Lightning strike early, beat Maple Leafs 7-3 to even series
Ross Colton scored twice, Andrei Vasilevskiy had 22 saves and the Tampa Bay Lightning got off to a fast start and beat the Toronto Maple Leafs 7-3 in Game 4 to even their first-round playoff series.
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Lightning Effect: Skilled NHL teams add grit to go for Cup
Rewind to 2019 and early 2020 and that description fits the Tampa Bay Lightning, who added some grit and toughness to their talented core and went on to win the Stanley Cup. The Lightning effect was clear as soon as NHL free agency opened. โYou need guys that are going to have a little bit of sandpaper. โWe maybe have taken a little bit of a step back from the most skillful lineup weโve ever had to more of a balance between the will and the skill," Poile said. We certainly have a little bit more physicality, a little bit more grit and I think itโs probably and hopefully a better mix than we had last year.โ___More AP NHL: https://apnews.com/NHL and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports