In a game that featured numerous scoring chances and several momentum swings, the Lightning prevailed in overtime against Seattle to improve their home record to 4-0-0.
Throughout the night, both Andrei Vasilevskiy and Philipp Grubauer gave their teams key saves. Vasilevskiy denied Shane Wright on four of Seattle’s best scoring looks. Grubauer made eight saves on Nikita Kucherov alone, including a sliding stop in the game’s first minute.
Seattle would draw first blood, converting on a Lightning d-zone turnover. Freddy Gaudreau disrupted an Emil Lilleberg attempted pass from behind the Lightning net, and the puck bounced in front to Ryan Winterton. Vasilevskiy hadn’t yet gotten reset in the crease when Winterton finished into an open side of the net at 5:43.
At the 10:00 mark of the first, the Lightning received the first power play of the game. They generated little on the opportunity until the closing seconds, when Pontus Holmberg almost scored from the low slot. The chance seemed to spark the Lightning, who dictated play for much of the final eight minutes. They tied the game when Brandon Hagel followed his own initial rush chance with a rebound goal at 16:53.
The Lightning carried that momentum into the second period and grabbed the lead at 3:38. Dominic James, making his season debut, delivered an outlet to Anthony Cirelli. Victor Hedman joined Cirelli and Hagel up ice, creating an odd-man rush. Cirelli passed to Hagel, who wired a left-circle shot over Grubauer’s glove.
Soon after, the Kraken pushed back. They had the Lightning back on their heels for a portion of the middle stanza but couldn’t tie the game. Vasilevskiy made ten second-period saves to preserve the lead, and the Lightning also killed two penalties. Late in the frame, the Lightning received a power play of their own—they held the puck in the offensive zone for nearly the entire two minutes and created several dangerous looks without scoring. The game remained 2-1 after 40 minutes.
Early in the third, Seattle received a third power-play chance—and did convert. Chandler Stephenson won the offensive-zone faceoff cleanly. Seconds later, he set up Jordan Eberle at the left circle. Ryan McDonagh attempted to block Eberle’s cross-ice pass to Jared McCann, but the puck got through. McCann buried his right-circle shot into an open side of the net at 2:54.
Just shy of the halfway point of the third, the Lightning regained the lead. Seattle defenseman Ville Ottavainen attempted to skate from behind his net in front but ran into traffic. He put the pass off the stick of Ilya Mikheyev, who forced the puck into the net. It was Mikheyev’s 100th career goal.
The Lightning couldn’t hold the lead, however. Once again, Seattle converted soon after winning an offensive-zone faceoff. Matty Benier won a draw from Hagel (after Cirelli had been tossed from the circle) and tipped Vince Dunn’s point shot past Vasilevskiy at 15:41. The game stayed tied through the end of regulation.
In overtime, Grubauer twice denied Hagel on the opening shift, extending the game. But after the Lightning regrouped in the neutral zone, Holmberg fed Hedman up the ice. Hedman carried into the offensive zone, pushed the puck between two Seattle defenders towards the net, and pursued it. He used his reach to swipe a backhand shot past Grubauer, winning the game at 2:07.
The teams combined for seven goals—if not for the goalies, they would have scored more. But the Lightning managed to make one extra play to pick up their fifth win of the season.
Lightning Radio Three Stars of the Game (as selected by Phil Esposito):
- Brandon Hagel — Lightning. Two goals.
- Ilya Mikheyev — Lightning. Goal. 100th career tally.
- Victor Hedman — Lightning. GWG in OT.
