Final
Lightning even series with rout of Pens
Apr 16, 2011 - 2:55 AM Pittsburgh, PA (Sports Network) - Eric Brewer ignited a three-goal first period and collected two assists, powering the Tampa Bay Lightning to a 5-1 victory over the Pittsburgh Penguins in the Game 2 of their Eastern Conference quarterfinal series at Consol Energy Center.Vincent Lecavalier and Martin St Louis both scored power-play goals and Simon Gagne recorded three helpers for fifth-seeded Tampa Bay, which rebounded from Wednesday's 3-0 loss.
Dwayne Roloson turned aside 35 shots to notch his first postseason win in five years, when the veteran goaltender backstopped Edmonton to the 2006 Stanley Cup Final before a knee injury in the opener put him on the shelf. The Oilers wound up losing to Carolina in seven games.
Craig Adams supplied the lone goal for the fourth-seeded Penguins, who got only 16 saves from Marc-Andre Fleury.
"I don't want to get too excited. It's one game and we know [Fleury's] going to bounce back and be solid for his team the next game," said Tampa Bay head coach Guy Boucher.
Pittsburgh finished 0-for-7 on the power play and is 0-for-13 with the man advantage through the first two games of this series, which shifts to Tampa for Games 3 and 4. The Lightning will look to grab a 2-1 series lead when they host the Penguins on Monday at St. Pete Times Forum.
After Fleury made 32 saves to stymie Tampa Bay in the opener, the Lightning erupted for three goals in the first period Friday.
Skating 4-on-4, Gagne, who has played more playoff games than any other Lightning player with 92, made a pass to spring Brewer on a 2-on-1 rush with Nate Thompson. Brewer carried the puck down the right wing and snapped a shot that beat Fleury glove side at 2:02.
Lecavalier converted a feed from Gagne through the crease at 6:53, then Thompson banged home the rebound of a Steve Downie shot to put Tampa Bay up 3-0 with 2:58 remaining.
"We knew what to expect tonight. We knew they were going to come out the way they did," said Pittsburgh forward James Neal.
Pittsburgh capitalized on a Roloson gaffe to get on the board. A dump-in near the trapezoid gave the netminder trouble as he was forced to leave it and backpedal to his crease. Penguins forward Arron Asham pushed the puck on goal and a trailing Adams buried the rebound at 9:08 of the second period.
Even though the Penguins controlled play for most of the middle frame, they still found themselves down three heading into the third after St. Louis snuck a bad-angle shot from the corner behind Fleury with 14 seconds left.
Mattias Ohlund picked up a short-handed empty-net goal to seal the win with just over two minutes to play.
Game Notes
Tampa Bay improved to 4-1 all-time in Game 2s on the road...The Lightning haven't lost the first two games of a series since the 2003 semifinals against New Jersey...Pittsburgh was 0-19-1 when trailing after two periods during the regular season.
- TAMPA BAY: 5
PITTSBURGH: 1
Final
Apr 15 9:41 PM - Tampa Bay Short-Handed Empty Net Goal - Mattias Ohlund, at 17:55.
Lightning 5, Penguins 1 3rd - 2:05Apr 15 9:34 PM - TAMPA BAY: 4
PITTSBURGH: 1
End of 2nd
Apr 15 8:44 PM - Tampa Bay Power-Play Goal - Martin St. Louis, at 19:46.
Lightning 4, Penguins 1 2nd - 0:14Apr 15 8:43 PM - TAMPA BAY: 3
PITTSBURGH: 0
End of 1st
Apr 15 7:48 PM - Tampa Bay Power-Play Goal - Vincent Lecavalier, at 6:53.
Lightning 2, Penguins 0 1st - 13:07Apr 15 7:25 PM - TAMPA BAY: 0
PITTSBURGH: 0
1st Period - 20:00
Apr 15 7:10 PM
Related News
- The week ahead: Penguins have opportunity for big — and important — week Dec 26
- Pens Points: Holiday Hangover Dec 26
- Celebrating the holiday with the Penguins’ Christmas-themed videos of the past Dec 24
- Pens/Sens Recap: Pittsburgh plays well in one period, salvage one point in Ottawa Dec 23
- Gamethread: Pens @ Sens Dec 23
- Game Preview: Pittsburgh Penguins @ Ottawa Senators 12/23/2023 - Lines, how to watch Dec 23
- Thoughts on Thoughts: Pens looking for defense, Crosby tinkering with stick pattern Dec 22
- Penguins weekly stock report: Alex Nedeljkovic gets on a roll Dec 22
- Pens Points: Surviving the Storm Dec 22
- Penguins/Hurricanes Recap: Crosby only Pens’ goal scorer in game, shootout to lead team to victory Dec 21
- Gamethread: Hurricanes @ Penguins Dec 21
- Penguins players visit patients at UPMC Children’s Hospital Dec 21