On Wednesday, Johnson fed Killorn for the game-winner with 11:08
left in the game. Two nights later, it was Killorn off a pass from
Johnson. Killorn skated behind the net and passed the puck back to
Johnson, who poked it in around the near post for a 3-2 lead with
13:28 to play, two minutes after Detroit had tied the score.
Johnson followed with a second goal with 5:12 left after Nikita
Kucherov tracked down a loose puck deep in the Detroit zone and fed
Johnson for the score.
Killorn got in on the scoring, too, flicking a long shot off the
boards for an empty-net goal with 2:44 left.
A physical series saw a major brawl in the final minute with the
game's outcome long decided, clearing the ice as infractions were
sorted out -- a total of 77 minutes in penalties.
The series moves to Detroit, which plays host to Game 3 on Sunday.
The home team has won all six meetings between the teams this
season.
 For the second straight game, Tampa Bay's Ben Bishop outdueled
Detroit's Jimmy Howard by making 30 saves.
Detroit nearly scored with seven minutes left as a high shot caromed
off Bishop and off Tampa Bay's Ryan Callahan, but it landed on the
side of the net, just missing a tying goal.
Tampa Bay is up 2-0 despite playing without top scorer Steven
Stamkos, but the Lightning has gotten seven goals from one prolific
line in two games: three from Kucherov and two each from linemates
Johnson and Killorn.
Johnson, who was shoved and hit his head on the boards in the
regular-season finale, has come back not only healthy but playing at
the same high level he was in last year's playoffs run to the
Stanley Cup finals.
Down 2-1 to open the third period, the Red Wings tied the score on
their power play, which had gone 0 of 8 to start the series,
including four in Friday's game. But after a high-sticking penalty
against Tampa Bay, former Lightning player Brad Richards scored on a
long shot past Bishop to the top left corner of the net to tie the
score at 2 with 15:33 left.
The Lightning, already up 1-0 in the series after winning at home on
Wednesday night, took a 2-1 lead into the third period of Game 2
thanks to a goal by Brian Boyle on a beautiful drop pass by Jonathan
Drouin with 13:14 left in the second period.
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Drouin pushed ahead and passed back to Boyle, who fired the puck
into the top left corner of the net past Howard.
The Red Wings had numerous opportunities to tie the score in the
second period, with three power plays in the final 8:10.
The first came after a brawl, incited by Detroit's Danny DeKeyser
sending Tampa Bay's Ondrej Palat into the boards. Not only was
DeKeyser not called for a penalty, the ensuing fight gave Detroit a
power play, but the Lightning were able to kill it off.
Another questionable call on Boyle for interference gave Detroit
another power play with 5:57 left and yet another with 2:25 to play.
But Tampa Bay's lead held, with Bishop making a key save with 49
seconds left and Callahan blocking two passes at the end of the
power play to close out the kill.
Detroit had tied the score at 1 early in the second period after
Dylan Larkin, just seconds out of the penalty box, got a loose puck
off the back boards and fired a quick shot through the legs of
Bishop with 16:30 left in the period.
Tampa Bay took the lead on a five-on-three power play late in the
first period as Detroit's Gustav Nyquist and Justin Abdelkader were
called for penalties 27 seconds apart.
Thirty seconds into the five-on-three, Tampa Bay scored on a
one-timer by Kucherov, who had two goals in Wednesday's Game 1
victory.
Lightning right winger J.T. Brown left the game with an upper-body
injury in the first period and did not return. Brown played only
five shifts and had 2:29 in ice time before the injury. He scored
eight goals in the regular season.
[© 2016 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.]
Copyright 2016 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
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