(Reuters) – Corey Perry scored the double-overtime winner as the Dallas Stars beat the Tampa Bay Lightning 3-2 on Saturday to keep their National Hockey League Stanley Cup hopes alive and send the best-of-seven final to a Game Six.
Trailing the series 3-1 Perry came to the rescue scoring his second of the game, jamming home a loose puck past Andrei Vasilevskiy from a scramble in the front of the Tampa net 9:23 into the second overtime.
Game six of the series will take place on Monday in Edmonton, one of two Canadian hub cities for the playoffs being used to limit travel and minimize COVID-19 risks.
“We talked about it all day, get one (win) keep going,” said Perry. “I think we’re starting to do something special.
“We have a team that never gives up, we’re resilient and we’ll keep battling until the end.”
The Stars still face an uphill climb with the 1942 Toronto Maple Leafs the only team in NHL history to come back from a 3-1 deficit in a final to hoist the Stanley Cup.
Facing elimination Dallas came out with purpose, Perry potting the only goal of a fast-paced opening period before Tampa would answer in the second with Ondrej Palat collecting his 11th of the playoffs.
The Lightning took the lead early in the third when Mikhail Sergachev’s shot from the point ricocheted in off the post but with six minutes left in the period Joe Pavelski sent the contest to overtime stabbing a rebound past Vasilevskiy.
The goal was the 61st of the NHL playoffs for Pavelski, making him the all-time leading American scorer.
Anton Khudobin was solid in the Dallas net handling 41 shots.
“They had their chances and they are going to get their chances, they’re a good hockey team but if we limit them we’ll be alright,” said Perry. “It’s a battle out here. You’re looking for ice and there’s not much out here.
“We’re happy to get this one and now we’ll start thinking about the next one.”
(Reporting by Steve Keating in Toronto; Editing by Stephen Coates)
