New York was looking to take the series lead heading back to Tampa, and Tampa was aiming for a shot to win the series at home to advance to the Stanley Cup Finals. 

The home team was off to a decent start in the first period, however in the second period Tampa Bay got some goal support. Valtteri Filppula scored on a Steven Stamkos assist, while Stamkos would score the insurance goal later in the period on the power play to give the Lightning a two goal lead heading into the final period.

The Lightning had an extra defenseman dressed, which turned out to be a smart move for Tampa Bay coach John Cooper as he would use all seven defenseman to protect the lead later on in the game. While Tyler Johnson was no threat tonight, having only a couple of scoring chances, his presence was felt against New York tonight. The Rangers even had their top line against him throughout the game which allowed Stamkos some more space to pick up points on both goals in the game.

The Rangers biggest struggle was on the power play where they finished 0-for-5 on the night, and couldn't seem to get any good scoring opportunities. Rick Nash, Martin St. Louis, Derek Stepan, and all the other Rangers star forwards could not find a way to produce in a crucial Game 5 at home, leading to a shutout loss. Lundqvist tried to keep the Rangers in it, and the top defensive pair for the Rangers Ryan McDonagh and Dan Girardi both had good games despite the loss.

It's now a win or go home mentality for the New York Rangers as they go to Tampa Bay to keep their season alive. Despite a 3-2 series lead, the Lightning will need to play just as desperate as New York to stay away from a Game 7 back in Madison Square Garden. Steven Stamkos and Tyler Johnson will likely continue to be matched up against Derek Stepan and Derick Brassard at the Amalie. Ben Bishop will need to outplay Henrik Lundqvist once again to keep that from happening and advance to the Stanley Cup Finals.

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About the author
Chris Robbins
Mostly cover Detroit Sports (Red Wings, Tigers, Lions, Pistons), Michigan and Michigan State athletics, as well as NCAA, National and International Gymnastics.