After pulling out two points in a game where they didn’t play well on Thursday night, the Tampa Bay Lightning were right back at it Friday night. They outplayed the Chicago Blackhawks, but fell short on rookie Philipp Kurashev’s shootout winner. 4-3 was the final score in Chicago.
Game Flow
First Period
Coming off their first third period comeback win this season, the Lightning came out flying. The newly formed line of Anthony Cirelli flanking Brayden Point and Ondrej Palat was everywhere, turning pucks over and creating scoring opportunities. Their hard work paid off early, as Cirelli got a rebound and fired the puck top shelf on Malcolm Subban to make it 1-0.
The unrelenting pressure continued, resulting in Ian Mitchell’s hooking penalty. On the ensuing power play, Victor Hedman and Alex Killorn re-created Thursday night’s overtime winner for a 2-0 lead.
Unfortunately, that was where momentum began to shift. Blake Coleman was sent off for hooking and the Hawks power play broke through, with Alex DeBrincat beating Curtis McElhinney to cut the lead to 2-1. That put the Bolts back on their heels and bad habits crept back into their game. Luke Schenn was penalized for interference, but thankfully the penalty kill came through to keep the score 2-1.
Second Period
Entering the middle frame, the Lightning wanted to get back to what worked early in the game. They had a number of grade-A chances, from Point, Yanni Gourde and Cirelli, but Subban came up huge to keep the Hawks within a goal.
The pressure increased and, as a result, Nikita Zadorov was sent to the penalty box for interfering with Cirelli. That power play struggled mightily, allowing Patrick Kane to get free and find DeBrincat for the tying goal as the penalty expired.
From there, it was a parade to the penalty box. Carl Soderberg headed off for interference, but the Bolts did nothing with their opportunity. Mikhail Sergachev was then called for delay of game. Things got a little tougher a minute and a half into the kill, as Coleman took his second penalty of the game. That gave the Hawks 27 seconds of 5-on-3 time. Tampa Bay’s kill and McElhinney stood strong through adversity, keeping the score knotted at 2 apiece through 40 minutes.
Third Period
Heading into the final 20 minutes, both teams were prepared to get each others best. The Hawks began with a little carry-over power play time, which they hoped to do damage with. Tampa Bay had other ideas though. Ryan McDonagh picked off a pass and was off to the races, hoping to give his team a one-goal lead. It didn’t happen, as Subban alertly made the save.
Right after Coleman’s penalty expired, McDonagh found himself wide open on the right side. Killorn’s shot popped out to the Lightning defenseman and he didn’t miss this time. That gave the Bolts a 3-2 lead.
Less than three minutes later, the Hawks evened the score at three. Dominic Kubalik took a pass from Duncan Keith and fired the puck past McElhinney.
Both teams took a penalty in the next 10 minutes. Hedman’s resulted in little pressure from the Hawks, while the one by Kubalik saw a flurry of shots by the Bolts. Subban made a number of magnificent stops to give his team at least one point.
Overtime
With one point in hand and more open ice, the Hawks and Bolts both put on a show to begin overtime. Kane was denied twice by McElhinney, while Subban stopped Point, Steven Stamkos and Cirelli to name a few. Killorn then finds himself with a great chance on the doorstep, but a slash by Keith thwarts the opportunity. The power play is given one final shot though, as Keith is sent to the box for the remainder of overtime. While the Lightning pepper Subban for the final two minutes, they are unable to solve the young netminder. His 39 saves on 42 shots were the biggest reason the Blackhawks walked away with two points.
Shootout
McElhinney denies both DeBrincat and Kane before the young Kurashev beats him. Subban stops the trio of Hedman, Point and Stamkos to halt the Lightning’s six game win streak.
Stats
Alex DeBrincat’s first goal was the 100th of his career. It was also his 200th point.
The Lightning’s six game win streak was snapped, but they extended their point streak to seven games.
Next Up
The Lightning will look to extend their point streak when they face these same Blackhawks in a nationally televised game on Sunday, March 7 in Chicago. Puck drop is scheduled for 2:30 PM EST.