Maple Leafs fans who left Air Canada Centre with five minutes remaining in regulation may have thought they were beating arena traffic, but they were really walking out on a scoring comeback that would end with a 3-2 overtime loss for their team.
Just two days after rallying from a two-goal deficit and defeating the Canucks 3-2 in a shootout, the same wounds were inflicted on Toronto.
MORE: The evolution of Auston Matthews
Late in the third period, spectators had every reason to think that the game was over, and not just because of Toronto's 2-0 lead. The Leafs are currently tied for the most wins when scoring the first goal of the game, totalling 20 on the season.
The Blue Jackets scored twice in the final 4:35, forcing an overtime that ended in a goal from Artemi Panarin that sealed the comeback for Columbus.
The @BlueJacketsNHL came alllll the way back, with a little help from @9Artemi.
— NHL (@NHL) January 9, 2018
Down 2-0 with less than 5:00 on the clock, Columbus rallied for the @EASPORTSNHL OT win. pic.twitter.com/xYufJvOmX2
James van Riemsdyk and William Nylander netted one goal apiece for Toronto, with 30 saves from Frederik Anderson.
"We lost the game but we didn't get on our heels at all so to me, it's not really concerning," Leafs coach Mike Babcock said to reporters following the game. "What's concerning to me more than that is we gotta learn. You gotta learn what it takes, you gotta learn how hard it is to get points."