George Richards, FHN Publisher
The Tampa Bay Lightning got Game 5 started exactly the way it wanted, scoring on a 2-on-1 less than a minute into its playoff game with the Florida Panthers.
With a 20-year-old rookie in net and holding a 3-1 series lead, things looked real good for the defending champion Lightning.
Only the Panthers were not going out that easy.
Spencer Knight, making his NHL playoff debut in net for the homestanding Panthers, looked like a cagey veteran as he stopped the next 36 shots he faced and Florida found some room against Andrei Vasilevskiy to win 4-1 at BB&T Center.
”I approached it like every other hockey game,’’ Knight said. “I was a little nervous then I just remembered I was playing hockey, got in control again and had fun.”
Sasha Barkov, who had two points in the win, summed up Knight’s night: “He won the game for us.”
Said Joel Quenneville: “He was great. That was a goalie win. He did everything he could do to keep him in. I’m happy for him.”
Florida, facing a do-or-die situation against the Lightning, answered the call and extended its season.
The Panthers live to fight another day.
The best-of-7 series heads back to Tampa for Game 6 on Wednesday night with the Lightning holding a 3-2 series lead. The Lightning are 10-0 in series of which it held a 3-1 series lead.
So, the Panthers are still on the brink of elimination.
But they’re still around.
And Knight, now with five wins in five NHL starts, gets to play his first postseason road game on Wednesday.
Not only the youngest goalie to ever make his debut in an elimination game, Knight is the second-youngest to get a win in his debut.
Pretty good.
”It was awesome,” Barkov said, “awesome atmosphere, awesome feeling. We were excited to play and got a good result. We’re excited to be going to Tampa right now.”
A sellout crowd, the largest to see an NHL game since 2020, was on its feet until Blake Coleman blew past Keith Yandle, passed it to Ross Colton who beat Knight just 53 seconds into the game.
Knight, who had just four NHL games of experience before making this start Monday, did not seem upset by any means.
Tampa Bay came at him as if it was facing a 20-year-old two months removed from college, throwing 22 shots at Knight in the first period alone. Knight stopped the final 21 shots of the first that he faced.
“He was just a rock all night,’’ Weegar said. “He just put that one behind him. Maybe he took it personally, I don’t know what he was thinking. But he was really solid. I didn’t think it let him affect him at all. He just kept playing hockey.
Last week, the Panthers found themselves down 2-0 in the second period when Dolphins coach Brian Flores got the crowd roaring and the Panthers promptly scored.
Monday night, that honor went to UM coach Manny Diaz who got things amped up in his old-school Panthers jersey (he used to attend games at Miami Arena).
On the ensuing faceoff, MacKenzie Weegar went high cheese from 20 feet out to tie the score at 6:19 of the second.
Tampa Bay thought it had taken the lead when Knight made a save but tumbled into the cage but officials ruled it was a no-goal on the ice and video supported that call.
Moments later, Mason Marchment got his second of the postseason by teeing off on a Barkov delivery from behind the goal cage.
”We played a full team game,” Marchment said. “Barkov made a great pass to me, good game all around.”
The Panthers got a little separation early in the third. With Luke Schenn sitting in the box for pulling Anthony Duclair down on a breakaway late in the second period, Florida got a power play goal when Patric Hornqvist deflected a Barkov shot to make it 3-1 just 35 seconds into the third.
Hornqvist was down on the ice after being hit in front of Vasilevskiy by Ryan McDonagh just as Barkov’s shot was released. Hornqvist being on the ice helped get the shot through.
Florida wrapped this one up with an empty net goal from Frank Vatrano with 14.6 seconds left — sending the rubber rats flying from the stands. The Panthers also mistakingly dropped streamers from the ceiling which had to be scooped up as well.
By then, who cared?
The Panthers have life and are headed back to Tampa.
”I had an absolute riot out there, had a blast,” Weegar said. “We’re all smiles tonight but tomorrow is back to business. We have a big Game 6 coming up. We’re going to look back, be smiling talking about all the fans, talk about Knighter. It was a fun night. But we have to get back to business, have a business demeanor when we get to Tampa.’’
ROUGH STUFF
Although the game got off to a rough stuff — a combined five penalties were called in the first period including a boarding by Marchment (which should have gone to Radko Gudas) and a roughing by McDonagh for his hit on Marchment.
Things definitely settled in, however, and the game was pretty clean (and pretty tame) compared to what we have seen from these two in previous games this month.
Of course, once Vatrano scored, a full-out throw down at center ice occurred with Pat Maroon (expect anyone else) sent to the locker room after taking down Noel Acciari on the faceoff.
Being this was the seventh consecutive game these two have played, the rough stuff can be expected.
GEORGE’S THREE STARS OF THE GAME
1. Spencer Knight, Florida
2. Sasha Barkov, Florida
3. MacKenzie Weegar, Florida