Leafs take command of series with game 4 win

*Photo from the Toronto Star*

Toronto leads series 3-1

   In game 4, what led the Toronto Maple Leafs to victory was not their young core, but their older veteran faces. Jason Spezza scored, Joe Thornton and Alex Galchenyuk scored, and the Maple Leafs defeated the Montreal Canadiens 4-0 Tuesday night.

   Jack Campbell got the win in net for the Maple Leafs, stopping all 32 shots he faced from Montreal to record the shutout, his first career playoff shutout. Campbell's strong play is a big reason that Toronto is where they are right now, which is on the brink of the second round with a commanding 3-1 series lead against the Canadiens.

   Campbell said of his playoff success so far that "I think the guys just did a great job in front of me. I mean, we just stuck to our game plan, got a nice lead and then everybody was just battling. So it's not always the prettiest, but we battled until the end."

   It was William Nylander who scored first for Toronto, making it a 1-0 lead 1:27 into the second period, scoring in 4 straight games. At 12:28, Spezza scored on a great pass from Galchenyuk to make it 2-0 Leafs. About two and a half minutes later, Thornton converted on the power play and the Leafs grabbed a 3-0 lead. With 3:31 remaining in the game, Galchenyuk scored to make it a 4-0 lead, sealing the win.

   Spezza said of the important game 5 coming up that "We're going to see their absolute best next game and we have to make sure that we're ready to go. It's important we get some rest here after a tough back-to-back, and then we've got to come ready to play because they're going to be a determined team. The fourth win is the hardest to get."

   Carey Price suffered his 3rd straight loss in net for the Canadiens, stopping 24 out of 27 shots in the defeat. Montreal is now one loss from elimination, and needs a win any way they can get one, in order to keep their season going. 

   Montreal forward Joel Armia said "I think we just need to forget about this one quick. It's not over yet. I feel like we have a good atmosphere in the locker room. Everybody knows that it's not over and we're going to work hard for the next game."

   Game 5 is on Thursday night in Toronto, with Campbell and Price facing off.