Stars force Game 6 in Stanley Cup final, beat Lightning in double overtime

The Lightning need another try to win the Stanley Cup. They fell in their first attempt, losing 3-2 to the Stars in double overtime in Game 5 on Saturday night in Edmonton.

The Lightning’s lead in the series was cut to 3-2. They have another chance to win the Cup in Game 6 on Monday night.

Stars forward Corey Perry scored his second goal of the game 9:23 into the second extra period to keep Dallas' season alive.

“It was a tight game,” said defenseman Mikhail Sergachev, who scored to give the Lightning a 2-1 lead early in the third period. “They had chances. We had chances. When we were up, we played a little more defensively, couldn’t hold the lead. (We) had a good first OT, parts of the second. It just didn’t go our way (Saturday).”

The Lightning believed they played well enough to win, it was just the Stars who scored first.

“That’s what happens in a double-overtime game,” coach Jon Cooper said.

Center Anthony Cirelli hit a post with four minutes left in regulation. In the first overtime, forward Tyler Johnson had a good look, and goalie Anton Khudobin made a save with the shaft of his stick. In the second overtime, Khudobin made a save with the blade of his skate on a redirect by center Brayden Point.

Perry opened scoring in the first period, capitalizing on a failed clearing attempt by Johnson. Dallas defenseman Jamie Oleksiak intercepted the puck and quickly fed it to center Tyler Seguin in the slot. Seguin couldn’t settle the puck, battling with Sergachev, but Perry came up from behind to grab it and score.

96 images

|

View gallery

Left wing Ondrej Palat tied the score for the Lightning in the second period. He took a pass from Point and skated in on the net, using a leg to hold off defenseman Esa Lindell, and then did some nice stickwork to get around Khudobin.

Sergachev put Tampa Bay on top in the third period with a near-perfect one-timer, a rocket with his feet on the blue line through traffic.

Stars forward Joe Pavelski tied the score at 2 with less than seven minutes left in regulation, once again seizing upon a failed clearing attempt, this time off a faceoff in the defensive zone. Pavelski hung around the right post as the play developed and jumped on a rebound, throwing the puck past goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy.

Perry ended the game midway through the second overtime, showing patience as he held the puck while Vasilevskiy tried to block it, then dumped it into the net.

Follow all the action on and off the ice

Subscribe to our free Lightning Strikes newsletter

We’ll send you news, analysis and commentary on the Bolts weekly during the season.

Loading...

You’re all signed up!

Want more of our free, weekly newsletters in your inbox? Let’s get started.

Explore all your options

The Lightning were matter-of-fact in discussing the game. They talk a lot about staying even-keeled, not riding the highs and the lows, and that’s what they did Saturday.

“Anytime you lose a game in the playoffs, you’re disappointed,” Cooper said. “But we’ve been pretty good at responding after losses. We’ve been doing this for two months, so we have a pretty good idea of what’s ahead of us and how to respond.”