Nilsson's goaltending, coupled with the Lightning's inability to convert on five power play chances over the first 33 minutes, prevented Tampa Bay from blowing this game open. Instead, the Lightning built only a 1-0 lead and the Canucks stayed within striking distance. Then, in a 70-second span in the third period, Vancouver struck for two goals and took the lead for good.
The first period was the Lightning's best frame so far in this young season. They passed the puck crisply and were relentless in their attack. The Canucks had trouble handling the Lightning's speed game. Most of the period was spent in the Vancouver defensive zone as the Lightning forced repeated turnovers. Tampa Bay put 17 shots on net, but netted only Brayden Point's rebound tally. Nilsson stopped the other 16 attempts, including five on two separate Lightning power plays.
While it's true that the Lightning weren't able to maintain such a lopsided territorial edge in the second, they still controlled most of the five-on-five play. But three additional power play opportunities only yielded two shots. And the Canucks used three second period power plays of their own to produce five of their 10 shots in the frame.
The script remained the same early in the third. In the first half of the period, the Lightning had the better five-on-five looks, but Nilsson continued to keep his team's deficit at one goal. That proved to be crucial when Derrick Pouliot's left point shot deflected off Elias Petterson into the Lightning net at 11:07. Shortly thereafter, following a Lightning icing and a d-zone turnover, Brock Boeser blasted home a right circle shot. The Canucks tacked on two empty-netters in the closing minutes.
Hockey can be a strange game. In their opener against Florida, the Lightning endured long stretches of subpar play but won. They were vastly better against Vancouver but lost. They'll look to build off those positive aspects of their game when they host Columbus on Saturday.
Lightning Radio Three Stars of the Game (as selected by Phil Esposito):
1. Anders Nilsson - Canucks. 33 saves.
2. Bo Horvat - Canucks. Won 11 of 14 faceoffs.
3. Mathieu Joseph - Lightning. Team-high five shots.
