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Lightning coach Jon Cooper scoffs at ref 'manipulation' claim

Tampa Bay coach Jon Cooper issued a rebuttal to Toronto coach Sheldon Keefe's claim that the Lightning were «manipulating the officials» in Game 3 of the teams' first-round Eastern Conference playoff series Saturday.

Keefe told reporters after the Maple Leafs' 4-3 win in overtime that a third-period fight between star players Steven Stamkos and Auston Matthews was «a classic example of a veteran championship team like Tampa Bay manipulating the officials and taking advantage of a situation.»

Stamkos got into it with Matthews following a hit by Leafs' defenseman Morgan Rielly on Lightning forward Brayden Point that briefly knocked Point out of the game — and caused several other skirmishes. Nikita Kucherov and Ryan O'Reilly were also given five-minute penalties for fighting before the dust finally settled and play resumed.

Cooper spoke with the media via Zoom on Sunday and unpacked Keefe's criticism.

«Manipulating the referees? All right, I'm not sure what that means,» Cooper said. «When that hit [on Point] happened, I think everyone in the building, including us, thought we were going on the power play. Our two best power-play players [Stamkos and Kucherov], I don't think they would ever sit there and take themselves off a power play unless they thought something happened.»

Ultimately, Cooper added, the Lightning didn't help themselves by getting physical, which he said made Keefe's comments all the more confusing.

«Auston Matthews doesn't kill penalties,» Cooper said. «That actually worked against us, to be honest. Now we ended up being shorthanded after that [fight], but I don't think anybody thought that was going to happen at the time, so I don't know. That [manipulating part] is a little different for me.»

The

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