Halliday's third-period goal lifts Senators past Maple Leafs in opener
Stephen Halliday scored the winner at 9:46 of the third period in Ottawa’s 3-2 victory at Toronto.
What's newToronto coach Jim Hiller pointed to missed chances and costly penalties after Ottawa's 3-2 win.
Ottawa opened its regular season with a 3-2 victory over Toronto at Scotiabank Arena on Saturday, Oct. 3. Stephen Halliday supplied the deciding goal at 9:46 of the third period, breaking a 2-2 tie.
Halliday finished a rebound from Fabian Zetterlund's shot after a Maple Leafs penalty had expired. Linus Ullmark stopped 27 shots for the Senators; Sergei Bobrovsky made 26 saves for Toronto.
Thomas Chabot collected a goal and an assist in his first game as Ottawa captain. He put the Senators ahead at 18:52 of the opening period, converting a rebound following Shane Pinto's shot and Claude Giroux's deflection.
Toronto answered twice in the second period. Auston Matthews redirected Morgan Rielly's point shot 33 seconds into the period. At 7:06, Kirill Marchenko scored his first goal for the Maple Leafs on a power play, taking Darren Raddysh's pass and beating Ullmark with a backhand.
Michael Amadio brought Ottawa level at 12:40, finishing a pass from Tim Stützle on a 2-on-1. Ullmark later denied William Nylander with his right toe to preserve the tie before Halliday's third-period winner.
Toronto coach Jim Hiller pointed to repeated shots off the posts and crossbars after the loss, Sportsnet reported. Matthews said the Maple Leafs were moving the puck better, particularly on the power play, but had missed chances to score. Hiller also told NHL.com that careless third-period penalties shifted momentum toward Ottawa.
Ottawa was the final NHL club to begin its season. Toronto fell to 1-2-0, with a one-goal margin in each of its first three games.
