New York Rangers
The New York Rangers fell behind 1-0 after the Tampa Bay Lightning scored in the 1st-period, then they scored four unanswered goals to go on and rout the Lightning 4-1 — winning the Eastern Conference Final in 5 games. The Rangers will move on to face the Chicago Blackhawks in a Stanley Cup rematch of last season.
Tampa Bay won only once in Amalie Arena, taking Game 2 to tie the series after losing the series opener to the Rangers. Things went downhill from there, losing the next 3 to get eliminated from the playoffs.
Game 1 – NY Rangers at Tampa Bay, W 3-1
Game 2 – NY Rangers at Tampa Bay, L 4-1
Game 3 – Tampa Bay at NY Rangers, W 3-2
Game 4 – Tampa Bay at NY Rangers, W 3-2
Game 5 – NY Rangers at Tampa Bay, W 4-1 (box score)
In Game 5, the Lightning took their 1-0 lead into the 3rd period after a scoreless 2nd period. Five minutes into the final frame, Tarmo Reunanen blasted the tying goal past Tampa Bay goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy. Kappo Kakko would break the 1-1 tie at the 12:44 mark with his 5th goal of the playoffs. For insurance, Alexander Radulov and Filip Chytil added their 10th and 4th goals respectively.
Rangers goalie Igor Shesterkin made 29 saves to earn his 12th win of the postseason. In the 2021-22 season playoffs, Shesterkin won 16 games on way to a Stanley Cup victory. Lightning’s Andrei Vasilevsky finishes the postseason with a 9-8-1 record, 2.25 GAA and .925 SV%.
The Lightning’s aspiration of making it to the Stanley Cup Final for the third time in 5 years fell short. But, they can be proud of their complete turnaround from a disappointing 2021-22 season when they barely made it into the playoffs as the 8th seed.
