Lightning oust Rangers in Game 6 to reach 3rd straight Stanley Cup Final
The Tampa Bay Lightning eliminated the New York Rangers with a 2-1 victory in Game 6 on Saturday to reach the Stanley Cup Final for the third consecutive season.
Tampa Bay will take on the Colorado Avalanche in the final looking to become the first NHL team to three-peat since the New York Islanders' dynasty of the early 1980s.
Lightning captain Steven Stamkos scored both goals in the dramatic win. His second came 21 seconds after the Rangers' Frank Vatrano tied the contest with 6:53 remaining in the third period.
"It's just going out and just playing as hard as you can for the next guy that sits beside you in that locker room," Stamkos said, per NHL.com's Chris Krenn. "That's why this group is so special."
Stamkos added: "We trust every guy that goes over those boards to do his job. Whether you score a goal or not, it's the little things that you do. It's the defending. It's the blocked shots. It's the sacrifice. It's not complaining about your role."
Superstar goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy made 20 stops in the win to continue his postseason dominance. In his last eight series-clinching games, the reigning Conn Smythe winner has a .991 save percentage along with a 0.25 goals-against average and six shutouts.
The Lightning became just the third team in league history to win at least 11 consecutive playoff series. The Islanders (19 from 1980-83) and Montreal Canadiens (13 from 1976-79) are the only teams to have won more.
The Stanley Cup Final is set to begin Wednesday in Denver.
Colorado finished the regular season as the top team in the Western Conference with 119 points. The club is 12-2 so far in the playoffs.
"Probably the best team in the league," Stamkos said of the Avalanche, according to The Athletic's Joe Smith. "We’re going to have our hands full."