Maple Leafs and Lightning battle Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

Watch: Chaos ensues as Maple Leafs, Lightning superstars fight

By Adam Gretz | Last updated 4/22/23

Emotions boiled over in the third period of Saturday's Game 3 series between the Tampa Bay Lightning and Toronto Maple Leafs after Lightning star Brayden Point was injured on a questionable hit from Morgan Reilly.

That play kicked off a line brawl that saw superstars Steven Stamkos, Nikita Kucherov and Auston Matthews all earn fighting majors.

For Matthews, one of the NHL's top goal-scorers, it was the first fighting major of his NHL career.

First, here is a look at the play that started it.

Scary play as Brayden Point goes into the boards off of a play with Morgan Reilly. pic.twitter.com/6M9aTEYJs6
— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) April 23, 2023

That is a scary play at that speed and Point remained down on the ice in pain before skating off to the locker room. Reilly was initially given a five-minute major for boarding, but a review overturned that call as the on-ice officials and NHL determined it was not a penalty and simply a hockey play with an unfortunate result.

Before all of that was settled though, the Lightning took exception to Reilly's hit, resulting in a series of fights that included Stamkos and Matthews dropping the gloves. Just two of the three active players to score 60 goals in a single season going at it. Not something you ever really see.

Matthews with his first NHL fight and it’s against Steven Stamkos

: @BR_OpenIce pic.twitter.com/mpOsEOW96f
— TSN (@TSN_Sports) April 23, 2023

Point briefly made a return to the game for one shift, but did not skate again after that in the third period.

The fight sequence resulted in 24 total penalty minutes between the two teams, as Stamkos, Kucherov, Matthews and Ryan O'Reilly all received five minute majors for righting, while Kucherov and Reilly also received minor penalties for roughing as part of the fight

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