Lightning eliminate Bruins with 3-1 win
TAMPA, Fla. – Brayden Point and J.T. Miller scored second-period goals, helping the Tampa Bay Lightning beat the Boston Bruins 3-1 Sunday and advance to the Eastern Conference final for the third time in four years.
Andrei Vasilevskiy stopped 27 shots – 14 in the final period – for the Lightning, who rebounded from losing the series opener at home to eliminate the Bruins in five games.
David Krejci scored on the power play in the final minute of the first period to give Boston a 1-0 lead that Point erased with his unassisted goal at 10:43 of the second. Miller’s power-play goal broke the tie less than four minutes later, and Anton Stralman added an empty-netter with 1:29 remaining to end any chance for a Boston comeback.
One day after being put “on notice” by the NHL for licking Lightning forward Ryan Callahan during Friday night’s overtime loss in Game 4, there were no more such incidents involving Bruins winger Brad Marchand, who also made headlines after appearing to lick Toronto’s Leo Komarov in the first round.
Marchand was given an edict Saturday to stop licking opponents or face a possible fine or suspension for future incidents.
Golden Knights 3, Sharks 0
SAN JOSE, Calif. – Marc-Andre Fleury made 28 saves in his fourth shutout of the playoffs and the expansion Vegas Golden Knights are headed to the Western Conference Final in their inaugural season after beating the San Jose Sharks 3-0 in Game 6 of their second-round series.
Jonathan Marchessault opened the scoring, Nate Schmidt added an insurance goal that was only detectable by replay and Cody Eakin sealed it with an empty-netter to help Vegas become just the third team in NHL history to win multiple series in its first season.
The Golden Knights relied on a crew of castoffs, led by a goalie who was part of three Stanley Cup-winning teams in Pittsburgh before headlining a new team. Fleury posted shutouts in Games 1 and 6 against the Sharks and was also spectacular in an overtime win in Game 3. Next up for Fleury and Vegas will be the Western Conference Final against either Winnipeg or Nashville. The Jets lead that series 3-2 heading into Game 6 on Monday night.