2004 Stanley Cup Playoffs The 2004 Stanley Cup playoffs for the National Hockey League began on April 7 , 2004 , following the 2003 – 04 regular season . The playoffs ended with the Tampa Bay Lightning securing the Stanley Cup with a seven - game series win over the Calgary Flames on June 7 . It was Tampa Bay ' s first Stanley Cup victory . It was the Flames ' third final appearance , as they came this far in 1986 and 1989 , winning the latter . The sixteen qualified teams , eight from each conference , played best - of - seven games for conference quarterfinals , semifinals and finals . The winner of each conference proceeded to the Stanley Cup Finals . The format was identical to the one introduced for the 1999 playoffs . These playoffs marked the first time the Nashville Predators qualified , being in their seventh season in the NHL . The future champions from Tampa Bay saw playoff action for the third time , while the Colorado Avalanche made their ninth straight post - season appearance . Statistical leaders . Goaltending . These are the top five goaltenders based on either goals against average or save percentage with at least four games played . Conference quarterfinals . Eastern Conference quarterfinals . ( 1 ) Tampa Bay Lightning vs . ( 8 ) New York Islanders . In 2004 , the Tampa Bay Lightning had won the Southeast Division . They entered these playoffs with high hopes that they could win their first ever Stanley Cup . For the Isles , it was a struggle just to make the post season . The highly favoured Lightning met up with the Islanders who , under rookie head coach Steve Stirling , had a respectable 91 points . Good enough for eighth spot in the conference . The Lightning led the Southeast Division for the whole year , finishing with their highest point total ever . Martin St . Louis finished with his best season . He led the league in scoring with 94 points . The Islanders won the season series 3 – 1 , and it was thought that this might be a tough task for the Lightning . Games 1 and 2 , at St . Pete Times Forum in St . Petersburg , saw goalies Nikolai Khabibulin of the Lightning and Rick DiPietro of the Islanders trade 3 – 0 shutouts , with Tampa Bay winning Game 1 and New York winning Game 2 . The series turned to Nassau Coliseum in New York for Games 3 and 4 , and Khabibulin all but put up a wall in front of the net : the Lightning won both games 3 – 0 , Khabibulin ' s GAA for the series was a tidy 0 . 75 through the first four games , and Khabibulin stopped all 61 shots he saw in New York . Back in Florida for Game 5 , Khabibulin allowed his first goals in three games , but Martin St . Louis scored the game - winner four minutes into overtime . For the Islanders , this was the second straight season they had lost in the first round after splitting the first two games on the road . ( 2 ) Boston Bruins vs . ( 7 ) Montreal Canadiens . In 2002 , the top seeded Bruins were upset by the lower seeded Canadiens in the first round of the playoffs . It was a humiliating defeat . This series featured the same result , as the Bruins were once again upset by the lower seeded Canadiens . The Bruins recent history was marked by playoff collapses . They beat the Hurricanes in 1999 , but since then had not won a playoff series . To change their luck , Mike Sullivan was hired to be the coach , and he led his team to a division title . They had relied on the stellar play of goaltender Andrew Raycroft all season . For the Canadiens , the playoffs were long overdue . They had only made the playoffs 3 times in last 7 seasons . The two teams had the same amount of wins ( 41 ) during the season , and Habs coach Claude Julien told his team to remember that his team was not very different from the Bruins . Games 1 and 2 at FleetCenter in Boston saw the Bruins win two low - scoring games , winning Game 1 , 3 – 0 , behind a 31 - save shutout from goalie Andrew Raycroft . Raycroft was almost as good in Game 2 , allowing one goal , but Boston won the game anyway , 2 – 1 . Down 2 – 0 in the series , but home at the Bell Centre , Montreal won Game 3 , 3 – 2 . But , the