Some of the Faithful who were around for the New York Islanders Dynasty season of 1981-82 might find a similarity between last night's arresting Florida win and one involving the Orange and Blue 41 years ago.
Who are you rooting for in the Stanley Cup Final?
I'm guessing that a good percentage of New York Islanders fans are pulling for the Panthers in this Sun Belt series for the Stanley Cup.
Some of the Faithful who were around for the Isles Dynasty season of 1981-82 might find a similarity between last night's arresting Florida win and one involving the Orange and Blue 41 years ago.
Note the checklist:
* Both teams seemed hopelessly lost late in the third period.
* Both teams staged hairbreadth rallies to tie the contest.
* Both teams won in overtime.
* Both teams beat hot goalies.
* A Playoff hero tied the game.
* Another Playoff hero won it.
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I'll admit it, I was cheering hard to the Cats last night. Very hard.
And, as the clock became Florida's enemy late in the third frame, I figured no way defense-minded Vegas -- with goalie Adin Hill making like a wall -- would relinquish a goal.
In 1982, the defending Champion Isles were shooting for their third (Dynasty) Stanley Cup. The best-of-five series was tied 2-2 with the Penguins.
Pitt goalkeeper Michel Dion -- he later told me this was the game of his life -- had staked his guys to a 3-1 lead deep into the third period, although his club was outshot by a 2-1 margin.
"We should have been up by five goals by all rights," said Isles general manager Bill Torrey, worried like the rest of us. "But we hung in there, we never panicked. Never lost our composure."
Sounds like the Panthers last night with time running out, doesn't it?
Then, it happened. The Penguins got a penalty, and coach Al Arbour sent out his power play specialists, including defenseman Mike McEwen who Bowtie Bill had acquired in an earlier trade.
With just over five minutes left, McEwen beat Dion, narrowing Pittsburgh's lead to one goal. "I remember every guy on the bench itching to get on the ice," said John Tonelli, "and turn it around."
When it was Tonelli's turn, he sprinted for a loose puck along with Pitt D-man Randy Carlyle. The puck was in the corner to the left of Dion when the puck skipped over Randy's stick and to Tonelli, who batted it past Dion.
Torrey: "When I saw it go in, I said, 'Thank goodness,' and then I said, 'Wait, it isn't over. We're only tied. I knew that we still had our work cut out for us."
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Trailing by one last night, Panthers coach Paul Maurice pulled goalie Sergei Bobrovsky and added an extra skater. Florida's answer to Tonelli, Matthew Tkachuk, chipped a rebound behind Hill and the Cats breathed easier -- but not too easy.
A very debatable penalty called against Florida with only a dozen seconds left in regulation meant that Vegas still would have 1:48 of power play time.
Meanwhile, back at Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum in 1982, the Penguins came out of the overtime gate like the Bulls at Pamplona. The lead bull, Mike Bullard, seemed to have Bill Smith beaten with a smoking shot, but Smitty made a super save.
Now, just past the 6:10 mark in OT, Tonelli seemed headed on a breakaway but was stopped by defenseman Paul Baxter. When the puck bounced into the corner, Johnny T was like a ferret on the spoor of a hot meal.
Tonelli: "I got the puck and sent it out to Bobby Nystrom, and he deked the goalie, but Dion stopped him. The puck was just lying there, and nobody else saw it. Dion was down and I had the whole net to shoot at. How could I miss?"
He certainly did not.
Nor did Florida's Carter Verhaeghe who took a feed from Sam Bennett and deposited the rubber behind Hill at 4:27 of the sudden death period last night.
The almost 20,000 joy shouted so loud and long you could almost hear them in Liverpool, England.
"To win in overtime," said Verhaeghe, "gives us momentum."
That Tonelli goal against Dion gave the Islanders plenty of momentum. They followed the Penguins series with playoff series wins over the Rangers, Nordiques, and, finally, Vancouver for their third Cup in a row.
That playoff momentum Verhaeghe is hoping for will be on display tomorrow night in Sunrise.
Ear plugs might be a good idea; especially if Florida does a cat's meow!
"Nobody rises to the occasion in clutch games than Carter," concluded teammate Sam Reinhart.
He'll get another chance to do a John Tonelli tomorrow night under the sheltering palms!