TORONTO — Carter Verhaeghe broke a tie with two minutes remaining in the second period and the Florida Panthers defeated the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-2 in Game 1 of the second-round playoff matchup on Tuesday.

Anthony Duclair took advantage of an overcommitment from Maple Leafs defender TJ Brodie, found Verhaeghe in stride, and the Panthers forward buried the game-winning goal on a partial breakaway.

Nick Cousins, Sam Bennett and Brandon Montour also scored for the Panthers. Toronto’s Matthew Knies scored his first career goal on a spectacular between-the-legs move, while Michael Bunting also scored in the second period, briefly tying the game at two apiece.

Florida killed off two penalties during the opening seven minutes of the game and emerged unscathed. Cousins opened the scoring as Matthew Tkachuk waltzed past Mitch Marner — who was named as one of the three finalists for the Selke Trophy — got a shot off and Cousins tucked away the rebound. Tkachuk finished with three assists on the night.

Bennett deflected a point shot from Panthers defenseman Aaron Ekblad, building a 2-0 lead. It forced the Maple Leafs’ best response of the game as Knies scored a spectacular goal, receiving a feed from Auston Matthews, stopping abruptly in front of Sergei Bobrovsky and scoring with his back to the net. Knies received a pulsating ovation from the Scotiabank Arena crowd.

Bunting tied the game 2-2 after Calle Jarnkrok threaded a perfect pass through the Panthers’ defense in transition. Toronto’s optimistic comeback attempt was short-lived, however, as Verhaeghe scored nearly three minutes later and Florida never relinquished the lead.

Game 2 of the series is set for Thursday at Scotiabank Arena.

More to come.