Canadiens were pushed to the brink with a painful double - overtime 4 – 3 loss in Game 4 . Montreal was in trouble . If they were to advance , they had to win the next three games before losing one , and two of the three games were in Boston . The Canadiens bounced back from the double - overtime loss with a 5 – 1 Game 5 victory , scoring three third - period goals to break open a close game . Energized by home - ice advantage and their temporary staving off of elimination , Montreal forced a Game 7 with a 5 – 2 Game 6 victory . Montreal completed the stunning comeback with a 2 – 0 victory in Game 7 in Boston , as goalie Jose Theodore went a perfect 32 - for - 32 in save attempts . " We had a lead in this series and left it to chance in Game Seven , and that ' s what happened , " rookie goaltender Andrew Raycroft said . " We had just has much a chance as they did . It ' s just disappointing . " " I thought we played extremely hard tonight and played a great hockey game , " Bruins coach Mike Sullivan added . " We certainly had our chances to score goals and I thought we deserved a better fate , but that ' s the nature of sports . " For the Bruins , it meant another playoff disappointment . They would miss the playoffs in 2006 . As for the Canadiens , they would move on to face the Tampa Bay Lightning , where they were swept in 4 games . ( 3 ) Philadelphia Flyers vs . ( 6 ) New Jersey Devils . Game 1 of the series at Wachovia Center in Philadelphia saw the Flyers win , 3 – 2 . Game 2 saw another well - played , close game , with Philadelphia again winning , 3 – 2 . Game 3 at Continental Airlines Arena in New Jersey saw the first game of the series not decided by one goal , a 4 – 2 Devils victory . With a chance to tie the series heading back to Philadelphia , the New Jersey attack was completely stonewalled by Flyers goalie Robert Esche in a 3 – 0 shutout victory for the Flyers . Esche had 35 saves . Back in Philadelphia for Game 5 , the Flyers finished off the Devils with a 3 – 1 victory . ( 4 ) Toronto Maple Leafs vs . ( 5 ) Ottawa Senators . The 4 – 5 matchup in the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals was billed as the Battle of Ontario . The Senators would have had home ice advantage , however on the final day of the regular season , the Maple Leafs routed Ottawa 6 – 0 . Therefore giving the Leafs the higher seeding . Game 1 , at Toronto ' s Air Canada Centre , saw Ottawa pull out a 4 – 2 victory . Needing a victory to avoid going down two games to Ottawa , the Maple Leafs came through with 2 – 0 win on the strength of a 31 - save shutout by Ed Belfour . Game 3 of the series shifted venue to Ottawa ' s Corel Centre , but the teams shouldn ' t have bothered playing the game if they wanted a different result : Toronto again won , 2 – 0 , behind another Belfour shutout , and this time Belfour stopped 37 shots . Ottawa finally broke through the wall Belfour had put up in net , winning Game 4 , 4 – 1 . With the series back in Toronto for a crucial Game 5 , Belfour posted his third shutout of the series in yet another 2 – 0 Toronto victory . A clear indication of the strength of the Toronto defense , and the Senators bleak offense . With a chance to knock out the Senators on the road in Game 6 , Ottawa won , 2 – 1 , double - overtime victory . The series went back to Toronto for the third time , this time for a Game 7 . Toronto relied on what brought them the first three victories of the series : goalie Belfour , who all but denied Ottawa ' s offense in a 4 – 1 , series - clinching win . Lalime gave up 2 questionable goals by Joe Nieuwendyk before being pulled after the first period and replaced by backup Martin Prusek by head coach Jacques Martin . Western Conference quarterfinals . ( 1 ) Detroit Red Wings vs . ( 8 ) Nashville Predators . At Detroit ' s Joe Louis Arena for Game 1 , the Red Wings shook off a slow start and got goals from Kris Draper , Tomas Holmstrom and Robert Lang and posted a 3 – 1 victory . Game 2 saw a closer game , but Detroit still won the game , 2 – 1 on Mathieu Schneider ' s game winning goal . However , at