TV: FOX SPORTS FLORIDA / CNBC (NATIONAL)
TIME: PREGAME COVERAGE BEGINS AT 6:00 P.M.
Following the franchise's best regular season, the Tampa Bay Lightning's inability to solve Petr Mrazek and the Detroit Red Wings' defense could spell doom in the playoffs.
Coming off his second shutout of the series, Mrazek again looks to quiet the NHL's highest-scoring team Monday night and help the Red Wings close it out at Joe Louis Arena.
Tampa Bay averaged a league-high 3.16 goals en route to a team-record 108 points this season. Coincidentally, the only time the squad didn't score was in a 4-0 road loss to Mrazek and Detroit on March 28.
The 23-year-old netminder has continued that success against the Lightning in this series after finishing with 28 saves in a 4-0 win Saturday that gave Detroit a 3-2 lead in the best-of-seven first-round matchup.
"Calm, solid all the way through," defenseman Niklas Kronwall said of Mrazek. "Doesn't get too high, doesn't get too low."
Mrazek is 4-2-0 with a 1.58 goals-against average with three shutouts in his last six starts versus Tampa Bay. Aside from allowing four goals on 18 shots in a 5-1 loss in Game 2, he owns a .960 save percentage in this series.
"He's an elite competitor ... and he's got good savvy about him. He thinks he's going to win," said coach Mike Babcock, who tabbed the young Czech as his postseason starter over veteran Jimmy Howard even though he had no previous playoff experience. "He's a real confident guy, and he's got great athleticism."
The Lightning weren't able to build on their dramatic rally in Game 4, when they trailed by two goals with less than six minutes remaining before Tyler Johnson and Ondrej Palat scored late in the third period. Johnson then added his fourth goal of the series in overtime for a 3-2 victory. No other Tampa Bay player has more than one in the series.
Steven Stamkos, who finished second in the league with 43 goals during the regular season, has yet to score after getting off only two of the team's 28 shots in Game 5. Nikita Kucherov is also scoreless in the series after he finished third for the potent Lightning with 29 goals during the season.
Tampa Bay went more than 20 minutes without getting a shot off during one stretch Saturday, while the club's suddenly slumping attack has gone just 2 for 24 on the power play in the five games.
"It's been frustrating not to score, especially for a team that's used to scoring," coach Jon Cooper said. "If you take the overtime out, we haven't scored in eight of the last nine periods. When the object is to score, it's tough to win without scoring."
The Lightning, who have advanced out of the first round only once since hoisting the Stanley Cup in 2004, will have to win for the sixth time in 23 all-time trips to Joe Louis Arena to keep their season alive.
With the offense struggling to score, they'll likely need a strong performance from Ben Bishop between the pipes. He has a 2.22 GAA in the series, but also owns a less-than-impressive .901 save percentage.
Tampa Bay will have to keep a close watch on Pavel Datsyuk, who has scored in each of Detroit's three wins after enjoying a rebirth with 26 goals and 65 points during the regular season. Defenseman Jonathan Ericsson also has been a key playmaker for the Red Wings with four assists in the series.
"No team's been able to win two games in a row in this series, and so now we've got to get our mind right, get it ready for the next game," Babcock said. "That, to me, is the biggest thing in the series. You've got to keep getting better, and you've got to find a way to do it when you get your opportunities."
