BARCLAY GOODROW

Tampa Bay captain Steven Stamkos knows the attention going into the series will be on the men in goal. PAST HISTORYThe Rangers won all three meetings in the regular season, with the last coming more than two months ago. This is the team's first postseason matchup since the 2015 conference finals, won by the Lightning in seven games. “Our core is quite a bit the same, their team has changed over quite a bit, different coach," Tampa Bay coach Jon Cooper said. “We’re as hungry and desperate and willing to do whatever it takes at this point to try and keep this journey going,” Tampa Bay defenseman Ryan McDonagh said.

Andrei Vasilevskiy has won a Vezina Trophy and two Stanley Cups with the Tampa Bay Lightning.

Danton Heinen’s first playoff goal in three years just past the midway point of the third period helped the Pittsburgh Penguins to a 7-4 victory over the New York Rangers.

Artemi Panarin and Frank Vatrano each had a goal and two assists and the New York Rangers beat the Pittsburgh Penguins 5-2 in Game 2 on Thursday night to even the best-of-seven first-round series.

Mika Zibanejad had his eighth career hat trick, Igor Shesterkin stopped 38 shots for his second shutout of the season and the New York Rangers beat the Tampa Bay Lightning 4-0.

OTTAWA, Ontario — (AP) — Chris Kreider, Ryan Lindgren and Barclay Goodrow all scored in the final six minutes to rally the New York Rangers past the Ottawa Senators 3-2 Saturday. Ottawa led 2-0 after Josh Norris' goal early in the third period, but the Senators unravelled late. Goodrow scored the winner with 2:03 left by deflecting a long shot from Sammy Blais past Forsberg. Nick Paul had the other goal for Ottawa, scoring on the Senators’ first shot after a setup from Tim Stutzle. Georgiev, making his second start of the season, made an incredible point-blank save on Artem Zub in the final minutes of the second period.

The New York Rangers and top center Mika Zibanejad have agreed to an eight-year contract worth $68 million.

The St. Louis Blues have signed forward Brandon Saad to a five-year, $22.5 million contract.

A person with knowledge of the deal tells The Associated Press that veteran forward Corey Perry has agreed to a $1 million, two-year contract with the back-to-back champion Tampa Bay Lightning.

The end of the NHL draft only ushers in more questions about what's coming next this offseason.

Seth Jones went to the Chicago Blackhawks from the Columbus Blue Jackets in a blockbuster trade completed just before the NHL draft.

Philadelphia sent a high draft pick to Arizona to take on a pricey defenseman. The New York Rangers gave a back-to-back Stanley Cup champion a contract Tampa Bay never could have afforded. The moves made Thursday when the NHL's roster freeze for the Seattle expansion draft lifted were all consequences of the salary cap remaining flat at $81.5 million because of pandemic revenue losses. Detroit signed Nedeljkovic to a $6 million, two-year contract — just under what the 25-year-old might have been awarded in an arbitration hearing. ___Follow AP Hockey Writer Stephen Whyno on Twitter at https://twitter.com/SWhyno___More AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/NHL and https://twitter.com/AP_SportsCopyright 2021 The Associated Press.

NHL teams wasted little time making moves once the roster freeze for the Seattle expansion draft was lifted.

Suzuki tied it for Montreal after Anthony Cirelli put the Lightning on the board a few minutes earlier. Cirelli's seemingly harmless point shot found its way through traffic and beat Carey Price on the Lightning's sixth shot of the night. The Lightning are 13-2 this postseason when leading and the Canadiens 0-5 when trailing after two. Getting Joel Armia back helped the Canadiens find a different gear in Game 2 and take the play to the Lightning, but Coleman's late goal put them in comeback mode again. ___Follow AP Hockey Writer Stephen Whyno on Twitter at https://twitter.com/SWhyno___More AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/NHL and https://twitter.com/AP_SportsCopyright 2021 The Associated Press.

The Montreal Canadiens have finally earned respect during a remarkable playoff run that has them in the Stanley Cup Final for the first time in 28 years.