Nashville ' s Gaylord Entertainment Center for Games 3 and 4 , Nashville made it a series by taking both games , tying the series 2 – 2 headed back to Detroit . After a 3 – 1 Game 3 victory , Nashville one - upped themselves with a 3 – 0 Game 4 victory as goalie Tomas Vokoun posted a 37 - save shutout . Game 4 also saw Detroit goalie Manny Legace being yanked in favor of Curtis Joseph . Back in Detroit for Game 5 , Joseph got the start in goal for the Red Wings , and the decision paid off : the Red Wings dominated the Predators , winning 4 – 1 . When the series returned to Nashville for Game 6 , Joseph shut out the Predators to end their season in a 2 – 0 victory . It was a relatively easy victory for Joseph , as the Red Wings defense allowed only 15 Predator shots on goal . ( 2 ) San Jose Sharks vs . ( 7 ) St . Louis Blues . The Sharks had made the playoffs for the first time since missing them the previous season . For the Blues , it was a struggle just to make the post season . They fired coach Joel Quenneville at the risk of missing the playoffs for the first time in half a century . Assistant coach Mike Kitchen was promoted to interim coach , and under him the Blues posted a 10 – 7 – 4 record , good enough for a playoff berth . Game 1 of the series at San Jose ' s HP Pavilion saw a defensive battle , with San Jose winning the game , 1 – 0 , on the strength of a 26 - save shutout from Evgeni Nabokov . Chris Osgood was equally strong in net for the Blues , but allowed a goal to Niko Dimitrakos in the first overtime . Nabokov gave up only one goal in Game 2 , a 3 – 1 Sharks victory highlighted by Patrick Marleau ' s hat trick . " I don ' t think they really gave the players a chance to play in Game 2 , and it kind of threw us off balance right from the start of the game , " St . Louis coach Mike Kitchen said . " Some calls we deserved , and some calls weren ' t strong calls on the referees ' part . " In St . Louis at the Savvis Center for Game 3 , the Blues used home - ice advantage to post a 4 – 1 victory and half their series deficit , getting a hat trick from Mike Sillinger . The next night , in Game 4 , saw a back - and - forth game that ultimately went to San Jose , 4 – 3 . With a chance to knock out the Blues at home in Game 5 , they did just that , winning the game 3 – 1 . On a more serious note , shortly after the series , St . Louis left wing Mike Danton , who scored one goal in the series , was arrested , charged , and convicted in a conspiracy to murder his agent , David Frost . ( 3 ) Vancouver Canucks vs . ( 6 ) Calgary Flames . The Canucks had won the division , and were riding a current 6 game winning streak . Dan Cloutier served as the starting goalie , and faired pretty well during the season . The Flames had used a run of 10 – 2 – 2 in the month of December , to make the playoffs for the first time since 1996 . The second all - Canada first round series ( # 4 Toronto defeated # 5 Ottawa , 4 – 3 in the Eastern Conference ) began at GM Place in Vancouver . The goals were easy to come by , but Vancouver scored more in a 5 – 3 Game 1 victory . Both defenses tightened considerably in Game 2 , a 2 – 1 Calgary victory that tied the series headed to the Pengrowth Saddledome in Calgary . Game 3 saw another 2 – 1 game , but this time Vancouver prevailed . However , during the game , Canucks goalie Dan Cloutier was injured making a save , and backup Johan Hedberg took over . Game 4 saw Calgary goalie Miikka Kiprusoff and the Flames defense pick a good time to play well , with Kiprusoff stopping all 20 shots he faced in a 4 – 0 victory that tied the series , 2 – 2 . After Hedberg ' s subpar performance in Game 4 , he was replaced in the net by Alexander Auld , the third goalie in as many games for the Canucks . Game 5 , back in Vancouver , saw Calgary push the Canucks to the brink with a 2 – 1 victory . With elimination staring Vancouver in the face , the Canucks and Flames engaged in an all - out battle in Game 6 that saw Vancouver storm out to a 4 – 0 lead only to see the Flames come back to tie it . The game didn ' t end until triple - overtime , when