Sergei Bobrovsky makes 31 saves, Panthers beat Lightning 6-1 to advance to 2nd round
Sergei Bobrovsky made 31 saves, Aleksander Barkov and Carter Verhaege each had two goals and an assist, and the Florida Panthers beat the Tampa Bay Lightning 6-1 in Game 5 on Monday night to clinch their first-round series and advance in the NHL playoffs.
Steven Stamkos scores twice, Lightning avoid elimination with 6-3 victory over Panthers
Steven Stamkos scored his fourth and fifth goals of the series and the Tampa Bay Lightning avoided elimination with a 6-3 victory over the Florida Panthers in Game 4 of the first-round playoff matchup Saturday night.
Kadri scores in OT in return, Avs move to brink of title
Nazem Kadri scored at 12:02 of overtime โ perhaps with too many Colorado players on the ice โ and the Avalanche beat Tampa Bay 3-2 on Wednesday night in Game 4 of the Stanley Cup Final to move within a victory of dethroning the two-time defending champion Lightning.
Martin, Pulock help Isles top Lightning 3-2 to tie series
Matt Martin capped New Yorkโs three-goal second period, Ryan Pulock made a diving stop in front of an open goal in the closing seconds and the Islanders held on to beat the Tampa Bay Lightning 3-2 to even their Stanley Cup semifinal series at two games apiece.
Point scores again, Lightning beat Islanders 2-1 in Game 3
Brayden Point kept up his scoring touch with a tiebreaking goal late in the second period, Andrei Vasilevskiy stopped 27 shots and the Tampa Bay Lightning beat the New York Islanders 2-1 on Thursday night to take a 2-1 lead in the Stanley Cup semifinals.
Kucherov shines, Lightning beat Islanders 4-2 in Game 2
Brayden Point and Ondrej Palat delivered early goals and NHL playoff scoring leader Nikita Kucherov had three more assists to help the Tampa Bay Lightning rebound from a series-opening loss and beat the New York Islanders 4-2 in Game 2 of the Stanley Cup semifinals.
Hours after Dubois trade, Blue Jackets beat Lightning 5-2
Columbus Blue Jackets players celebrate their goal against the Tampa Bay Lightning during the first period of an NHL hockey game Saturday, Jan. 23, 2021, in Columbus, Ohio. (AP Photo/Jay LaPrete)COLUMBUS, Ohio โ Hours after trading disgruntled center Pierre-Luc Dubois, the Columbus Blue Jackets got three first-period goals and beat the Tampa Bay Lightning 5-2 Saturday. Nick Foligno, Mikhail Grigorenko, Vladislav Gavrikov, Zach Werenski and Eric Robinson scored, and Elvis Merzlikins had 30 saves as the Blue Jackets played their most explosive game of the season. The Blue Jackets tied it 17 seconds later when Foligno knocked in a rebound off Vasilevsky's stick. The Blue Jackets host the Florida Panthers on Tuesday and Thursday.
Stanley Cup: Stars and Lightning turn defense into offense
This is a Stanley Cup matchup for all of those who like their games to be a bit defensive. โIn todayโs NHL you need that for your team to be successful,โ Lightning defenseman Ryan McDonagh said Friday. โWe're not surprised,โ Stars defenseman John Klingberg said. ... Heโs doing it all right now.โThe Stars signed 14-year veteran Andrej Sekera as a free agent last summer, and he is finally in his first Stanley Cup Final with his fifth team. โEveryone is obviously very hungry to go all of the way,โ said Hedman, part of Tampa Bay's loss to the Chicago Blackhawks in the Stanley Cup Final five years ago.
Stars, Lightning meet in nontraditional Stanley Cup Final
EDMONTON, AB โ The leaves are starting to change color around the NHL playoff bubble, and, at most, seven games remain before the Stanley Cup is handed out. On Saturday night, two of the league's southernmost teams begin a Stanley Cup Final like none other in the great white north when the Dallas Stars and Tampa Bay Lightning face off in Game 1. โThis is unlike any other Stanley Cup final where weโd get days rest,โ coach Jon Cooper said. Some things to watch in the Dallas-Tampa Bay Stanley Cup Final:RUSSIAN GOALIESIt's the first time in NHL history that the final features two Russian starting goaltenders. Nikolai Khabibulin is the only Russian goalie to win the Stanley Cup when he did so with Tampa Bay in 2004.
Racial injustice not forgotten as NHL resumes playoffs
EDMONTON, AB Before playoff hockey returned to its usual intensity, the NHL and its players took time Saturday to highlight racial injustice and the sport's role in confronting it. What we did was the best thing for not only our two teams but I think for the NHL, and we stand by it, Horvat said. Vigneault had said in previous days he wasn't aware of anything going on outside the NHL bubble, including racial injustice protests in other sports. I never bothered to ask or check with anyone what was going in the world or the NBA. Being on the ice, you want to win hockey games, Tampa Bay captain Victor Hedman said after his team won to take a 3-1 lead in the second-round series.
Familiarity breeds respect among NHL East playoff teams
TORONTO, ONT Tampa Bay coach Jon Cooper took exception to the Columbus Blue Jackets being referred to as a blue-collar team. Is that a positive or a negative? Cooper said Monday, a day before his Eastern Conference second-seeded Lightning open the first round of the NHL playoffs against the seventh-seeded Blue Jackets. Thats in the history books forever, Cooper said, noting how both teams have made various changes to their lineups. Id call them a really good team.Familiarity is breeding respect among the East opponents entering the first round. The Islanders hold a 5-2 playoff series edge over Washington.