Tampa, ‘Big Cat’ blank, oust Florida

NHL PLAYOFFS

LIGHTNING 2, PANTHERS 0

TAMPA, Fla. — The Tampa Bay Lightning are running out of superlatives to describe Andrei Vasilevskiy’s dominance.

The reigning Conn Symthe Trophy winner delivered another stellar playoff performance for the twotime defending Stanley Cup champions on Monday night, stopping 49 shots to beat the Florida Panthers 2-0 and finish a four-game sweep that sent them to the NHL Eastern Conference final for the sixth time in eight years.

Pat Maroon snapped a scoreless tie, batting Zach Bogosian’s shot down behind Panthers goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky before the puck trickled into the net a little

over six minutes into the third period. Ondrej Palat added an empty-net goal with 22 seconds left.

Vasilevskiy won his sixth straight game, a streak that began with the Lightning facing a 3-2 series deficit in the opening round. It was his sixth shutout in his past seven series-clinching wins.

The 27-year-old goaltender nicknamed “Big Cat” posted his 57th career postseason victory, moving into a tie with Tuukka Rask for 17th on the all-time list. He’s allowed one or fewer goals in 28 of 87 playoff starts.

When Vasilevskiy began this postseason by yielding three or more goals in Tampa Bay’s first six games against Toronto, Coach Jon Cooper said the Lightning’s confidence in him never wavered.

“I’m not so sure there’s much more I can say about him. It’s funny how the playoffs are five games into the Toronto series and you’re asking all these questions about what’s wrong with Vasilevsky,” Cooper said.

“It’s never a doubt in our locker room. A goalie’s job, if you want to be elite, is to give your team a chance to win. When a goaltender gives your team a chance to win, it comes in a variety of ways. Tonight, it was he wasn’t letting anything in. And we’ve seen that time and time again.”

The high-scoring Panthers, who averaged a NHLbest 4.11 goals per game while compiling the league’s best record during the regular season, were shut out for the first time all season. The Presidents’ Trophy winners finished with three goals in four games and wound up being outscored 13-3 in the series.

“They’re really good. I mean, they’re Stanley Cup champions for a reason, and their evolution of how they were once a high-flying kind of offensive team and they found their recipe how to win and they stick with it,” Florida interim coach Andrew Brunette said.

“Obviously, we aspire to be them, and this was another learning experience for us. We need to be better.”

The Panthers were eliminated from the playoffs for the second year by their instate rivals. The Lightning ousted them in the first round in 2021.

“It’s a tough pill to swallow. Getting swept is tough,” Florida’s Aaron Ekblad said. “It hurts. It stings. There’s no doubt about it.”

The Lightning joined the New York Islanders and Montreal Canadiens as the only franchises to win at least 10 consecutive playoff series. Their bid to become the first team in 40 years to capture three straight Stanley Cup titles will continue in the East final against either the Carolina Hurricanes or New York Rangers.

The Panthers became the first Presidents’ Trophy winners to be swept by a defending Stanley Cup champion in the playoffs since Edmonton breezed past Calgary on its way to another title in 1988.

AVALANCHE 6, BLUES 3

ST. LOUIS — Nazem Kadri scored three goals, including two during a four-goal second period barrage, and the Colorado Avalanche beat the St. Louis Blues on Monday night to take a 3-1 lead in their NHL Western Conference series.

Kadri’s outburst came after he received racist death threats on social media following a first-period collision with Blues goalie Jordan Binnington in Game 3 on Saturday night.

Kadri, who was booed heavily every time he touched the puck, skated towards the glass and appeared to salute the Blues fans after each of his first two goals, inciting even more jeers. It was his first career playoff hat trick.

Erik Johnson and Devon Toews also scored and Mikko Rantanen added an empty netter for the Avalanche, while Darcy Kuemper made 17 saves.

David Perron scored twice and Pavel Buchnevich had a goal and an assist for the Blues. Ville Husso, making his first start since Game 3 of the first round against Minnesota, made 31 saves.

The Avalanche took control of the game — and the series — with three goals in less than a two-minute span early in the second period.

Johnson got it going with his first of the playoffs at the 2:44 mark. Kadri gave the Avalanche the lead with his first at 4:07 and Toews scored 19 seconds later to make it 3-1.