Brendan Morrison scored 2 : 28 into the period in a 5 – 4 Vancouver victory . That set up a thrilling Game 7 in Vancouver with the winner getting bragging rights for western Canada . Matt Cooke scored twice for the Canucks , including a game tying goal off a desperation rush with five seconds left in regulation . Calgary won the game in overtime , 3 – 2 , with Martin Gelinas scoring the game - winner 85 seconds into overtime . In a bizarre fact , the last three times these teams have met in the playoffs , the series was a first round match - up , went the maximum seven games with Game 7 being decided in overtime each time , and the winning team would eventually go all the way to the Stanley Cup Finals . ( 4 ) Colorado Avalanche vs . ( 5 ) Dallas Stars . Game 1 at the Pepsi Center in Denver saw the Avalanche win , 3 – 1 . Game 2 saw Colorado increase the offensive pressure on Dallas goalie Marty Turco in a 5 – 2 Avalanche win . At home at the American Airlines Center and in danger of falling behind 3 – 0 in the series , Dallas bounced back with a crucial victory in overtime , 4 – 3 , to climb back into the series . After the first 80 minutes of Game 4 failed to produce a winner , Dallas stood a chance at winning the game , tying the series , and guaranteeing at least one more game at home . But Marek Svatos won the game for the Avalanche 5 : 18 into the second overtime to break Dallas ' back . Back in Colorado for Game 5 , Dallas kept it close until the third period , when Colorado broke the game wide open with three goals to extend a 2 – 1 lead to 5 – 1 to clinch the series . Conference semifinals . Eastern Conference semifinals . ( 1 ) Tampa Bay Lightning vs . ( 7 ) Montreal Canadiens . This series pitted the top - seeded Lightning , who had hastily eliminated the Islanders in the first round , against the Canadiens , who were riding an emotional high after their thrilling comeback seven - game series victory against the Boston Bruins . Game 1 , at Tampa ' s St . Pete Times Forum , saw a not - so - rare occurrence for the Lightning : a shutout by goalie Nikolai Khabibulin , his fourth of the postseason out of six games he played in . Khabibulin turned away all 21 shots he saw in the 4 – 0 victory , with the 21 shots being an indicator of the strong Lightning defense . Game 1 also saw Montreal goalie Jose Theodore , who had shut out Boston in Game 7 of the Quarterfinals , get pulled in favor of Mathieu Garon , who went 6 - for - 6 during his brief stint in goal . Game 2 saw Theodore return to goal for Montreal , but the Canadiens still lost the game by a score of 3 – 1 . Game 3 saw Khabibulin give up three goals for the first time in five games . In fact , in the five games since his last loss , he had allowed a " combined " total of three goals . But despite the letdown , Tampa found a way to win the game 65 seconds into overtime , 4 – 3 . The demoralizing defeat stung Montreal , and they were swept without resisting in a 3 – 1 Game 4 loss . ( 3 ) Philadelphia Flyers vs . ( 4 ) Toronto Maple Leafs . This series pitted two Eastern Conference rivals that were evenly matched ; Toronto had 103 points and Philadelphia 101 , but Philadelphia had knocked off their first - round opponent quicker than Toronto ; Philadelphia knocked out New Jersey in five games while it took Toronto all seven games to eliminate Ottawa . Game 1 , at Philadelphia ' s Wachovia Center , saw a closely - played game that ultimately went to the Flyers , 3 – 1 . Game 2 was even closer , but Philadelphia ' s defense held firm in a 2 – 1 victory that put them up in the series , 2 – 0 . However , the shift in venue to Air Canada Centre certainly fired up the Maple Leafs , as they used three second - period goals to help out in a 4 – 1 Game 3 victory . Home - ice advantage continued to be a factor in Game 4 , a 3 – 1 Toronto victory . The series went back to Philadelphia for Game 5 , and Philadelphia scored a postseason - high seven goals in a 7 – 2 victory , knocking out Toronto goalie Ed Belfour after the sixth goal in favor of Trevor Kidd in the process . Overlooked during the scoring