Lightning win 7th straight, end Blackhawks' 12-game streak

TAMPA, Fla. - Nikita Kucherov snapped a second-period tie with his 20th goal and the streaking Tampa Bay Lightning ended Chicago's franchise-record 12-game winning streak with a 2-1 win victory over the defending Stanley Cup champions on Thursday night.

The win was the seventh straight for the Lightning — one shy of a team record — and gave the defending Eastern Conference champs a split of the season series with the Blackhawks, who won last year's Stanley Cup final against Tampa Bay in six games.

Ben Bishop had 17 saves as the Blackhawks were held to a season-low 18 shots. Corey Crawford stopped 31 shots to keep the Blackhawks in the game, but it wasn't enough to extend a career-best nine-game winning streak for the Chicago goaltender.

Anton Stralman scored in the first period and Victor Hedman had two assists for the Lightning. Artem Anisimov scored Chicago's lone goal in the opening minute of the game.