The Backcheck: A gutting OT loss for the Bolts in Game 4

Uncharacteristic.
That's the word that comes to mind when attempting to summarize the Tampa Bay Lightning's collapse in Game 4 of their First Round series vs. the Toronto Maple Leafs Monday night at AMALIE Arena.

Going into the third period with a 4-1 lead, it was hard to imagine the Bolts heading north to Canada with anything other than an even series at two games apiece.
But in the short span of six minutes and 20 seconds, the game got flipped on its head with three consecutive goals by the Maple Leafs, followed by the overtime winner just 4:14 into the extra frame.
"We sat back a little bit too much," said Lightning forward Anthony Cirelli. "Credit to them. That's a really good team over there.

"They pushed and they were putting pucks on net. I think we were sitting back a little bit too much and kind of got away from our game with what we were doing in the first two periods."
In arguably the biggest game of the season, the Lightning came out flying in the first period and went into the intermission with a 2-0 lead off goals from Alex Killorn and Mikhail Sergachev.
Tampa Bay outshot Toronto 12-5 in the opening frame and, according to Natural Stat Trick, out-chanced the Leafs 15-3 at 5-on-5 in the opening 20 minutes, including a 6-1 advantage in high-danger scoring chances.
Toronto got on the board at the 4:51 mark of the second with a deflection from Noel Acciari that got past Andrei Vasilevskiy and made it 2-1.
But the Bolts kept playing their game and answered back at the 11:31 mark of the second when a pass from Victor Hedman deflected off the skate of Steven Stamkos and past Ilya Samsonov to make it a two-goal game again.
Then, with 1:11 remaining in the second period, Killorn gave Tampa Bay a 4-1 lead when he took a pass from Brandon Hagel and fired a beautiful shot to the far side, off the post and in, for his second goal of the contest.
Going into the third period with a 4-1 lead in the postseason feels like it should be an automatic win for the Lightning, especially on home ice. But not on Monday night.
Toronto got three straight goals from Auston Matthews, who scored back-to-back goals at the 9:44 and 12:29 marks, as well as Morgan Rielly who tied the game 4-4 with 3:56 remaining.
"Guys were trying," said Tampa Bay head coach Jon Cooper. "I think maybe there was a little bit of a mindset of, 'We'll just close this one out.'

"Obviously, Toronto had different ideas. Good for them. It's hard to come back on the road in a playoff game and they did. Gotta give them credit for it."
After Mikhail Sergachev was whistled for tripping 2:28 into overtime, Mark Giordano fired a shot from the point on the power play that was redirected by Alexander Kerfoot and past Vasilevskiy to complete the comeback for the Leafs and give them a 3-1 series lead.
"We've got to do a better job of being in front, tying up sticks, ultimately getting in lanes and trying to get those blocks," said Bolts forward Anthony Cirelli. "They do a good job of getting them through, but that's a big thing we've got to focus on for next game is tying up those sticks."
Saturday's loss in Game 3 was tough. The Lightning dominated for most of the contest and still fell in overtime.
Monday's loss in Game 4 was more of the same. Tampa Bay played fantastic, but surrendered three straight goals near the end of regulation and paid the price in overtime.
It's uncharacteristic. In past years, the Bolts going into the third period with just a one-goal lead felt like an insurmountable comeback for the opposition. Giving up a three-goal lead to an opponent in the third period sounds almost impossible for an experienced group like the Lightning.
But, unfortunately, it happened. The Bolts have now allowed three or more goals in all of the four playoff games this season. Three of those games have featured four or more goals scored by the competition.
Cooper has insisted over and over that if his team can make sure to give up two or less goals, there's a great chance they'll win the game. That hasn't been there thus far for Tampa Bay.
"We've done a ton of good things and we've scored enough goals to win," Cooper said. "In the end, you've got to keep them out of the net. You can't be giving up this amount of goals.
"You put four on the board, that should be a win. We didn't. In the end, you've got to defend, and you've got to keep the puck out of your net.

"We didn't do it enough. Again, credit to the Leafs."
Now, the Lightning have their back against the wall. With Game 5 set for Thursday night in Toronto, the Bolts will have to earn a victory to keep their season alive. That starts with having a short memory and forgetting that agonizing feeling of defeat.
"Win or lose, you've just got to forget about the last game, and you've got to move on," Cirelli said. "We did some good things in this game, for sure. We'll regroup tomorrow.
"We'll watch some video. We'll see what we can be better at and be ready to go for Game 5."
Never count the Lightning out. If Toronto can win three games in a row, can't the Bolts?
It will not be an easy task, especially given the elite skill that the Leafs have, but it's certainly possible.
That whole process begins now. Game 4 is over. There's no point in looking back at the past anymore. All focus has to be on Game 5.
"It's a short memory for us," Cirelli said. "It's in the past now. We've got to move on."
The Bolts will fly up to Toronto on Wednesday following practice and take on the Leafs in Game 5 Thursday night. Puck drop is set for 7 p.m. ET at Scotiabank Arena.