Lightning Strikes Chicago

Excitement was bursting throughout AMALIE Arena as Victor Hedman's return gave a spark to the Tampa Bay Lightning as they took on the Chicago Blackhawks. After defeating the Blackhawks 4-1 earlier this season, the Lightning were sure to give their best effort. The offensive lineup for Saturday was Stamkos, Point, Kucherov, Colton, Paul, Jeannot, Hagel, Cirelli, Killorn, Maroon, Eyssimont, and Perry. The defensive lineup for Saturday was Sergachev, Bogosian, Hedman, Perbix, Cole, and Cernak. Their goalkeeper was Brian Elliot, while they saved Vasilevskiy for the game against Winnipeg on Sunday.

Before the game, the players shared their thoughts on the game with the media. "They are very determined to win," says Sergachev, referring to the Blackhawks. Hagel said, "I'm excited to play against my old team," while Perbix noted, " The Blackhawks are desperate, which makes them scary to play against." Then, it was Coach Cooper's turn. "The key to winning this game is to score more goals than the Blackhawks, but it is also to be hard-working." He also said," I am looking for effort out of every single one of my players tonight." Now there is no more time to interview, because it's game time.

In the first period, Stamkos received a leg injury and wouldn't be back for the rest of the game. Both teams kept getting very close to scoring the entire game. Then, in the second period, Lightning player Brayden Point scored! Cirelli also got a lower-body injury, but seemed to prevail and kept playing. The Chicago Blackhawks finally caught up to the Lightning with a goal in the third period. Brayden Point then scored for the second time with about a minute left in the game. Hagel soon followed with the third goal after the Blackhawks pulled their goalie. As fast as it was, the Tampa Bay Lightning won the game with a final score of 3-1. This is now the 34th time the Tampa Bay Lightning have beaten the Chicago Blackhawks.