Postgame: Leafs crack in third period, fall in shootout to Kings

USA Today Photos/ Gary A. Vasquez  

Oh wow.

WOWOWO. Wow. They blew it again.

On the brink of clinch a fine and very respectable 2-0 win against the 2-time Stanley Cup Champion LA Kings, the Toronto Maple Leafs fell 3-2 to the Los Angeles Kings in a shootout. 

ONCE AGAIN: Wow. They blew it again.

Well, could you fault the Leafs for this one? Absolutely you could.

The Leafs caught a 2-0 lead off a pair of goals by Tyler Bozak and Nikita Zaitsev.

With our own Managing Editor Jeff Veillette off the GIFs for tonight on his Vancouver Hockey Analytics Conference road trip, we’ve got a guest to provide you with the highlights.

Tyler Bozak scored just over 2 minutes into this one… before this happened in the second period.

 But if you’ve watched a Toronto professional hockey team in this millennium, the main thing you’ve probably picked up is that no lead is ever safe.

Anze Kopitar and Tanner Pearson found the back of the net in the third period to tie things up. UGH!

The major positive to tonight is that the Florida (computer boys) Panthers lost as well, making the Leafs still holding a playoff spot.

Not dominance, but not far away either. 66-61 CF in all situations for LA tonight.

Tough one for tonight, but Brian Boyle’s assist to go along with 50% CF% on 5v5 wins him the MCMVP.

The Leafs take on the Ducks at 10:00 p.m. Friday night in Anaheim. See you then.