The Lightning have the chance to three-peat this postseason — a feat only accomplished four times in NHL history.
Courtesy of @tblightning on Instagram.
By Candice Lovelace
The Tampa Bay Lightning secured a spot in the National Hockey League’s 2022 Stanley Cup Playoffs for their fifth consecutive playoff appearance after defeating the Anaheim Ducks in a 4-3 overtime victory on April 14.
The Lightning will defend back-to-back championships.
Tampa Bay came out strong in the first period, taking an early lead and scoring two goals –– the first by Ross Colton and the second by Alex Killorn.
The Ducks came flying back in the second period, scoring three goals in the first ten minutes to take the lead.
Lightning head coach Jon Cooper then pulled goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy from the game and replaced him with the team backup goalie Brian Elliott. After the game, Cooper said the goalie change was to help his team regain the momentum they lost and wasn’t necessarily a reflection of Vasilevskiy’s performance.
“I think, especially a guy like Vasy, whenever he gets pulled, it sends a message, for sure,” Killorn said.
A few minutes later, Killorn appeared to tie the game, but that goal was quickly overturned for being offside.
The third period had fans on the edge of their seats, as both teams fought hard in pursuit of victory. Both teams took turns as they rushed up and down the ice, shooting the puck on net.
With 12.3 seconds left in the game, Nikita Kucherov forced overtime with a tying goal, followed by an eruption of excitement at Amalie Arena.
In overtime, Killorn scored what was thought to be the game winner, but that goal too was offside.
With less than two minutes left in overtime, Anthony Cirelli skated around the back of the Ducks’ net and tucked the puck past the goalie’s skate off a pass from Killorn.
Fans cheered as the final buzzer sounded and the words “playoffs clinched” flashed across the Jumbotron.
Since clinching a playoff spot, the Lightning defeated the Winnipeg Jets 7-4 on April 16, the Toronto Maple Leafs 8-1 on April 21, the Nashville Predators 6-2 on April 23, the Florida Panthers 8-4 on April 24 and fell to the Detroit Red Wings 3-4 on April 19.
Although the team has officially punched their ticket to the playoffs, they still have three games left in the regular season — with one at home and two on the road.
The Lightning will play the Columbus Blue Jackets on April 26 at Amalie Arena, the Columbus Blue Jackets on April 28 and the New York Islanders on April 29 on the road.
The 2022 Stanley Cup Playoffs begin May 2.