Stamkos ignited a three-goal opening period — the first against the Islanders all season — by scoring just 45 seconds into the game. Point has scored a goal in eight straight games, the second-longest stretch within a single postseason in NHL history. Vasilevskiy, meanwhile, stopped all 21 shots he faced for his third playoff shutout this year. It’s the longest such streak in NHL history, and Vasilevskiy has been the goaltender in each of the victories. QUICK STARTERSThe Lightning are 11-1 when scoring the first goal this postseason, 0-4 when they haven't.

Steven Stamkos had two goals and an assist and Andrei Vasilevskiy notched his fourth career playoff shutout, helping the Tampa Bay Lightning rout the New York Islanders 8-0 in Game 5 of the Stanley Cup semifinal series.

Lightning Hurricanes Hockey Tampa Bay Lightning's Barclay Goodrow (19) brings the puck up the ice against the Carolina Hurricanes during the first period in Game 2 of an NHL hockey Stanley Cup second-round playoff series in Raleigh, N.C., Tuesday, June 1, 2021. (AP Photo/Karl B DeBlaker) (Karl B DeBlaker)TAMPA, Fla. — (AP) — The star-studded Tampa Bay Lightning beam when talking about the contributions of Barclay Goodrow. The physical third-line forward is a role player who can go unnoticed with the Lightning bidding to repeat as Stanley Cup champions. Goodrow’s value to the Lightning is not lost on coaches and teammates who marvel about the little things he does to help Tampa Bay succeed. “He usually doesn’t get his accolades from game-winning goals, he’s usually the guy stopping game-tying goals from happening,” Cooper said.

The star-studded Tampa Bay Lightning beam when talking about the contributions of Barclay Goodrow, a physical third-line forward playing a largely unheralded role in the team’s bid to repeat as Stanley Cup champions.

Lightning Hurricanes Hockey Carolina Hurricanes defenseman Brady Skjei (76) and Tampa Bay Lightning center Anthony Cirelli (71) chase the puck during the first period in Game 1 of an NHL hockey Stanley Cup second-round playoff series in Raleigh, N.C., Sunday, May 30, 2021. (AP Photo/Gerry Broome) (Gerry Broome)RALEIGH, N.C. — (AP) — Barclay Goodrow beat Alex Nedeljkovic for the go-ahead goal at 12:39 of the third period to help the Tampa Bay Lightning beat the Carolina Hurricanes 2-1 on Sunday night to open their second-round playoff series. Instead, the Lightning won a road series opener for the second straight round. The Lightning swept the first two games at Florida in that six-game first-round series. The Hurricanes, who have home-ice advantage after winning the Central Division, also got another solid performance from Nedeljkovic with 28 saves.

Barclay Goodrow beat Alex Nedeljkovic for the go-ahead goal at 12:39 of the third period to help the Tampa Bay Lightning beat the Carolina Hurricanes 2-1 to open their second-round playoff series.

The Carolina Hurricanes and Tampa Bay Lightning open their second-round playoff series Sunday.

Andrei Vasilevskiy wrapped up a series with a Game 6 shutout for the second straight time, stopping 29 shots in the Tampa Bay Lightning’s 4-0 victory over the Florida Panthers on Wednesday night.

Chris Driedger stopped 30 shots to record his third shutout of the season, Juho Lammikko scored a short-handed goal, and the Florida Panthers secured home-ice advantage for the opening round of the Stanley Cup playoffs with a 4-0 win over the Tampa Bay Lightning in the regular season finale for both clubs.

Rewind to 2019 and early 2020 and that description fits the Tampa Bay Lightning, who added some grit and toughness to their talented core and went on to win the Stanley Cup. The Lightning effect was clear as soon as NHL free agency opened. “You need guys that are going to have a little bit of sandpaper. “We maybe have taken a little bit of a step back from the most skillful lineup we’ve ever had to more of a balance between the will and the skill," Poile said. We certainly have a little bit more physicality, a little bit more grit and I think it’s probably and hopefully a better mix than we had last year.”___More AP NHL: https://apnews.com/NHL and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports