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Leafs lament Game 7 collapse: ‘You can’t lose that game’

Toronto Maple Leafs v Boston Bruins - Game Seven

BOSTON, MA - MAY 13: Cody Franson #4 of the Toronto Maple Leafs skates to the bench after losing in overtime to the Boston Bruins in Game Seven of the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals during the 2013 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs on May 13, 2013 at TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Jared Wickerham/Getty Images)

Jared Wickerham

For the Boston Bruins, it was a miraculous comeback. For the Toronto Maple Leafs, it was a devastating collapse.

The Leafs, having fallen behind in this best-of-seven Eastern Conference quarter-final series 3-1 only to force a seventh and deciding game back in Boston, had a three-goal lead with 11 minutes remaining in the third period of Monday’s Game 7.

Then came the collapse. Or maybe it was the comeback.

The Bruins scored three times in the final 10:42 of regulation to force overtime, before Patrice Bergeron scored in the first extra period to give Boston a 5-4 win on home ice.

The Bruins are off to the second round of the playoffs.

The Leafs will now contemplate what might have been.

“I don’t know what happened to us. You can’t lose that game,” said Leafs forward Phil Kessel, as per a tweet from Chris Johnston of Sportsnet.

“That’s definitely among the top five lows in your life... It’s just an empty feeling really,” said Leafs goalie James Reimer, as per James Mirtle of the Globe and Mail.