Lightning Penalty Kill & Goaltending the Difference in Win vs. Flyers
The Tampa Bay Lightning grabbed their second straight win against the Philadelphia Flyers on Monday night by a score of 2-0. Following a shootout loss in Philadelphia last week, the Lightning rebounded to steal one game in the season series with the Flyers. The Lightning sit just two points back of first place in the Atlantic Division behind the Florida Panthers with a game in hand.
Game Recap
Nikita Kucherov scored the game’s opening goal with a quick puck strip from his defending blue line. The winger walked down Main Street to bury the breakaway opportunity in the top corner over the goaltender’s shoulder. The Lightning led the shot count 11-9 after Period 1.
The second period was uneventful, with just nine shots on goal combined between both teams. Furthermore, the Lightning killed off a double-minor penalty and didn’t allow a shot on goal. The Bolts killed all five Philadelphia power play attempts in the first two periods. Moreover, both goaltenders, Andrei Vasilevskiy and Ivan Fedotov, looked solid 40 minutes into the game.
Tampa Bay and Philadelphia ramped up the intensity in the final frame. The third period featured back-and-forth chances in each end of the ice. Brandon Hagel and Sean Couturier exchanged close-quarters chances off the rush, but Vasilevskiy and Fedotov were up for the task.
Couturier, the Flyers’ captain, took a four-minute penalty for a high stick with roughly two minutes left in the third period to put the Lightning on the power play. Furthermore, Kucherov found Jake Guentzel in the neutral zone for an empty net tally to close out the win.
Looking Ahead
On the winning side of another tight-checking, playoff-like game, the Lightning must embrace the mindset that every point in the standings matters. With a record of 24-8-2 at home versus a 15-15-3 record on the road, Tampa Bay would benefit greatly from home-ice advantage in the playoffs. Plus, securing first place in the Atlantic Division guarantees a matchup against a wild card team instead of one of the two opponents they’ve lost to in back-to-back seasons.
The Lightning return to action Thursday (March 20) against a loaded Dallas Stars forward core. Puck drop for that game is at 8:00 p.m. Meanwhile, the Flyers plan to face the top team in the Eastern Conference, the Washington Capitals, on Thursday (March 20) for a 7:00 p.m. start.
3 Stars of the Game
- Andrei Vasilevskiy (1.000 save percentage, 0.00 goals-against average)
- Ivan Fedotov (.955 save percentage, 1.01 goals-against average)
- Nikita Kucherov (1 goal, 1 assist)
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