Penguins looking ahead after rout

Photo by: Gene Puskar

AP

Photo

Pittsburgh Penguins' Craig Adams, right, can't get a shot past Tampa Bay Lightning goalie Dwayne Roloson (35) in the third period of Game 5 of a first-round NHL Stanley Cup playoff series in Pittsburgh Saturday, April 23, 2011. The Lightning won 8-2.

Associated Press

TAMPA, Fla.

Steven Stamkos and the Tampa Bay Lightning found a way to keep their first-round playoff series against Pittsburgh alive, playing with a sense of urgency that was absent in falling to the brink of elimination against the Penguins.

The challenge is to do it again in tonight’s Game 6, with another Lightning victory sending the Eastern Conference matchup back to Pittsburgh for a seventh game on Wednesday night.

The visiting team has won four consecutive games in a series the Penguins lead 3-2 after being trounced 8-2 at home in Game 5 on Saturday.

The Lightning return home after a road win for the second time, and Coach Guy Boucher senses a different mindset among his players for Game 6 than existed before Game 3 in Tampa.

“After we won in Pittsburgh the first time, I felt the guys were happy to have won a game, relieved of something,” Boucher said after practice Sunday.

“That’s probably the worst state to be in because you’ve done nothing for the next game yet and you already feel some relief,” the first-year coach added. “There is no relief in the playoffs.

“It’s every second counts, every play will count. It’ll be harder tomorrow than it was last game. We always say the easiest day was yesterday, it certainly won’t be tomorrow.”

The Penguins already have shown ability to put lopsided losses behind them, bouncing back from a 5-1 in Game 2 to win the next two on the road.

“I think I’d rather lose 8-2 than lose in triple overtime or something,” Pittsburgh’s Arron Asham said. “No one was happy with the outcome. We gave up the first goal and it just deteriorated from there. That’s the way it goes. That game is behind us.”

Stamkos scored the first two playoff goals of his career and also had an assist to pace the Lightning’s offensive explosion in Game 5. Simon Gagne and Pavel Kubina also had two goals apiece for Tampa Bay, which also got a strong performance from goalie Dwayne Roloson.

The team scoring first has won each game in the series.

“Obviously it’s not the way we wanted it to happen. We know how important the first goal has been in the series. They got one, and then two quick, and then after that we kind of stopped playing,” Pittsburgh’s Maxime Talbot said. “Unacceptable in the playoffs.”

That’s the same way the Lightning felt following losses at the St. Pete Times Forum in Games 3 and 4. They rallied from 2-0 deficits in both but lost the third game when the Penguins needed just 31 seconds to an answer a tying goal and lost the other in two overtimes.