TAMPA, Fla. — The Tampa Bay Lightning saved their year, keeping their bid for a three-peat alive.
The two-time defending Stanley Cup champions rallied to conquer the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-3 in extra time on Thursday night, staving off elimination and forcing a winner-choose-all Video game 7 in the 1st round playoff collection concerning the Atlantic Division rivals.
Brayden Place scored the winning objective on a rebound with 1:56 remaining in the to start with added period of time, touching off a raucous celebration in the stands at sold-out Amalie Arena and handing Toronto a further crushing postseason blow.
Ondrej Palat, Anthony Cirelli and Nikita Kucherov also scored for the Lightning, who blew a two-target guide for the 2nd straight activity and trailed 3-2 coming into the third interval.
But in contrast to Tuesday night, when Toronto came from driving to gain Activity 5 at home, the Maple Leafs could not maintain off the reigning champs to assert their initially playoff collection gain in 18 decades.
Recreation 7 is Saturday in Toronto.
“All we did was obtain a different likelihood to maintain our period going,” Point claimed.
“It all will come down to one sport. … Those people are entertaining types to play in,” Cirelli additional.
The Lightning are seeking to come to be the very first group to capture 3 consecutive Stanley Cup titles given that the New York Islanders received 4 in a row from 1980-83.
The Maple Leafs, who’ve been eradicated in the 1st round every single of the earlier five seasons, are -for-their-final-8 in shut-out game titles as they chase their 1st postseason sequence get given that 2004.
“We experienced our appears in OT. Sad to say we weren’t the kinds to hard cash in on our chances,” Toronto’s John Tavares reported.
“We labored tricky all year to receive household ice, and we’ve acquired a great opportunity heading home in front of our admirers to try out to shut this issue out,” Tavares added. “Look ahead to the opportunity. It’s what the game’s all about.”
Andrei Vasilevskiy experienced 30 will save — nine in time beyond regulation — to strengthen to 18- in games subsequent a playoff reduction around the previous three postseasons.
“It’s about wins this time of the year, and this team has proved that we don’t treatment how it will get accomplished,” Lightning captain Steven Stamkos mentioned. “We just want to get it completed.”
Jack Campbell stopped 32 of 36 photographs for the Maple Leafs, whose fortunes shifted radically when they ended up whistled for two superior-sticking penalties inside of a 16-next span of the 3rd period of time.
The Lightning capitalized on the 5-on-3 electric power-play option, with Kucherov’s target earning it 3-3 halfway by means of the 3rd interval.
Particular groups also performed a position in Tampa Bay’s initial two objectives — Palat scoring even though skating 4 on 4 in the opening period of time, and Cirelli’s quick-handed purpose leaving the Maple Leafs with a two-goal deficit that Auston Matthews and John Tavares wiped out above the last 50 % of the second.
Matthews slice into the deficit with his fourth aim of the sequence. Tavares scored 2 times in the very last 34 seconds of the second period of time to place the Maple Leafs forward 3-2.
“I imagined we have been actively playing a superior 3rd time period up until finally they experienced the 5 on 3,” Toronto coach Sheldon Keefe explained.
“We were safeguarding our web nicely. We have been defending nicely. We were in fantastic placement. I beloved how we ended up actively playing,” Keefe included. “The 5 on 3 turns items, and then it took us a bit to definitely get our activity likely from there.”
The Maple Leafs rallied to win Sport 5 at home, overcoming an early two-intention deficit and scoring 3 instances in the third time period to earn 4-3 and choose a 3-2 sequence lead.
The Lightning, meanwhile, confronted elimination in a sequence for just the 2nd time about the previous three postseasons. The Islanders extended them to Video game 7 in final year’s conference semifinals, with Tampa Bay’s profitable 1- just before heading on to defeat the Montreal Canadiens in the Stanley Cup Remaining.
The defending champs the moment once again scored the first two plans Thursday night, with Palat getting gain of a turnover in the neutral zone to conquer Campbell on a breakaway and Cirelli using a spin shift to shake defenseman Mark Giordano and place Lightning up 2- with a brief-handed target at 10:46 of the second period of time.
Matthews scored significantly less than a moment later on, re-directing Giordano’s shot by weighty visitors and previous Vasilevskiy to trim Toronto’s deficit to 2-1. It appeared like a person objective might stand as a result of the end of the period until finally the Maple Leafs mounted a another cost in the final minute.
Tavares’ hard shot from the still left circle deflected off Vasilevskiy’s pad and up in excess of the Lightning goaltender to tie it at 2. His second aim gave the Maple Leafs the direct with just 8 seconds remaining in advance of the 2nd intermission.
With Toronto’s David Kampf and Alexander Kerfoot equally in the penalty box for higher-sticking, Kucherov — assisted by Point and Stamkos — sent his 2nd objective of the series.
The Maple Leafs outshot the Lightning 8-2 above the initially 11 minutes of extra time.
“We experienced plenty of prospects to end the video game and complete the series,” Keefe explained. “It didn’t go our way, but (there is) lots of belief in our group, and we’re excited to enjoy Game 7 on home ice in entrance of our admirers.”
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