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The Tampa Bay Lightning forced Game 6 in the Stanley Cup Final, which is scheduled for Sunday, following a 3-2 road win over the Colorado Avalanche on Friday night. Ondrej Palat snapped a 2-2 tie in Game 5 with just 6:22 remaining in the third period.
Palat has scored 12 career game winners in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, including three this postseason. He trails only Joe Pavelski (14) and Evgeni Malkin (13) for the most game-winning goals in the playoffs among active players. He has scored seven of his 11 goals during the 2022 Stanley Cup Playoffs in third periods.
The Lightning will look to force a winner-take-all Game 7 back in Denver on Tuesday. Only the 1942 Toronto Maple Leafs have rallied from a 3-1 series deficit in the Stanley Cup Final. Tampa Bay will have to match that feat to lift the Stanley Cup for a third straight year. Colorado is seeking the organization’s first championship title since 2001.
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TAMPA BAY 3 COLORADO 2 – Avalanche lead series 3-2
Ondrej Palat scored what held up as the game-winning goal with just 6:22 remaining in regulation to keep Tampa Bay alive the Stanley Cup Final. He is tied for the lead this postseason with three game winners.
Cale Makar, who tied the game 2:31 into the third period, had one goal and one assist for Colorado. He also had a game-high six hits along with five shots on goal.
Jan Rutta opened the scoring with his first goal of the 2022 Stanley Cup Playoffs at the 15:23 mark of the third period.
Valeri Nichushkin and Nikita Kucherov (power play) exchanged goals in the second period. Nichushkin’s ninth goal evened the score at 1-1 and Kucherov’s eighth during a 4-on-3 advantage gave the Lightning a 2-1 lead heading to the third.
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Nichushkin also added an assist, while Mikhail Sergachev and Corey Perry had a two-point performances as well with two helpers each.
Nathan MacKinnon, Steven Stamkos, Devon Toews and Victor Hedman got on the scoresheet with one assist apiece.
Nazem Kadri had a game-high seven shots on goal. MacKinnon and Kucherov both had six shots on target.
Josh Manson led all skaters with four blocked shots.
Andrei Vasilevskiy stopped 35 of 37 shots in the win.
Darcy Kuemper made 26 saves on 29 shots in the loss.
Tampa Bay’s Brayden Point and Colorado’s Andre Burakovsky sat out Friday’s match. They have both been sidelined since Game 2 due to injuries.
