Lightning vs. Penguins: Game 7 Score and Twitter Reaction from 2016 NHL Playoffs

The Pittsburgh Penguins are heading back to the Stanley Cup Final for the first time since 2009 thanks to two Bryan Rust goals that gave them a 2-1 home win over the Tampa Bay Lightning in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Final at Consol Energy Center.   

The Penguins will meet the San Jose Sharks for the right to claim Lord Stanley's prize. Game 1 is on Monday on NBC Sports Network in Pittsburgh.

The Penguins tweeted after the victory:

The NHL also provided this tweet as the hockey world braces for the final series of the season:

The Penguins will be going for their fourth Stanley Cup in franchise history, while the Sharks are trying for their first. Penguins goalie Matt Murray made 16 saves, and it marked the fourth time in NHL history a rookie goalie won and a rookie skater had the game-winning goal in a Game 7, per ESPN Stats & Info:

Lightning goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy, in relief of Ben Bishop this entire series, made 37 saves but couldn't save two of Rust's shots.

In a series that's been notorious for its goal scoring, it took 21 minutes and 55 seconds before the first tally. Rust went top-shelf for his fourth goal of the postseason early in the second period.

While taking a major hit on the boards, Chris Kunitz found Rust all alone in the middle of the zone to set up the goal. Tampa Bay was also late to the puck out of its shift, per Dan Rosen of NHL.com:

A famous Penguins fan was on hand for this one, per Adam Gretz of CBS Sports:

By this point, Tampa Bay's offense looked stagnant. Even with the return of Steven Stamkos, the Lightning had a tough time on the attack. Early on, Stamkos wasn't creating scoring chances, per Joe Smith of the Tampa Bay Times:

Despite only eight shots on goal by the midway point of the second period, a hectic sequence resulted in Tampa Bay's first goal. Jonathan Drouin controlled the puck from his own zone, swerved past two Penguins and fired the puck past Matt Murray for the equalizer.

The Lightning went into the GIF jar to react to the much-needed tying goal:

But Pittsburgh was celebrating moments later. Rust struck again 30 seconds after Drouin's tally to put the Penguins back in front.

The 24-year-old's performance was starting to look similar to another game he had earlier in the postseason, per Rorabaugh:

Jake Brown of Irish Illustrated thinks the former Notre Dame Fighting Irish player has come a long way since his college days:

Scott Burnside of ESPN.com was about to mention how the next sequence was vital to the Penguins, but then Rust's goal happened:

Despite the Lightning controlling the puck for most of the third period, Pittsburgh's rookie goaltender made the necessary plays—like he's done all postseason for the Penguins. He's come through in major moments and been a difference-maker for the team. 

Now, the Penguins will get the chance to bring the Stanley Cup back to Pittsburgh for the first time in seven years. They last won it in an epic seven-game series against the Detroit Red Wings. Pittsburgh has a much more experienced tandem of Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin at its disposal, as well as a confident rookie goalie.

The Lightning battled injuries, most notably from Bishop and Stamkos, to get this far and were one win away from heading back to the Final. They're a deep team with a lot of talent and should be capable of making another run next year.

Postgame Reaction

Since coming into the NHL as a 19-year-old wing, Phil Kessel has not played in a Stanley Cup Final game. The three-time All-Star will Monday night, and he will have his own cheering section, per Josh Yohe of DK Pittsburgh Sports:

Pittsburgh head coach Mike Sullivan was on the first-ever San Jose team in 1991-92, and now he'll get to lead what he believes is a special group into the final and should have a frenzied crowd behind it if Thursday was any indication, per Jenn Menendez of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette:

Murray got a rush out of holding a one-goal lead for the entire third period, per Chris Johnston of Sportsnet:

Playing in his first game since March 31 due to a blood clot, Stamkos was on the ice for just under 12 minutes and registered two shots on goal. It'll be another year before he gets a chance at a Stanley Cup.

"It stings right now, get this close to getting back to something we were at last year and had a good chance to get to this year," Stamkos said, per Bryan Burns of Lightning.com. "At the end of the day, all the adversity we overcame as a group, I couldn't be more proud of the guys and how far we came."