Lightning Vs. Bruins, Game 2: Bruins Hang On To Win 6-5, Tie The Series

The first goal came on a wacky sort of play, and quickly at that. After winning the opening face-off, the Bruins couldn’t get the puck deep in the Tampa Bay zone, so they came up with a rush. Vincent Lecavalier back-handed one that deflected wide. It rebounded almost instantly off the boards, and Adam Hall alertly back-handed it himself behind an out-of-position Tim Thomas to make it 1-0. It was Hall’s first goal of the post-season and it came at only 13 seconds of the period.

From that point on, the Bruins dominated offensive play for the rest of the period. Tampa Bay went over 12 minutes without a shot, while the Bruins pummeled Dwayne Roloson with bids, as the 41-year old netminder was stunning for most of the period. The Lightning didn’t help him by taking three consecutive penalties, and giving the Bruins a 1:22-long 5-on-3. It took them all but one second of that second penalty to finally connect for only the third time of the post-season. Nathan Horton tipped a Dennis Seidenberg shot past Roloson to tie the game at 1. It was Horton’s sixth of the playoffs, and it was the first road goal scored on the power play against Tampa of the post-season, as they’d been 46-for-46 before that.

The Lightning got their legs back and got a power play themselves, but did not do much with it. Late in the period, Steven Stamkos was able to get an edge down the wing. He did the spin-o-rama move, back-handed it, and the puck deflected off of Martin St. Louis and past Thomas. St. Louis got his seventh goal of the post-season at 19:53, and it was 2-1 Tampa Bay. The Lightning were out-shot 18-11 in the first period, and spent 12 minutes without even getting a shot, but when they showed up in the period, they were lethal.

After Tampa Bay scored 13 seconds into the opening period, the Bruins struck at 48 seconds of the second period. Michael Ryder sprung a breaking Tyler Seguin down the middle. Seguin faked Dwayne Roloson to his backhand, and flipped it past Thomas. Seguin’s now a goal-a-game player after being scratched for the first two rounds, and the Bruins had tied it at 2-2.

The Bruins kept it coming less than two minutes later. Dennis Seidenberg sent a pass in front that David Krejci barely got a piece of, but got enough of it to send it skidding past Roloson to make it 3-2 Bruins, giving Boston their first lead in the series. It was Krejci’s sixth of the post-season to put Boston up at 2:24. The Bruins scored two goals in 1:36 of elapsed time.

Boston was not done still, and it was their much-maligned second pick in the 2010 NHL Entry Draft to get them ahead by two. A clearing attempt gave Nathan Horton a 2-on-1 with Tyler Seguin. Horton fed a pass across for Seguin, who sent a wicked wrister that went past Roloson, in perhaps the first real stoppable shot that Roloson let in. Seguin now has three goals in two games of post-season action, after scoring only 11 in the regular season. It was also the third point of the game for Horton at 6:30 to make it 4-2.

The Lightning were by no means out of it, however, and it was their captain to get them back within a goal on a power play. After Mark Recchi went off for a cross checking minor at 10:18, the Bolts made quick work of the Boston penalty kill. A slap shot by Vincent Lecavalier went through the five hole of Thomas to make it 4-3. Lecavalier’s figured on all three Tampa Bay goals, and now has 15 points in the post-season.

The Bruins got another power play chance, however, and it was Seguin once again the catalyst. He took a quick wrister that was knocked down by Michael Ryder in front of the net. Ryder had the presence of mind to control it and flip a back-hander past the short side of Roloson. It was Ryder’s third goal of the Stanley Cup Playoffs, and Seguin’s third point of the game, to make it 5-3 Boston at 16:16. It was also the second power play goal of the game for Boston, after getting two for the entirety of the playoffs before tonight.

Ryder struck again late. In a game where goals have been scored in the first and last minute of each of the first two periods, it was Seguin finding Chris Kelly for a quick shot that Roloson denied, but Ryder was right there for the rebound, getting his second consecutive goal and fourth of the post-season. It was the fifth goal of the period for Boston, and the fourth point of the period for the rookie Seguin. This period was an early turning point in the series for the Bruins.

The Lightning worked hard to make it close in the third period with Mike Smith in goal for Roloson, as Steven Stamkos sent a laser past Thomas to make it 6-4. Then, Dominic Moore put the puck off of Tim Thomas’ face (seriously) to make it 6-5 with a little less than six and a half minutes remaining. However, the Lightning took a penalty to drag the clock down, and then couldn’t score late with Smith pulled, and the Bruins won it and tied the series. They’ll look to take the swing game and take back the home ice advantage on Thursday night in Game 3 in Tampa Bay.