2 of their first-round series.
The Maple Leafs lead the best-of-seven series 1-0.
Tkachuk got the Senators on the board at the 15:41 mark of the period when his pass into the slot hit a Leafs defenceman and slid past goaltender Anthony Stolarz on the power play.
Nick Robertson was in the box for the Leafs as he took a high-sticking penalty at 14:43.
Leafs forward Calle Järnkrok took the first penalty of the second period at the 2:56 mark when he went to the box for tripping.
With two seconds left in the Järnkrok infraction, Stolarz and Senators forward Ridly Greig had an altercation that saw them both pick up offsetting minor penalties.
Morgan Rielly opened the scoring at the 3:44 mark of the period for the Maple Leafs.
The 31-year-old pinched down to the goal line and redirected a William Nylander pass into the net past Senators goaltender Linus Ullmark.
The defenceman has scored in both games of the series.
Nylander and Tavares both collected their second assists of the playoffs on the opening marker.
Tavares doubled the Leafs lead at the 8:20 mark of the frame when his centering pass deflected past Ullmark on the power play.
Nick Cousins drew into the lineup for the Senators in Game 2, he replaced Matthew Highmore, who played 9:10 and didn’t record a point in the series opener.
The Leafs captured Game 1 of the Battle of Ontario 6-2 on Sunday.
The Senators are in the playoffs for the first time since the 2017 Stanley Cup tournament.
That season they lost to the Pittsburgh Penguins in seven games in the Eastern Conference Final.
The Maple Leafs are playing in their ninth-consecutive postseason.