barrage was a goalie to Philadelphia goalie Robert Esche , who was knocked out early and replaced by Sean Burke , who went 8 - for - 9 in goal ; Toronto only took 11 shots during the whole game . Philadelphia ' s Keith Primeau logged a hat trick to add to the positive for the Flyers . Game 6 , back in Toronto , saw Toronto rally from a 2 – 0 third - period deficit to force overtime , but Jeremy Roenick ' s second goal of the game ended the Maple Leafs ' season . Western Conference semifinals . ( 1 ) Detroit Red Wings vs . ( 6 ) Calgary Flames . This series pitted the top - seeded Red Wings , who were heavily favored , against the Flames , who had knocked out their intracountry rival , Vancouver , in an emotional seven - game series . Game 1 , at Joe Louis Arena in Detroit , saw the Flames stay with the Red Wings for every step of the way , and then in overtime , Marcus Nilson scored the game - winning goal 2 : 39 in . Stunned by the Game 1 loss , the Red Wings , hoping to avoid going down 2 – 0 in the series going to Calgary , bounced back with a 5 – 2 Game 2 victory . At the Pengrowth Saddledome in Calgary for Game 3 , Calgary used three second - period goals to register a 3 – 2 victory and take a 2 – 1 lead in the series . But Detroit again showed the ability to bounce back after a close loss , taking Game 4 , 4 – 2 . The series shifted back to Detroit for Game 5 , when Calgary goalie Miikka Kiprusoff picked an opportune time to shut out an opponent : his 31 - save shutout in a 1 – 0 victory pushed Detroit to the brink , with Game 6 in Calgary . Detroit goalie Curtis Joseph also played well , but the difference in the game was a goal by Craig Conroy . During the second period , a shot by Red Wings defensman Mathieu Schneider deflected off a stick and struck Red Wings captain Steve Yzerman in the left eye . Joe Louis Arena fell silent while Yzerman was attended to for several minutes and then helped off the ice , holding a towel to his face . Yzerman would not return to the series . At the Saddledome for Game 6 , Kiprusoff again refused to budge , allowing nothing in regulation , but so did Joseph . It was now sudden - death for Detroit , and with 47 seconds left in the first overtime , Martin Gelinas beat Joseph set up by assists from Conroy and Jarome Iginla , and Calgary won their second straight 1 – 0 game , and their second straight overtime victory to clinch a series . Kiprusoff ' s 38 - save shutout in Game 6 meant that he had stopped the final 69 shots he saw in the series . ( 2 ) San Jose Sharks vs . ( 4 ) Colorado Avalanche . This series pitted two opponents who defeated their first - round opponents , St . Louis and Dallas , respectively , in five games , with each team winning the first two , losing the third game , and then winning the next two . Game 1 took place at the HP Pavilion in San Jose . The Sharks came flying out of the gate , scoring three first - period goals en route to a 5 – 2 victory highlighted by Patrick Marleau ' s hat trick , his second of the postseason . After giving up the fifth and final Sharks goal , Colorado goalie David Aebischer was pulled in favor of Tommy Salo , who went 7 - for - 7 in saves . Game 2 was more of the same : San Jose continued to shell Aebischer while goalie Evgeni Nabokov limited the Avalanche attack in a 4 – 1 victory . The shift in venue to Colorado ' s Pepsi Center for Game 3 , and San Jose ' s attack was limited to only one goal , scored by Vincent Damphousse , but Nabokov was brilliant between the pipes , stopping all 33 shots that he faced in the 1 – 0 victory to push Colorado to the brink . Down 3 – 0 in the series , Colorado extended their season for at least another game with a 1 – 0 overtime victory in Game 4 as Aebischer rebounded from his poor play in Games 1 and 2 with a 27 - save shutout , and the game ' s lone goal was scored by Joe Sakic 5 : 15 into overtime . When the series returned to San Jose for Game 5 and posted another overtime victory on another game - winning goal by Sakic , this time by a 2 – 1 count , people began to wonder : with Game 6 in Colorado , could Colorado