New York. In a few days, Toronto and Tampa will advance to the playoff round.
Last night, Toronto won the hot genre rope at the Amalie Arena.
“Considering that we also played yesterday and rested several of our best players, it was very strong of us,” says Sportbladet’s kicker Kale Jarnkrock after the 4-3 victory.
It wasn’t until this week that it got heated between the Leafs and the Lightning – who had known for several weeks that they would meet in the first round of the playoffs.
But it looks like the playoffs really got going in Tampa’s rope kind of thing last night. The intensity was high, the emotions were hot and the fight for every centimeter of ice was fierce.
– That’s what you can expect in a match like this, says Calle Järnkrok when we talk to him next.
– I think, as it should be, we know, as I said, that we shall soon meet again.
In the end, the Leafs pulled the longest straw and won 4-3 – despite the break of stars like Mitch Marner, Auston Matthews and Ilya Samsonov.
– Besides, we played yesterday too… It was strong of us to play such a good game, and still win, continues Jarnkrock.
– It feels good, we’re where we need to be, I guess.
The 31-year-old visitor, who eventually missed a number of matches through injury, scored the decisive goal himself at the end of the second half.
– Great, but above all it was nice to be able to play and get back into it before the playoffs started, he comments.
William Nylander also scored – and even played twice – and thus met Mika Zibanejad at the top of the Swedish Shooting League.
Both are now on 39 scores and will meet as a juvenile in the final round of the regular season in Manhattan on Friday night.
Thus, that match could become a direct battle for the title of “King of Swedish Shooting 2022-2023”.
Unless Elias Peterson and/or Adrian Kempe, both standing at 38, plan to squeeze the past into the queue…
