Islanders-Lightning Game 7 recap: Turning point, key stats, more
Semyon Varlamov #40 of the Islanders makes the save against the Tampa Bay Lightning during the first period in Game 7 of the NHL Stanley Cup Semifinals at Amalie Arena on June 25, 2021 in Tampa, Florida. Credit: Getty Images/Mike Carlson
Final score: Lightning 1, Islanders 0 (Tampa Bay wins series, 4 games to 3)
Winning goal: Yanni Gourde came off the bench to score a shorthanded effort for the only goal, at 1:49 of the second period.
Turning point: Tampa Bay D Ryan McDonagh picked off a dump-in in the left corner, waited, and sent an outlet up the middle to Alex Killorn to start the rush that led to Gourde’s game-winner.
Key statistics: Friday marked the 36th Game 7 in an NHL semifinal series in league history. The Game 7 winner has gone on to lift the Stanley Cup 21 times (60%)…The Islanders went 1-for-17 on the power play against the Lightning, with a shorthanded goal allowed. The Islanders went 2-for-19 against them in a six-game loss in the Eastern Conference finals…The Islanders did not hold the lead after the first period in any of their 19 playoff games.
Did you notice? The Amalie Arena crowd took to booing Islanders D Scott Mayfield, who got away with an unpenalized cross-check on Nikita Kucherov early in the first period of Game 6. Kucherov’s status for Game 7 was in doubt right until pre-game warmups.
Injury news: Lightning D Erik Cernak returned to the lineup after sustaining an upper-body injury in Game 4.
Other news: Islanders’ ownership chartered a flight to Tampa, Florida on Friday for team employees wanting to attend Game 7. The employees were chartered back to Long Island immediately after the game.
Three stars
1. Yanni Gourde (Tampa Bay). He scored the only goal, and had a game-high five shots on goal.
2. Ryan McDonagh (Tampa Bay). Started the play on the winning goal, and had five of the Lightning’s 21 blocked shots.
3. Semyon Varlamov (Islanders). He was the best player for the Islanders. His 30 shots kept them in it all the way.
Colin Stephenson covers the Rangers for Newsday. He has spent more than two decades covering the NHL and just about every sports team in the New York metropolitan area.
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