rebound from a 3 – 0 hole to force a Game 7 ? Fortunately for Sharks fans , this did not happen , as San Jose won Game 6 in Colorado , 3 – 1 , and eliminate the Avalanche . San Jose ' s strong second period , in which they scored three goals , was the difference . Conference finals . Eastern Conference finals . ( 1 ) Tampa Bay Lightning vs . ( 3 ) Philadelphia Flyers . The Eastern Conference Finals pitted the Lightning , 8 – 1 in the postseason up to that point , against the third - seeded Flyers , who had just defeated Toronto in a six - game series . Game 1 , at St . Pete Times Forum , saw Philadelphia take only 20 shots on goal , a sign of the strong Tampa Bay defense . Goalie Nikolai Khabibulin , all but impenetrable in the first two rounds , stopped 19 of those 20 shots , the only miss being a Michal Handzus goal in a 3 – 1 Lightning win . However , Game 2 saw a stunning turn of events : Khabibulin was shelled in goal , only seeing 12 shots and getting yanked after giving up four goals in a 6 – 2 Flyers victory . Backup goalie John Grahame went 15 - for - 17 in relief of Khabibulin , and the series was tied , 1 – 1 , going to Philadelphia . Game 3 at the Wachovia Center saw Khabibulin return to his dominant form in net , which was bad news for the Flyers , as Khabibulin stopped 24 out of 25 shots , the only miss being a Keith Primeau goal in a 4 – 1 Lightning win . Game 4 saw the Flyers pull even with a critical 3 – 2 victory that tied the series headed back to Tampa Bay . Back in Tampa Bay for a critical Game 5 , the Lightning used home - ice advantage in a 4 – 2 victory , and they were now one win away from the Stanley Cup Finals . Brad Richards ' two goals marked the first time all series a player had scored more than one goal in a game . Philadelphia ' s backs were against the wall in this critical Game 6 , but they had home - ice advantage . Trailing 4 - 3 in the third period , Keith Primeau continued his impressive playoff performance by tying the game with under 2 minutes remaining , beating Khabibulin on a wraparound and sending the Wachovia Center into a frenzy . The Flyers won the game in overtime , 5 – 4 , on a Simon Gagne goal 18 : 18 in , his second of the game and his first two goals of the series . The series was going back to Tampa Bay for a Game 7 , and both defenses were strong , but Tampa Bay had a little bit more , winning the game , 2 – 1 , and moving on to the Stanley Cup Finals . Western Conference finals . ( 2 ) San Jose Sharks vs . ( 6 ) Calgary Flames . The Western Conference Finals pitted the second - seeded Sharks against the sixth - seeded Flames , who had upset both Vancouver and Detroit en route to this series against San Jose . Game 1 , at San Jose ' s HP Pavilion , saw the Flames win the game 18 : 43 into overtime , 4 – 3 , on a Steve Montador goal , his first of the postseason . In Game 2 , Calgary came charging out of the gate , scoring two first - period goals and never looking back in a 4 – 1 victory . The Sharks were in trouble : they were down in the series , 2 – 0 , headed to Calgary . Game 3 , at the Pengrowth Saddledome in Calgary , saw San Jose come through when they needed to : goalie Evgeni Nabokov posted a 34 - save shutout and Alex Korolyuk scored two goals in a 3 – 0 Sharks win . Game 4 saw the unusual trend of the away team playing well in the series , as San Jose tied the series , 2 – 2 , with a 4 – 2 victory . San Jose ' s attack came quick and hard with four second - period goals . After San Jose ' s fourth goal , Calgary goalie Miikka Kiprusoff was pulled in favor of Roman Turek , who went 3 - for - 3 between the pipes . The series went to San Jose for Game 5 , and the road team continued to play well , with Kiprusoff bouncing back from his Game 4 shelling , getting help from his defense as well , as he stopped all 19 shots he faced in a 3 – 0 Flames win that pushed San Jose to the brink . The series returned to Calgary for Game 6 , and for the first time all series , the home team won , a 3 – 1 Calgary victory that propelled the underdog Flames into the Stanley Cup Finals . This marked the first