Verhaeghe scores OT winner, Bobrovsky makes some fantastic saves, and Panthers top Lightning 3
SUNRISE, Fla. (AP) — Sergei Bobrovsky stopped a shot with his mask, then made a diving, no-look save that they’ll remember in Florida for a long time.
And Carter Verhaeghe made sure his goalie’s highlight-reel work came in a win.
Verhaeghe — making some history of his own — lifted a backhander just under the crossbar 2:59 into overtime, and the Florida Panthers beat the Tampa Bay Lightning 3-2 on Tuesday night for a 2-0 lead in their NHL first-round playoff series.
“It just takes one shot in these moments,” Verhaeghe said after Florida won its 11th consecutive OT playoff game — the second-longest such streak in NHL history.
Verhaeghe became the sixth player in NHL history with at least five playoff overtime gamewinners. This one came on a play where Matthew Tkachuk got the puck to Anton Lundell — who found Verhaeghe. He waited for Tampa Bay goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy to commit, then put the puck over him to end it.