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NHL playoffs: Golden Knights beat Sharks in dramatic OT; Lightning even series

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William Karlsson scored 8:17 into overtime and the Vegas Golden Knights bounced back from a blown lead late in the third period to beat the San Jose Sharks 4-3 on Monday night to take a 2-1 series lead.

After Tomas Hertl tied the game with 1:57 left in regulation, the expansion Golden Knights rebounded and won in overtime despite failing to convert on two early power-play chances.

Marc-Andre Fleury made 39 saves, including a brilliant one to rob Logan Couture early in the overtime. Couture had another chance in the sequence before the winning goal.

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But the Knights broke out with the loose puck and Karlsson beat Martin Jones with a wrist shot high to the stick side and was mobbed by his teammates.

Jones made 29 saves.

The Sharks rallied to tie the game and force a second straight overtime with two goals in the third period. Evander Kane scored just seconds after the end of a power play midway through the third to set the stage for Hertl.

Hertl drove to the net with a strong power move. With the Sharks swarming in front of Fleury, Hertl whacked at a loose puck and knocked it in for the equalizer with 1:57 to go, sending the towel-waving crowd into a frenzy.

Lightning even series with 4-2 win

Lightning left wing Ondrej Palat (18) celebrates with the bench after his goal against the Boston Bruins during Game 2 on April 30.
(Chris O’Meara / Associated Press )

The Tampa Bay Lightning have been just as resilient in the Stanley Cup playoffs as they’ve been all season.

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Challenged by coach Jon Cooper to compete harder and raise their level of play after dropping the opener of their second-round series against the Boston Bruins, the top seed in the Eastern Conference responded with a 4-2 victory in Game 2 of the best-of-seven matchup Monday night.

Brayden Point had an empty-net goal and three assists. He also teamed with Tyler Johnson and Ondrej Palat to slow down Boston’s high-scoring line of Patrice Bergeron, David Pastrnak and Brad Marchand.

Game 3 is Wednesday night in Boston.

“It feels good. I thought we played well,” Point said after posting just the third four-point game in Tampa Bay’s history. “We had a tough night in Game 1. I thought we came back tonight knowing we’d end up better.”

Point assisted on Tampa Bay’s first three goals before sealing the win with his empty-netter with 25.2 seconds left.

Yanni Gourde had a first-period goal and Johnson and Palat also scored for the Lightning, which rebounded from a 6-2 loss in Game 1.

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