Tampa Bay Lightning is no stranger to adversity.
The successive champions of the Stanley Cup found themselves in another difficult situation on Saturday night. And as they have done so many times in the past, the battle-tested group has risen to the occasion.
Lightning were pushed to the brink by the desperate Toronto Maple Leafs, but eventually came away with a 2-1 victory in Game 7 of their best series of seven.
Tampa Bay have already won nine consecutive playoff series since being swept away by the Columbus Blue Jackets in the first round of the 2019 playoffs, and this first-round series against Toronto proved to be one of their toughest trials during that period.
“It was a series of close combat. They have amazing players, “said Tampa defender Victor Hedman after the game. “Today’s match was close, it could have passed in both cases.”
But in the end, the game went to Lightning, despite a tough victory. Tampa Bay lost striker Braden Point due to an injury in the first period and although Point tried to return to the game in the second, he eventually failed to continue.
Lightning managed to withstand the loss of Point, which scored 28 goals in 66 games of the regular season this year.
With the loss of one of his best players, Tampa was once again forced to face a difficult situation.
“I don’t think you’ve done what we’ve done in the last few years unless you have players who can react the way you did,” Lightning head coach John Cooper said when asked about the team’s reaction. his to Point’s injury. “They’ve done it over and over again, and we shouldn’t be surprised that they did it.”
Although Tampa may be a team with a lot of experience in the playoffs, it was a player who played in his first game 7, striker Nick Paul, who provided Lightning with a spark. Paul scored both of Tampa’s goals, the first two in his playoff career.
It was an appropriate breakthrough for the striker in depth, after his teammate Corey Perry spoke earlier on Saturday morning about how Game 7 could be a chance for players to make a name for themselves. However, Paul was quick to spread the credit to his teammates.
“These are the plays that happen around him, you know?” Paul said. “Obviously it’s a team game. I was the one who eventually put it online, but everyone on the ice was doing the plays. “
The road to the New York Islanders’ first three-peat since the 1982 NHL will not be easier for Lightning in the second round as they continue to play with the Florida Panthers in the state clash. The lightning beat the Panthers in the first round of last year’s playoffs.
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