NEW YORK – Tyler Johnson is carrying the Tampa Bay Lightning in the playoffs and making a name for himself. The 24-year-old from Spokane is becoming one of the front-runners to be the postseason MVP. Johnson scored short-handed, even strength and on the power play in tallying the first hat trick in Lightning playoff history and Tampa Bay got its high-scoring offense in gear and evened the Eastern Conference finals with a 6-2 victory over the stumbling New York Rangers on Monday night. “Oh, Tyler Johnson, the bigger the game, the better he plays,” Lightning coach Jon Cooper said. “That’s Tyler Johnson. It’s unreal to watch. He put the team on his back, and we all followed.” Johnson has had four multiple goal-scoring games in the postseason. The previous player with four multiple goal-scoring games in the same postseason was Jamie Langenbrunner with the New Jersey Devils in 2003. “I think every morning I’m just happy to be here and I’m living my dream,” the 5-foot-8 center said. “That’s what’s driving me is to try to be the best I can and play for my family. They sacrificed so much for me to be here, and I’m living my dream, so I want to keep living it as long as possible.” Alex Killorn added two goals and Steven Stamkos had one as the Lightning bounced back from a crushing late loss on Saturday.