Penguins fall to Maple Leafs in Toronto

Associated Press

toronto

Connor Brown broke a tie with 2:48 left and the Toronto Maple Leafs beat the Pittsburgh Penguins 5-3 on Saturday night to wrap up their first playoff spot since 2013.

James van Riemsdyk, Tyler Bozak, Kasperi Kapanen and Auston Matthews also scored for Toronto, and Curtis McElhinney stepped in for an injured Frederik Andersen with 12 saves.

Toronto will play the Ottawa Senators in the first round of the playoffs if the Maple Leafs pick up at least a point in their season finale against Columbus on Sunday.

Phil Kessel, Sidney Crosby and Jake Guentzel scored for Pittsburgh, and Marc-Andre Fleury gave up four goals on 30 shots.

Tension was evident in the Air Canada Centre crowd early given the stakes for the hometown Leafs.

It was a member of the last Leafs playoff squad in 2013 who opened the scoring, Kessel beating Andersen for his 23rd goal of the season six minutes in.

Before his goal was even announced the Leafs struck back with Kessel’s former linemate, van Riemsdyk, evening the score at one. Van Riemsdyk gained control of the puck by batting down Bozak’s pass with one hand on his stick as he crossed the blue line. He then danced around Penguins defenseman Justin Schultz and beat Fleury for his 27th goal.

Things turned dicey for the Leafs though two minutes into the second when Andersen was bumped in the head by the hip of Penguins forward Tom Sestito. Clutching his head, Andersen stayed down on the ice in obvious discomfort and after undergoing consultation with a team trainer, left the ice.

Two weeks earlier, in a game against Buffalo, Andersen was bumped in the head by Sabres forward William Carrier and forced to sit out a start with an undisclosed injury.