Lightning 4, Penguins 2
Steve Downie recorded a goal and two assists as the Tampa Bay Lightning forced a seventh and deciding game in their Eastern Conference quarterfinal series against the fourth-seeded Pittsburgh Penguins with a 4-2 home triumph in Game 6 on Monday.
Ryan Malone scored a goal and set up another, Teddy Purcell and Sean Bergenheim also tallied and Dwayne Roloson made 27 saves for the fifth-seeded Lightning, who won for just the second time in eight home playoff games since Game 7 of the 2004 Stanley Cup Final.
Pascal Dupuis and Jordan Staal scored while Marc-Andre Fleury stopped 17 shots for Pittsburgh, which hosts Game 7 on Wednesday.
Staal knotted the contest at 2-2 just 3:48 into the third with a wrist shot from the top of the slot. However, Downie slipped the puck past Fleury from alone in front just 67 seconds later and Malone beat Pittsburgh's All-Star netminder with a blast during a breakaway at 9:34 for a two-goal advantage.
Pittsburgh took the lead on Dupuis' goal at 8:23 of the first period. But Purcell forged a tie with 3:24 remaining in the session and Bergenheim scored off a nifty pass from behind the net by Dominic Moore at 5:44 of the second, giving Tampa Bay a 2-1 edge.
The Penguins had a chance to pull even midway through the second, but Chris Conner lost control of the puck at the left hash marks during a penalty shot and was forced to settle for a slap shot that Roloson easily turned aside.