Vasilevskiy, Lightning beat Panthers 2-0 in Game 4 for sweep
Andrei Vasilevskiy had 49 saves and the Tampa Bay Lightning completed a four-game sweep of the Florida Panthers with a 2-0 victory that sends the two-time defending Stanley Cup champions back to the Eastern Conference final for the sixth time in eight years.
Kucherov leads Lightning over Canadiens 5-1 in Game 1
Playoff scoring leader Nikita Kucherov had two goals and an assist and Andrei Vasilevskiy finished with 18 saves to outplay Carey Price and lead the Tampa Bay Lightning to a 5-1 victory over the Montreal Canadiens in Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final.
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.
Bubble hockey champions: Tampa Bay Lightning win Stanley Cup
The triumph of winning the NHL championship in a bubble was certainly no less sweet for the Tampa Bay Lightning. He played 964 regular-season and 137 playoff games to get to this point, losing in the final twice before. Tampa Bay had Point and No. Coach Jon Cooper thought the attitude needed to change from wanting to beat every opponent 9-0 because thatโs not realistic in playoff hockey. ... Alexander Volkov made his NHL playoff debut for Tampa Bay, which also saw Patrick Maroon become just the eighth player to win the Cup in back-to-back seasons with different teams (St. Louis).
Lightning beat Stars 3-2 in Game 2, get even in Stanley Cup
EDMONTON, AB โ Nikita Kucherov and the Tampa Bay Lightning got themselves up off the ice to get even in the Stanley Cup Final. It was the first time in seven games Tampa Bay scored the opening goal. But Dallas interim coach Rick Bowness challenged that Tampa Bay was offside, and replay clearly showed that Blake Coleman was. ... Kucherovโs 28 points (six goals, 22 assists) are the most ever in a postseason for a Tampa Bay player. The Lightning have started all three of the Stanley Cup Final appearances the same way, losing Game 1 and then winning Game 2.
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.
Kucherov scores, Lightning top Sabres 3-2 in Sweden
Tampa Bay Lightning Brayden Point (21) take a shot as Buffalo Sabres' goalie Linus Ullman defends during an NHL hockey game in Globen Arena, Stockholm Sweden. (Anders Wiklund/TT via AP)STOCKHOLM Nikita Kucherov scored and Andrei Vasilevskiy made 20 saves to help the Tampa Bay Lightning beat the Buffalo Sabres 3-2 on Friday night in the first of their two regular-season games in the Swedish capital. Alex Killorn and Yanni Gourde also scored for the Lightning. NOTES: It was the 27th NHL regular-season game in Europe, 12th in Sweden and 11th at Ericsson Globe. UP NEXTThe Sabres and Lightning complete the two-game series in Stockholm on Saturday night.