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Nikita Kucherov lifts Lightning to big blowout win in Game 1 of Stanley Cup Final
By Ryan Gaydos
Published June 28, 2021
The Tampa Bay Lightning struck first in Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final on Monday night.
Nikita Kucherov scored two goals in the third period and assisted on another to help propel the Lightning to a big 5-1 victory over the Montreal Canadiens.
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Kucherov broke the game open in the third and gave the Lightning a two-goal lead. Kucherov was credited with the goal though it appeared to be batted into the back of the net by Ondrej Palat. He would score later in the period on an assist from Brayden Point.
Kucherov then contributed on the third goal of the period by Steven Stamkos. Kucherov now has three Stanley Cup Final goals in his career.
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Lightning goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy only allowed one goal the entire game. It came in the second period from Canadiens defenseman Ben Chiarot. It was his first of the postseason.
Other than that Vasilevskiy was dominant. He stopped 18-of-19 Montreal shots and didn’t allow Montreal to score on either of their powerplay opportunities. The Tampa Bay defense also came through with 15 blocks. Montreal only had five blocks.
The Canadiens’ Carey Price had a long night. Tampa Bay had 27 shots-on-goal during the game. Price was only able to stop 22 of them.
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Tampa Bay will look to go up two games at home on Wednesday. Game 2 is set for 8 p.m. ET at the Amalie Arena.
https://www.foxnews.com/sports/nikita-kucherov-lightning-game-1-stanley-cup-final