time since Vancouver lost in 1994 that a Canadian team reached the finals . Stanley Cup finals . ( E1 ) Tampa Bay Lightning vs . ( W6 ) Calgary Flames . The 2004 Stanley Cup Finals pitted the team with the second - most points , the Tampa Bay Lightning , against a team that barely made the playoffs , three points from the bottom of the playoff qualifiers , the Calgary Flames . Tampa Bay had cruised through the first two rounds against the New York Islanders and Montreal Canadiens before running into stiff competition from the Philadelphia Flyers , who they nevertheless defeated in seven games . Calgary had beaten the Western Conference ' s top three seeded teams , the Vancouver Canucks , Detroit Red Wings , and the San Jose Sharks , in that order . Game 1 , at St . Pete Times Forum , saw the Flames win the game , 4 – 1 . Calgary only got 19 shots off against the Lightning defense , but more than one - fifth found the net . Martin Gelinas got Calgary on the board early , and they extended the lead to 3 – 0 in the second period on goals by Jarome Iginla , his 11th of the postseason , and Stephane Yelle . Chris Simon added the fourth and final Calgary goal after Tampa Bay ' s Martin St . Louis scored the lone Lightning goal . Game 2 saw the same final score , but this time , it was Tampa Bay winning a clutch game to tie the series , 1 – 1 , headed to Calgary . Ruslan Fedotenko ' s 10th goal of the postseason got the Lightning on the board first , and Tampa Bay used three third - period goals , coming from Brad Richards , Dan Boyle , and St . Louis , respectively , to blast the game open . The lone Calgary goal was scored by Ville Nieminen . The series shifted to the Pengrowth Saddledome in Calgary , where Flames goalie Miikka Kiprusoff and the Calgary defense completely stonewalled the Tampa Bay attack , which only took 21 shots in a 3 – 0 Flames victory , and Calgary was halfway home . Simon scored the first Calgary goal in the second period , and Shean Donovan and Iginla added goals to ice the game . With a chance to take a commanding 3 – 1 series lead , Calgary was shut out by Lightning goalie Nikolai Khabibulin , who recorded his " fifth " shutout of the postseason , a 29 - save shutout , in a 1 – 0 Tampa Bay victory , with the game ' s lone goal being scored by Richards three minutes into the game . The series returned to Tampa Bay tied , 2 – 2 , for a critical Game 5 , and Calgary pulled off a 3 – 2 overtime victory to move within one win away from the Stanley Cup . After Gelinas and St . Louis traded goals in the first period , Iginla scored for Calgary late in the second period . However , Fredrik Modin tied the game for the Lightning 37 seconds into the third period . The 2 – 2 score held until after 14 : 40 had gone by in overtime , when Oleg Saprykin ' s first goal since the first round won the game for the Flames . Back to Calgary for Game 6 , each team scored two second - period goals , with Richards scoring two for the Lightning and Chris Clark and Marcus Nilson for the Flames , respectively . In the third period , there was a dispute over a Martin Gelinas shot that appeared to have gone in . A review from one unorthodox camera angle showed the puck would appear to have crossed the goal line before Khabibulin ' s pad dragged it out , though another camera did show the puck had been knocked several inches " above " the goal line in front of Khabibulin ' s pad . Although it never was reviewed , it was officially inconclusive . The game entered overtime with the Flames needing only a single goal to win the Stanley Cup . Thirty - three seconds into double overtime , St . Louis put in the game - winner for the Lightning to force a winner - take - all Game 7 in Tampa Bay . In a tense Game 7 , Fedotenko scored goals for Tampa Bay late in the first period and late in the second period for a 2 – 0 lead . After Conroy scored to narrow the deficit to 2 – 1 , Calgary barraged Khabibulin after taking only seven shots in the first two periods . After the Conroy goal , Khabibulin stopped 16 Calgary shots . Tampa Bay won the game , 2 – 1 , and the Stanley Cup .