The Tampa Bay Lightning understand what it takes to be successful in the Stanley Cup playoffs.

”You need your best players to be the best players Patrick Kerney Jersey , and they rose to the occasion,” coach Jon Cooper said Saturday after the top seed in the Eastern Conference beat the New Jersey Devils 3-1, ending their first-round series in five games.

”People are going to look at this series and say: `Oh, 4-1. Tampa took it to them.’ Anybody that was actually watching these games knew clearly that’s not what happened in this series,” Cooper added. ”It was fought from the drop of the puck to the end. We just happened to get big goals at the right time.”

Nikita Kucherov scored his 27th career postseason goal and Andrei Vasilevskiy stopped 26 shots for the Lightning, who advanced to a second-round matchup against either the Boston Bruins or Toronto Maple Leafs.

Kucherov, the NHL’s third-leading scorer during the regular season with 100 points, had five goals and five assists in the five games, setting a franchise for points in a playoff series. He also tied Vincent Lecavalier for second-place on the club’s all-time postseason scoring list.

”I thought he elevated (his play) throughout the series, no question,” Cooper said of the 24-year-old, two-time All-Star, who has 27 goals and 25 assists in 50 career playoff games.

”He’s an extreme competitor,” New Jersey coach John Hynes said. ”When you look at a guy like Kucherov, he has talent but he’s not a perimeter player. He’s very strong on the puck, he competes hard, he’s got good hockey sense. He’s the type of offensive player you need to have success if you’re going to have a chance to win the Stanley Cup.”

Mikhail Sergachev became the youngest player in Lightning history to score a playoff goal and Ryan Callahan, back in the lineup after missing the previous two games with an upper-body injury, sealed it with an empty-netter for the Atlantic Division champions with 1.7 seconds remaining.

”Feels great, especially at home in front of our fans Ronnie Lott Jersey ,” Kucherov said. ”I think we played well defensively, and teams that play well defensively move forward.”

Tampa Bay won the first two games at home before splitting a pair of the road, returning to Amalie Arena after Kucherov had two goals and an assist to key a 3-1 victory in Game 4

The right winger’s sizzling shot past goalie Cory Schneider put the Lightning up 2-0 at 12:27 of the third period of the clincher.

The 19-year-old Sergachev, meanwhile, became the youngest player in franchise history to score a playoff goal, giving the Lightning a 1-0 lead in the first period.

Schneider did all he could to give the Devils a chance to extend their first playoff appearance since 2012.

The goalie, who lost his starting job after being injured in January, stopped 35 of 37 shots, including Tyler Johnson’s breakaway that kept New Jersey within striking distance after Kyle Palmieri trimmed Tampa Bay’s lead to one goal with three minutes left.

Will Butcher and Taylor Hall assisted on the only goal for New Jersey, which played without injured defenseman Sami Vatanen.

”I felt good and enjoyed playing, but at the end of the day I didn’t get the job done,” said Schneider, who replaced Keith Kinkaid during Game 1 and started the last four games. ”I didn’t extend the series, and I didn’t get us the win, so a little bit for naught.”

New Jersey kept it close, killing off four consecutive penalties in the second period, when the Lightning outshot the Devils 18-4 but couldn’t expand its one-goal lead.

Schneider had two more saves early in the third as Tampa Bay sputtered on a fifth power-play opportunity.

”We have to stay out of the box better than we did tonight,” Hynes said. ”It sometimes disrupts the flow of the game, but I think if you look at the penalty kill, those guys played their hearts out. I thought Cory was fantastic. . Those guys kept us right in the game Eric Berry Jersey , right to the end.”

Notes: The Lightning was 0-for-10 on the power play in Games 4 and 5, yet won both games. … Vatanen, New Jersey’s top defenseman, was injured during the opening period of Game 4 when he was checked high by Kucherov. The Devils also played without RW Stefan Noesen, who was scratched with a lower-body injury. … Callahan (upper body) returned after missing Games 3 and 4. ”It’s always tough watching your team play, especially in the playoffs,” he said. ”To be able to get back out there and play was big.”

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By now, LeBron James is usually getting some rest in the NBA playoffs.

The Pacers are making him work much harder than he has in years.

After splitting the first four games, Indiana and Cleveland will meet on Wednesday night in the critical Game 5 of a first-round series that has been unpredictable, uneven and for James, unusual.

This first round hasn’t been the norm for the three-time champion.

While he’s 12-0 in the opening round, before the Cavs dropped Game 1 to the Pacers at home, James had never lost a playoff opener. In fact, James came in with a 21-game winning streak in first-round games and this will be his first Game 5 in Round 1 since 2012 when he was with Miami.

The Cavs and Pacers aren’t the only ones in a tussle in the Eastern Conference as Washington and Toronto resume their series in Canada tied 2-2. Things aren’t quite as tight In the West as Utah holds a 3-1 lead over a fraying Oklahoma City team, and Houston, which dropped 50 points in one quarter on Monday night, can eliminate Minnesota.

