The Lightning used a dominant first period to build a multi-goal lead, then had to hang on down the stretch to secure their seventh-straight home win to open the season (a new franchise record).
The Red Wings were playing the second half of a back-to-back, and the Lightning jumped all over them in the opening 20 minutes. They outshot Detroit, 13-2, and owned a whopping 38-6 shot attempt advantage. The Lightning spent almost the entire period in possession of the puck. They also scored two goals on John Gibson. During a power play, Nikita Kucherov set up Brayden Point in the slot. Point didn’t get all of the puck, but that created a change-of-pace shot that slid under Gibson’s pad at 7:54.
Point struck again at 13:01, finishing another Kucherov centering feed. Point zipped a wrist shot from the high slot over Gibson’s glove. Gibson stopped the other 11 shots in the period that he faced, and the Lightning also had 25 shot attempts that either missed the net or got blocked. Late in the frame, Gibson appeared to injure himself, and he didn’t return for the second period. Daniil Tarasov, who played the previous night in Sunrise, came in relief.
The Lightning extended the lead when Anthony Cirelli finished a close-range shot at 8:41 of the second. The play was made by J.J. Moser, who walked along the blue line towards the right circle before stumbling. But he still managed to feed Gage Goncalves at the side of the net, creating a two-on-one down low with Cirelli. Goncalves got the puck to Cirelli, who roofed it over Tarasov’s stick.
But the Wings answered soon after. Less than two minutes after Cirelli’s tally, Detroit forced a turnover in the Lightning end. Lucas Raymond made a pass to J.T. Compher behind the net, and Compher returned the puck to Raymond at the left circle. Raymond wired a shot into the top of the net at 10:23.
The Lightning might have allowed more than one goal in the second, but the Red Wings missed multiple open-net looks.
Credit the Red Wings for raising their level as the game progressed. The Raymond goal brought them within striking distance, and they played much better in the second half. They were aided by four consecutive power-play chances (after the Lightning had received the first three). Detroit’s final three PP opportunities came in the third period, and the Red Wings converted on the initial one. With time winding down in the penalty, Compher scored from the slot past a screened Andrei Vasilevskiy.
After the Compher PPG, the Wings have now scored power-play goals in five straight games and in eight of their last nine. They applied pressure on their final two power plays as well as during a lengthy six-on-five in the closing minutes. Vasilevskiy made several point-blank saves down the stretch to preserve the lead, however. Ryan McDonagh tacked on an empty-netter just before time expired.
Similar to many of their recent games, the Lightning continued to create lots of scoring chances (and score goals). On the other hand, they haven’t solved the defensive issues that have plagued them.
But they continue to munch points. And just as importantly, they picked up a regulation win in their first divisional game of the season.
Lightning Radio Three Stars of the Game (as selected by Phil Esposito):
- Brayden Point — Lightning. Two goals.
- Andrei Vasilevskiy — Lightning. Preserved lead in the third.
- J.T. Compher — Red Wings. Goal and assist.
