Nuts & Bolts: Lightning to face well-rested Stars in Game 1

SATURDAY'S MATCHUP
The Lightning and Dallas Stars are playing Game 1 of a best-of-seven Stanley Cup Final tonight...Tampa Bay and Dallas have never met in the Stanley Cup Playoffs...Both franchises are in search of their second Stanley Cup championship...The Lightning went 0-0-2 against the Stars during the 2019-20 regular season, both losses coming in overtime...Dallas rallied from a 3-1 deficit in the first meeting Dec. 19 at AMALIE Arena, Tyler Seguin scoring the game-winner three minutes into overtime...In the last matchup Jan. 27 in Dallas -- Tampa Bay's first game coming out of All-Star Weekend and its bye week -- Steven Stamkos scored a pair of goals, including a tying goal with 1:26 remaining in regulation, in a 3-2 OT loss, Jamie Benn netting the winner at 2:07 of the extra session...Nikita Kucherov (0-3--3 pts.) led the Lightning for scoring during the 2019-20 regular season against Dallas...Steven Stamkos paced the Bolts for goals (2) versus Dallas in 2019-20...Andrei Vasilevskiy started both games against Dallas in 2019-20 and allowed seven goals in 55 shots for a 3.37 GAA and .873 save percentage...Tampa Bay is 16-20-5 with 3 ties all-time versus Dallas in 44 regular season matchups...Under Jon Cooper, the Lightning are 8-3-3 against Dallas, outscoring the Stars 55-42.

SATURDAY'S STORYLINES
Tampa Bay claimed the Prince of Wales Trophy as Eastern Conference playoff champions and advanced to the Stanley Cup Final for the third time in franchise history and first since 2015 (also: 2004)...The Lightning are aiming to win the second Stanley Cup in franchise history (also: 2004)...Tampa Bay is the first of the 10 NHL franchises to debut in the 90s or later to reach the Stanley Cup Final three times (Anaheim is the only other team to make multiple appearances, in 2003 and 2007)...The Bolts can become the first of the 10 franchises that debuted in the 90s or later to win multiple Stanley Cup Championships...The Lightning improved to 6-1 in games that required overtime in the 2020 postseason (includes Round Robin) following their Game 6 win; no team has played more overtime minutes in a single playoff year than Tampa Bay's 185:17 (previous most: NJD - 175:10 in 1994)...The Bolts' six overtime wins in the 2020 Playoffs are tied for the fourth most in a single playoff year in NHL history (most: MTL - 10 OT wins in 1993)...Tampa Bay became the first team in NHL playoff history to earn each of its first three series-clinching wins of a playoff year in overtime...Tampa Bay is 87-69 all time in the postseason and 50-37 under head coach Jon Cooper...The Lightning are 17-10 all-time in playoff series and 1-1 in the Stanley Cup Final.
HED OF THE CLASS
Tampa Bay defenseman Victor Hedman scored the game-tying goal in Game 6 at NYI for his fourth goal of the Eastern Conference Final and ninth of the 2020 Playoffs...Hedman led all players from both conferences for goals in the Conference Final round...Hedman's nine goals are tied for the second most overall in the 2020 Playoffs and most among NHL defensemen.
2020 PLAYOFFS NHL DEFENSEMAN GOAL LEADERS
1. Victor Hedman (TBL) - 9 goals (19 GP)
2. Shea Theodore (VGK) - 7 goals (20 GP)
3. Miro Heiskanen (DAL) - 5 goals (21 GP)
Hedman added to his Lightning franchise record for goals in a single playoff season by a defenseman and set a new franchise mark for most goals by a blueliner in a playoff series with his four Eastern Conference Final goals...Hedman's nine goals this postseason are tied for the third most by a defenseman in a playoff season in NHL history and the most since Brian Leetch notched 11 goals for the NY Rangers in 1994.
MOST GOALS BY A NHL D-MAN IN A PLAYOFF SEASON
1. Paul Coffey (EDM) - 12 goals (1985)
2. Brian Leetch (NYR) - 11 goals (1994)
T-3. Victor Hedman (TBL) - 9 Goals (2020)
T-3. Brad Park (BOS) - 9 goals (1978)
T-3. Bobby Orr (BOS) - 9 goals (1970
T-6. 4 defensemen tied with 8 goals
With his goal in Game 6, Hedman notched his 15th point of the postseason (9-6--15) to break his own record for most points in a playoff season by a defenseman in Lightning history.
MOST POINTS BY A TBL D-MAN IN A PLAYOFF SEASON
1. Victor Hedman (2020) - 9-6--15 pts. (19 GP)
2. Victor Hedman (2016) - 4-10--14 pts. (17 GP)
3. Victor Hedman (2015) - 1-13--14 pts. (26 GP)
4. Victor Hedman (2018) - 1-10--11 pts. (17 GP)
5. Dan Boyle (2004) - 2-8--10 pts. (23 GP)
Hedman is a finalist for the Norris Trophy for the fourth-consecutive season, the first four-time finalist since fellow Swedish defenseman Nicklas Lidstrom (2006-09).