Cleveland’s 104-100 win in Game 4 brought relief to Cavs fans and James, who had been getting little offensive help from his teammates. A dependable No. 2 scoring option has been issue all season, primarily because Kyle Irving is no longer around to take pressure off James.

But in Game 4 , Kyle Korver stepped up in the second half and knocked down four 3-pointers and the Cavs buckled down defensively in the closing minutes to avoid a 3-1 hole.

”We all know the narrative around us Micah Hyde Jersey , it is what it is,” Korver said after practice on Tuesday. ”It’s Bron and we’re all trying to make it work for him.”

James has been his usual self, averaging 32.5 points, 11 rebounds and 8 assists in the series. But only Kevin Love (12.0), who has been slowed by a sprained left thumb, and J.R. Smith (10.0) are averaging double-digits for Cleveland.

Some things to know for Wednesday’s matchups:

WIZARDS AT RAPTORS

Series tied 2-2. Game 5, 7 p.m., NBATV

NEED TO KNOW: The home team has won each game so far. The Wizards absolutely need at least one road victory, and they’ve been here before: Washington was eliminated a year ago in the second round against Boston after going 3-0 in at home and 0-4 in away games.

KEEP AN EYE ON: Toronto’s 3-point shooting. The Raptors attempted a season-low 18 shots from beyond the arc, making seven, in its Game 4 loss . They never took fewer than 21 in any regular-season game, and averaged 13.7 made 3s and 31 attempts in Games 1-3.

PRESSURE IS ON: DeMar DeRozan and Kyle Lowry. While Washington’s All-Star backcourt duo of John Wall (26.8 points, 13 assists and 4.8 rebounds) and Bradley Beal (29.5 ppg the past two games) led the Wizards in Games 3 and 4, Toronto’s counterparts have not been very efficient lately. Lowry is shooting 41.7 percent, and DeRozan is at 44 after going 10 for 29 in Game 4.

INJURY UPDATE: Because of an injured right shoulder, Raptors PG Fred VanVleet has played a total of only three minutes in the series.

PACERS AT CAVALIERS

Series tied 2-2. Game 5, 7 p.m. TNT

NEED TO KNOW: After scoring 32 points in the opener, Pacers guard Victor Oladipo has scored 18 and 17 in the past two games and is just 10 of 35 from the field. Cleveland has been blitzing and trapping Oladipo, forcing him to pass or rush his shot.

KEEP AN EYE ON: Lance Stephenson. Indiana’s always entertaining swingman baited James into a technical foul in Game 4, when he also wrapped up Cleveland’s Jeff Green late in the game and spun him to the floor.

PRESSURE IS ON: Cavs coach Tyronn Lue. While he’s had to sort through injuries and battled his own health issues all season Dontae Johnson Jersey , he’s been criticized for some decisions, including a reluctance to play forward Tristan Thompson in this series. If the Cavs go down 3-2 or are eliminated, look out.

INJURY UPDATE: Cavaliers starting G George Hill (back spasms ) is questionable. He received injections but couldn’t play in Game 4.

JAZZ AT THUNDER

Thunder lead 3-1. Game 5, 9:30 p.m. Central, NBA TV.

NEED TO KNOW: Jazz rookie Donovan Mitchell is averaging 27.5 points and 8.5 rebounds while shooting 45 percent from the field. He’s averaging 17.3 points in the second half and shooting 46 percent.

He topped Karl Malone’s rookie playoff record with 33 points in Game 4.

”I’m not trying to think about all that now,” he said. ”We have bigger things to worry about right now as a team.”

KEEP AN EYE ON: Thunder F Carmelo Anthony. He’s shooting 37 percent from the field and 23.1 percent from 3-point range. He was brought to the Thunder to take pressure off Thunder G Russell Westbrook, but his inability to make shots has only made things more difficult.

PRESSURE IS ON: Westbrook. While averaging 21.3 points, 11.8 rebounds and 8.3 assists, he’s only shooting 37 percent, 21 on 3s. Westbrook normally attacks with reckless abandon, but 7-foot-1 Jazz center Rudy Gobert is making that tougher.

INTRIGUING MATCHUP: Thunder F Paul George vs. Jazz F Joe Ingles. George has been solid, averaging 27.3 points. But his focus has drifted and he has got caught up in some of Ingles’ agitating tactics. George was the aggressor in Game 4 , at one point shoving Ingles and getting a technical.

TIMBERWOLVES AT ROCKETS

Rockets lead 3-1. Game 5, 9:30 p.m., TNT.

NEED TO KNOW: Timberwolves might still be reeling from the 50-point third quarter the Rockets posted to turn a tight Game 4 into a rout . Minnesota actually outshot Houston for the third straight game, but only turned that into one victory. ”Ev Vincent Edwards Jersey