Lightning shut out Islanders in Game 7, advance to Stanley Cup Final

Andrei Vasilevskiy made 18 saves for the Tampa Bay Lightning in a 1-0 win against the New York Islanders in Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Semifinals at Amalie Arena in Tampa on Friday.

It was Vasilevskiy's second shutout in three games and helped the Lightning return to the Stanley Cup Final for a second straight season, where the defending champions will face the Montreal Canadiens. Game 1 is at Tampa Bay on Monday.
"We've come such a long way; I've been with this group for a while," Lightning coach Jon Cooper said. " … It's so [darn] hard to win in this league, but last year, I just found we could win in different ways, but in the end, just the warrior mentality this group had, and it was prevalent tonight. After a really tough loss the other night (in Game 6), you just can't count them out. They've just learned how to defend, and again another masterful performance in the defensive zone to win a huge Game 7 for us."

Yanni Gourde scored shorthanded for the Lightning, who have not lost consecutive postseason games since the 2019 Eastern Conference First Round (14-0), the longest such run in NHL history. Vasilevskiy has been in goal for each win, including 3-0 in this series.
"The last game, we tried to defend in Game 6, and this game we attacked the whole way, the whole game," Vasilevskiy said. "That was just a textbook Game 7."
Semyon Varlamov made 30 saves for the Islanders, who were trying to reach the Cup Final for the first time since 1984 but were eliminated by the Lightning in the third round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs for a second straight season. Tampa Bay won the 2020 Eastern Conference Final in six games.
"It [stinks] getting back to this point and coming up short again," New York center Mathew Barzal said. "We've got guys like [Josh Bailey] and [Andy Greene], veteran guys. Being a young guy, I've got a few more years, but those guys, it's more for those guys. It hurts seeing those guys in the locker room afterwards, just how close we were."
Gourde gave the Lightning a 1-0 lead with a shorthanded goal at 1:49 of the second period when he one-timed a feed from Anthony Cirelli in the slot. It was the first time in NHL history a Game 7 ended with the final score 1-0 and the only goal was scored shorthanded.
Vasilevskiy made a right pad save on Anthony Beauvillier's breakaway chance at 2:25 of the first period, and Barzal had an open net on a rebound of Scott Mayfield's shot from the point, but the puck bounced over his stick with 5:23 left in the third.
Vasilevskiy was 0-2 in previous NHL Game 7s.
"In the end, you need the goalie to make the stops at times when everything else breaks down, and 'Vasy' is showing time and time again that he can do that," Cooper said. "To elevate your game and have the fortitude to grind through series-clinching, potential season-ending games and rise to the occasion … we're throwing around the word special, Vasy's special."

The Lightning blocked 21 shots, led by defensemen Ryan McDonagh and Mikhail Sergachev, who had five each.
"They did a really good job," Islanders coach Barry Trotz said. "I think we attempted 50 shots tonight, somewhere in that range, and they had 21 blocks. We had some guys teeing them up and they were blocking them. They were committed and all that. They're a good defensive team.
"They've got a good core, they've got an outstanding goaltender. They've got a defenseman who is a Norris Trophy candidate every year (Victor Hedman), an underrated guy in McDonagh, who is a shutdown guy, and they've got Sergachev. They're a better team than they were last year, in my mind."
Nikita Kucherov was able to play after sustaining an undisclosed injury in the first period of Game 6. The Lightning forward had two shots on goal and two hits in 16:29 of ice time. Kucherov leads the postseason with 27 points (five goals, 22 assists) in 18 games.
"There was no question if I'm going to play or not," Kucherov said. "I felt good. We decided to, you know, what else to do. It's Game 7, you've got to sacrifice yourself, play in these moments and share it with the boys. I felt good today."
Brayden Point had his nine-game goal streak end. He fell one shy of tying the NHL record set by Reggie Leach, who scored in 10 straight playoff games with the Philadelphia Flyers in 1976.
NOTES: It was the first time the Islanders were shut out in a Game 7. They went 19 straight games without holding a lead after the first period. … Lightning defenseman Erik Cernak returned after missing two games because of an upper-body injury. He had three shots on goal and blocked two shots in 19:50 of ice time. … Lightning forward Pat Maroon is the first player since Marc-Andre Fleury in 2016-18 (Pittsburgh Penguins, Vegas Golden Knights) to make it to three straight Cup Finals. Maroon won the Cup with the St. Louis Blues in 2019 and the Lightning last season.