TONY THE TIGER
Lightning center Anthony Cirelli scored the series-clinching goal 13:18 into overtime of Game 6 at NYI to record his first goal and point of the Eastern Conference Final...Cirelli became the 14th different player to score a playoff overtime goal in Lightning franchise history and the fourth to do so in a series-clinching game (also: Martin St. Louis - 2003 ECQF and 2004 ECQF; Brayden Point - 2020 1st Rd.; and Victor Hedman - 2020 2nd Rd.)...Cirelli netted the first playoff game-winning goal and playoff overtime goal of his career...At 23 years and 64 days old, Cirelli is the eighth-youngest player in NHL history to score an overtime goal to send his team to the Stanley Cup Final (best-of-5 series or longer)...Cirelli is no stranger to series clinching goals; he scored the overtime winner for the Oshawa Generals to win the 2015 Memorial Cup and played overtime hero again for the Erie Otters in the 2017 OHL Final to help the franchise clinch the J. Ross Robertson Cup in five games.
IN THE NIK OF TIME
Bolts right wing Nikita Kucherov tallied an assist on the tying goal in Game 6 at NYI to finish the Eastern Conference Final recording 2-8--10 pts. And scoring in five of the six contests...Kucherov led all skaters from both conferences for scoring in the Conference Final...Kucherov added to his franchise record for most assists in a playoff series and playoff season (20 assists in 19 GP) and tied his own mark for most points in a playoff series set previously in a 2018 1st Rd. series versus NJD (5-5--10 pts. in 5GP)... Kucherov's 20 assists are tied for third most by a primary winger in a single postseason in NHL history.
MOST ASSISTS BY A WINGER IN A PLAYOFF SEASON IN NHL HISTORY
1. Mark Recchi (PIT) - 24 assists in 1991 (24 GP)
2. Rick Middleton (BOS) - 22 assists in 1983 (17 GP)
3. Nikita Kucherov (TBL) - 20 assists in 2020 (19 GP)
4. Brian Bellows (MNS) - 19 assists in 1991 (23 GP)
Kucherov's 20 assists are tied for the 22nd most among all skaters in a playoff season in NHL history (most: Wayne Gretzky - 31 assists in 1988)...Kucherov recorded his 26th point of the 2020 Playoffs in Game 6 to pull into a tie with Brad Richards for most points in a playoff season in Lightning history.
MOST POINTS IN A PLAYOFF SEASON IN TBL HISTORY
T-1. Nikita Kucherov (2020) - 6-20--26 pts. in 19 GP
T-1. Brad Richards (2004) - 12-14--26 pts. in 23 GP
3. Brayden Point (2020) - 9-16--25 pts. in 16 GP
4. Tyler Johnson (2015) - 13-10--23 pts. in 26 GP
VASY FOR VEZINA
Reigning Vezina Trophy winner and 2020 Vezina finalist Andrei Vasilevskiy stopped 26-of-27 shots in a clinching Game 6 at NYI for his 2020 Playoffs leading 14th win of the postseason...Vasilevskiy's 14 wins are the second most in a single playoffs in TBL history.
TBL MOST GOALIE WINS IN A SINGLE PLAYOFFS ALL-TIME
1. Nikolai Khabibulin (2004) - 16 wins (23 GS)
2. Andrei Vasilevskiy (2020) - 14 wins (19 GS)
3. Ben Bishop (2015) - 13 wins (25 GS)
Vasilevskiy improved to 5-4 in potential series-clinching starts in the postseason...Vasilevskiy has allowed two goals or fewer in his last three starts and eight of his last nine...Vasilevskiy has allowed two or fewer goals in 13 of 19 starts overall in the 2020 Playoffs.
POINTING THE WAY
Lightning center Brayden Point returned to play Game 6 at NYI and blocked a career playoff high 4 shots in the series-clinching win...Point recorded 3-4--7 pts. during the Eastern Conference Final and has 25 points this postseason, tied for second most in the NHL.
2020 NHL PLAYOFF SCORING LEADERS
1. Nikita Kucherov (TBL) - 6-20--26 pts. (19 GP)
T-2. Nathan MacKinnon (COL) - 9-16--25 pts. (15 GP)
T-2. Brayden Point (TBL) - 9-16--25 pts. (17 GP)
THE ROAD AHEAD
Game 2 - Monday, September 21 - 8 p.m.
Game 3 - Wednesday, September 23 - 8 p.m.
Game 4 - Friday September 25 - 8 p.m.
Game 5* - Saturday, September 26 - 8 p.m.
Game 6* - Monday, September 28 - 8 p.m.
Game 7* - Wednesday, September 30 - 8 p.m.
\If necessary
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