Joonas Korpisalo stopped 28 shots in his first playoff start, Cam Atkinson scored early in the third period and the Columbus Blue Jackets beat the Toronto Maple Leafs 2-0 on Sunday night in Game 1 of their best-of-five qualifying round series.
After Korpisalo matched Toronto veteran goalie Frederik Andersen through the first two periods, Cam Atkinson’s snap shot from the top of the right circle went under Andersen’s right arm 1:05 into the third.
“The initial release looked to be a little bit higher, and I reacted up and obviously I made a mistake and it cost us a goal and eventually the game,” Andersen said.
Columbus coach John Tortorella said it was a timely one for Atkinson, who missed time in February and March with an ankle injury.
“For a goal-scorer that has struggled a little bit as we’ve gone through, hopefully it will loosen him up a little bit,” Tortorella said.
Alexander Wennberg sealed the win with an empty-netter with 19 seconds remaining.