Rangers vs. Lightning: Game 6 Score and Twitter Reaction from 2015 NHL Playoffs

Technically, the New York Rangers were the winners in their 7-3 victory over the Tampa Bay Lightning in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Final Tuesday. In reality, hockey fans everywhere are the true winners, because they get to watch a Game 7 with a spot in the Stanley Cup Final on the line.

Despite allowing two late and meaningless goals, New York netminder Henrik Lundqvist was brilliant for the majority of Tuesday's contest. He tallied 36 saves and kept the Rangers afloat in the second period during the Lightning's constant barrage.

On the other end, Derick Brassard finished with a head-turning five points on three goals and two assists, while J.T. Miller and Rick Nash tallied a goal and three assists apiece.

Chris O'Meara/Associated Press

The 7-3 margin of victory was a bit misleading since New York took a 2-1 advantage into the third period, but its offense overwhelmed Tampa Bay goaltender Ben Bishop near the end of the game and sent a message moving forward that the Rangers are more than just Lundqvist.

With its season on the line, New York responded accordingly in the first period and scored a goal on its first shot. Brassard beat Bishop on a beautiful individual play after receiving a pass from Miller, as Dan Rosen of NHL.com described:

The Rangers wasted little time capitalizing on that initial momentum, and Keith Yandle drilled a shot that was deflected in by Miller. While Yandle ultimately ended up with the assist, Sean Hartnett of WFAN 660 in New York pointed out the game plan was working for the Rangers:

The goals were nice from the Rangers' perspective, but Andrew Gross of the Record noted one man in particular was controlling the game:

Just when it looked like New York was primed to run away with Game 6, the Lightning earned a power play and scored with the man advantage for the seventh time in their past 10 games. Ryan Callahan beat Lundqvist with a backhanded shot on a breakaway, which was the first time anyone but Tampa Bay's top six forwards got one past the Rangers goaltender all series.

Erik Erlendsson of the Tampa Tribune noted that it was as close to automatic as a goal will ever be against Lundqvist:

The Rangers took that 2-1 lead into the second period and held on for dear life behind an incredible stretch from their superstar. Tampa Bay peppered the New York goal with numerous shots, but the veteran Lundqvist turned back every one.

Rosen and ESPN's Linda Cohn commented on the lackluster play by everyone on the Rangers except for their superb goalie:

Jimmy Hascup of USA Today pointed out that New York's defense was doing nothing to prevent the onslaught of scoring opportunities for Tampa Bay:

The Rangers hung on to that 2-1 lead through the second period thanks to the brilliance of Lundqvist. The Lightning enjoyed a 29-18 advantage in shots, but that doesn't matter when one of the all-time greats is in net.

Lundqvist was clearly ready for Tuesday's game given his performance and comments, per Mike Mazzeo of ESPN:

"

There’s no other way for us right now than to really leave everything out there.

We don’t want any regrets. We know we can beat them down there [in Tampa], but they’re going to come hard and they’re playing well in their own building, so we have to come out, prepare the right way and really play on our toes.

"

The Lightning's missed opportunities came back to haunt them in the opening minutes of the third period when Miller extended the lead to 3-1 off a rebound. It was disheartening for Tamp Bay fans because Bishop made a terrific save on the initial shot. But he ended up on his back and Miller buried the rebound.

Erlendsson and Jamie Thomas of Sportsnet.ca described the impressive effort by Bishop:

The third-period onslaught continued when the Rangers crashed the goal and James Sheppard forced the puck past Bishop to open up a 4-1 lead. Rosen noted that the great saves by Bishop earlier in the game were a thing of the past in the third period:

Right on cue, New York added a fifth off the stick of Brassard. Tampa Bay pulled Bishop in favor of Andrei Vasilevskiy, and Rosen commented on the incredible turnaround:

Tampa Bay got one back when Nikita Kucherov finally beat Lundqvist, but Nash ended any realistic dreams of a comeback when he pushed the lead to 6-2 with less than 10 minutes remaining. To Kucherov's credit, he scored another one to trim the deficit to 6-3. Bleacher Report NHL National Lead Writer Dave Lozo pointed out the goals were in vain, though:

"

Nikita Kucherov hitting all the A-Rod home runs in this game.

— Dave Lozo (@DaveLozo) May 27, 2015"

New York added an empty-netter in the final minutes to finish steamrolling the Lightning in the third period on the way to its 7-3 victory.

What's Next?

Phelan M. Ebenhack/Associated Press

Game 7—the best two words in sports.

The decisive showdown of the Eastern Conference Final will be Friday back in Madison Square Garden. The Rangers stake claim to all of the momentum now after stealing Game 6 and home-ice advantage, but momentum is incredibly fleeting in the postseason.

The goalie matchup will certainly be interesting considering Lundqvist was brilliant for most of Tuesday's game and Bishop was pulled. But Lundqvist struggled earlier in this series and is certainly not invincible against the Tampa Bay attack. 

Whichever goaltender turns in the best performance in Game 7 will propel his team to the Stanley Cup Final.