TORONTO — For the first time in his life, Steven Stamkos was booed by his hometown crowd at the Air Canada Centre.
It wasn’t loud, or long. Just a smattering of Maple Leafs fans who Tuesday night voiced what sounded like mild disappointment, as opposed to outright anger, that Stamkos spurned Toronto to re-sign with the Lightning in June.
“It motivates you a little bit when you hear that stuff,” Stamkos said, smiling.
Stamkos silenced those critics in a hurry.
Stamkos scored two goals on his first two shots, matching a career high with four points to lift the Lightning to an entertaining 7-3 win over the Maple Leafs.