It's do or die for the Lightning and Penguins when the puck drops at the Consol Energy Center in Pittsburgh for Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Final on Thursday.
A trip to the Stanley Cup Final to meet the Sharks, who dispatched of the Blues in Game 6 of their series on Wednesday, hangs in the balance for one of these clubs.
Tampa Bay is looking to advance to the Stanley Cup Final for the second straight year and to hoist the greatest trophy in sports for the first time since 2004. The Lightning fell to the Blackhawks in six games in the Cup Final last year.
Pittsburgh is seeking its first trip to Round 4 since 2009 when it ousted the Red Wings in seven games to win it all.
The Lightning took Game 1 (3-1), while the Penguins bounced back with victories in Game 2 (3-2, overtime) and Game 3 (4-2). Tampa Bay then took control of the series with wins in Games 4 (4-3) and 5 (4-3, overtime), before Pittsburgh etched out a 5-2 road win in Game 6 to force Game 7.
Phil Kessel scored his team-leading ninth goal of the playoffs to get the scoring started in Game 6 with the Penguins on the brink of elimination. He also upped his point total to a club-best 18.
Kris Letang (2), Sidney Crosby (6), Bryan Rust (3) and Nick Bonino (3) also tallied for Pittsburgh. For Crosby, it was his third game-winning goal of the series.
Brian Boyle had both goals for Tampa Bay in the loss, bringing his total to five on the playoffs.
The Alex Killorn, Tyler Johnson and Nikita Kucherov line has been lethal for the Lightning, combining to score 23 of the team's 47 goals this postseason. Kucherov leads the team with 11 goals and 19 points, while Johnson has a team-high 10 helpers.
In the blue paint, the Penguins are set to stick with rookie Matt Murray, who took the starting reigns back from Marc-Andre Fleury for Game 6 and stopped 28 of the 30 shots he faced. Murray, 21, is 10-4 in the playoffs with a 2.30 goals-against average and a .924 save percentage.
"[Murray] takes each game as it comes and he controls what he can," Penguins coach Mike Sullivan told NHL.com. "He's a great competitor."
With Ben Bishop (lower-body) still sidelined after sustaining an injury in Game 1, Andrei Vasilevskiy, 21, mans the crease for Tampa Bay to start his sixth straight game. The Lightning goaltender allowed four goals on 33 shots in Game 6 is 3-3 this postseason with a 2.87 GAA and a .921 save percentage.
Though he's sidelined, Bishop played a mentor role for his young counterpart.
"We talked a little bit," Bishop said via NHL.com. "I just told him 'Deep breaths, stay calm.' There's going to be a lot of emotion out there, but the thing is, just worry about stopping the puck. Don't make the game bigger than it is. It's still just another game."
Game Details & Live Stream
Matchup: Lightning at Penguins Eastern Conference Final Game 7
Time: 8 p.m. ET
Venue: Consol Energy Center, Pittsburgh, Pa.
Radio: Tampa Bay (WDAE 620); Pittsburgh (105.9 WXDX)
Series: Tied 2-2.
Predictions: Our predictions for this series can be viewed here.
Keys: Our major storylines and facts for Game 7 can be found here.
Betting Odds: The latest betting odds for this game can be found here.
Watch Online: This game can be live streamed for free here.
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