It was an emotional win for the Lightning. And they won it because they played with emotion. Brandon Hagel’s fight with Ivan Barbashev at 12:44 of the second energized his teammates and the Amalie Arena crowd. It changed the complexion of the game. At the time of the fight, the Golden Knights were leading, 2-1. Over the next 6:06, the Lightning netted three goals and grabbed a 4-2 lead. Emotions continued to run high in the third period — an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty on Nikita Kucherov led to the first of two unanswered Vegas goals. But the Lightning would score the final goal of the game. Nick Paul’s rebound tally at 18:47 proved to be the difference.
The Golden Knights play a structured game, making it difficult for the other team to generate looks close to their net. That’s what happened in the first period, a frame in which the Lightning outshot Vegas, 11-9, but produced few dangerous chances on goalie Jiri Patera. Vegas was more successful at creating scoring opportunities and cashed in twice.
The second period has been a problem frame for the Lightning at points this year, and it has been especially problematic in recent games. Conversely, it has been an excellent period for Vegas this year — the Golden Knights entered this game with a plus-16 second-period goal differential. The period began poorly for the Lightning, as they struggled to execute clears and spent several shifts stuck in their own zone. Over the first six minutes of the frame, the Golden Knights outshot the Lightning, 9-1. Five of those shots came during an early power-play opportunity. But Andrei Vasilevskiy stopped them all, keeping the deficit at 2-0.
The Lightning got one of those goals back at 8:25. Alex Barre-Boulet tipped in a shot-pass from Victor Hedman. It came at the end of a strong offensive-zone sequence for the Lightning.
A little over four minutes later, Barbashev delivered a hard check to Anthony Cirelli in the Lightning’s defensive zone. Hagel challenged Barbashev, and the two players threw haymakers at one another. When it was over, Hagel urged on the crowd. The crowd responded.
The Lightning were given the extra penalty, so Vegas went back on the power play. But the Lightning, energized by the fight, killed the first 1:12 without allowing a shot on goal. Then, Mark Stone tripped Cirelli, ending the remainder of the power play. In the ensuing four-on-four, the Lightning did well to enter the offensive zone just as their power play was beginning. Patera made a save on a Barre-Boulet deflection, and Alex Pietrangelo batted the rebound out of play, leading to a 46-second five-on-three. The Lightning registered four shot attempts — with three on goal — before Kucheorv and Steven Stamkos completed a back-and-forth passing play. Kucherov buried a right-circle one-timer, tying the game at 2. The goal occurred with two seconds left on the five-on-three, so the Lightning were able to stay on a five-on-four power play. Thirty-three seconds later, Brayden Point jumped on a loose puck near the crease and popped it in. Point added another goal at 18:50, finishing a shot from nearly the identical spot as his first goal. That tally came right after Nick Paul rang a shot from the slot off the post. The goal was Point’s 500th career point.
The shot that yielded the fourth goal was the Lightning’s 12th consecutive SOG. In the period’s final minute, Vegas posted three shots. One of those was a Jack Eichel attempt that Vasielvskiy stopped. But the puck got through him and was headed towards the goal line before Erik Cernak swept it away.
Up 4-2 to start the third, the Lightning applied heavy pressure from the onset but couldn’t convert. Nic Hague appeared to commit two penalties on Kucherov during the same shift (the second of those occurred on a Kucherov breakaway). But no penalty was called. Kucherov complained and was given a penalty. The Golden Knights converted on their power-play chance, cutting the Lightning lead to 4-3 at 5:31. Soon after, the game was tied again. A strong o-zone shift for Vegas led to Paul Cotter’s goal at 9:44.
The closing minutes produced anxious moments for both teams. But ultimately, the Lightning were the team to make the play that broke the tie. Point sped into the offensive zone, and with Victor Hedman crashing the net, he threw the puck on goal. Patera made a save, but the rebound ricocheted to Paul, who was positioned along the left-wing boards. Before Patera could get reset, Paul snapped it inside the short-side post with 1:13 left.
In the closing seconds, Vasilevskiy made two key saves. First, he denied a chance for William Karlsson following a cross-crease pass. Hedman assisted by tying up Karlsson’s stick. Then, right off the next faceoff, Eichel fired a shot from the slot that Vasilevskiy stopped. The puck dropped behind him, but he fell on it before a Vegas player could get a stick on it.
The Lightning effectively tapped into the emotion stemming from the Hagel fight to elevate their game. They got rewarded with a regulation win against the defending Stanley Cup champs.
Lightning Radio Three Stars of the Game (as selected by Bobby “The Chief” Taylor):
- Brayden Point — Lightning. Two goals and assist. Reached 500 points with second-period goal.
- Nick Paul — Lightning. GWG with 1:13 left. Two assists.
- Nikita Kucherov — Lightning. Goal and two assists.
