But it didn't come easily. Sharks goalie Martin Jones was sensational, particularly in the first two periods. During those opening 40 minutes, he stopped 30 of 31 Lightning shots, many of which were good-to-great scoring chances. In addition, the Lightning allowed the game's first goal and trailed 1-0 after the first period.
That early deficit didn't frustrate the Lightning, however. They maintained their high level even after falling behind. The Bolts mixed up their line combinations for this game - and all four lines were clicking. Ondrej Palat, playing on a line with Brayden Point and Nikita Kucherov, had two tremendous assists. On the tying goal, he threaded a perfect pass to Kucherov in the opening minute of the second. Then, during a Lightning power play early in the third, he banked a dump-in off the corner boards right to Tyler Johnson, who was streaking towards the net. Johnson one-timed a backhand shot into the net, giving the Lightning a 2-1 lead.
Speaking of Johnson, he had a terrific game playing with Steven Stamkos and Vladdy Namestnikov. He ended up scoring twice and snapped his career-long 15-game goalless skid. He had had some close calls in recent games by using his speed and attacking the net. He finally was rewarded in this game.
The unit of Yanni Gourde, Alex Killorn and Cory Conacher was also effective. Conacher scored the fourth Lightning goal and the trio generated several good looks. The line of JT Brown, Chris Kunitz and Ryan Callahan combined for eight shots and had a number of extended offensive zone shifts.
The stats bear out how well the Lightning played. They matched a season-high with 43 shots. Shot attempts were 71-54 in favor of Tampa Bay. Facing a goalie playing extremely well, they still netted five goals. This came against a Sharks team that entered the game leading the NHL in fewest goals allowed per game and shots allowed per game. The Bolts put in four third period goals - prior to this contest, the Sharks had allowed only 12 third period goals all season.
A game like this reinforces an important point. If the Lightning want to play their game of speed and skill, they need to first ensure that they're bringing an extremely high compete level.
Lightning Radio Big Moment of the Game (as selected by Phil Esposito):
Johnson's second goal, extending the Lightning lead to 3-1.
Lightning Radio Three Stars of the Game (as selected by Phil Esposito):
1. Tyler Johnson - Lightning. Two goals.
2. Nikita Kucherov - Lightning. Two goals.
3. Ondrej Palat - Lightning. Two assists.
