Last-gasp goal nets a point for Montreal

LIGHTNING 3, CANADIENS 3: Tampa Bay lets win slip away with 6.2 seconds left.

By DAMIAN CRISTODERO, Times Staff Writer
© St. Petersburg Times
published March 23, 2002

TAMPA -- The Lightning admitted it tried to downplay what was at stake in Friday night's game with the Canadiens.

[Times photo: Dirk Shadd] Lightning defenseman Nolan Pratt nails Canadiens defenseman Stephane Robidas against the boards in the first period.

"Just go out and play" was the mantra in the locker room. But the hanging heads and whispered words after the game proved Tampa Bay understood its significance.

And that made the tie at 3 in front of a screaming crowd of 16,912 at the Ice Palace that much harder to take.

"It feels like a loss," defenseman Pavel Kubina said.

To defenseman Dan Boyle it was a loss.

"This one hurts," he said. "We played so well. To lose it with six seconds left, it's tough."

It was 6.2 seconds left, to be exact, when Yanic Perreault popped a rebound past sprawling goaltender Nikolai Khabibulin. Seconds earlier a long-range shot by Tampa Bay's Dave Andreychuk slid just past the post of Montreal's empty net.

The tie increased the Lightning's unbeaten streak to seven games (3-0-4), which equals the team record set in 1996 and is the league's longest active.

But it kept the Lightning 10 points behind the Canadiens for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.

A victory would have been huge. Tampa Bay would have been eight points behind the Canadiens with a game in hand and a game at Montreal next week.

"Expectations are so high right now; to come away with a tie and not be happy, it's good," Lightning coach John Tortorella said. "It's too bad. It's a tough one to eat."

Tough because the Lightning was 1-for-6 on the power play, and even that one was a bit of a fluke.

Tough because Khabibulin was so good on a night in which the organization honored his fine season.

Khabibulin made 23 saves, three on breakaways. Two came within 51 seconds of the second period, including a sparkling glove save on Richard Zednik's penalty shot with 3:40 remaining and the Lightning ahead by one.

Then there was his diving stick save on Chad Kilger with 2:23 left in overtime.

Montreal goalie Jose Theodore was just as superb, making 37 saves as the Lightning outshot Montreal 40-26. Brad Richards probably still can't believe Theodore robbed him blind from the doorstep with 13 seconds left in overtime.

"He played unbelievable," said Boyle, who played pretty well himself with 28:47 of ice time and five shots.

Doug Gilmour opened the scoring with his 10th goal and 439th of his career.

Tampa Bay took a 2-1 lead on a first-period goal by Andre Roy and a second-period tally by Richards, who has a team-high 18 and in the third period got into the first fight of his NHL career with Craig Rivet. Then it really got wild.

Andreas Dackell tied the score with 6:57 left. Nikita Alexeev gave Tampa Bay a 3-2 lead on the power play with 3:37 remaining when his shot bounced in off Montreal defenseman Stephane Quintal.

The tying goal came after a Lightning lapse in which Kubina (a team-high six shots on goals) and Jassen Cullimore ended up in the same corner and Perreault was alone in front of the net, where he pounced on a Gilmour rebound.

"It was getting late," said Perrault, whose 23 goals are tied for the team lead. "It's a big point. We'll take it, for sure."

"It shouldn't happen," Cullimore said. "It (stinks) that's what caused us to lose the two points."

There was no downplaying the disappointment.

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