From a puck management standpoint, the first period was the Lightning's leakiest and the Blues generated several dangerous scoring chances. Andrei Vasilevskiy made 15 saves during the frame, including a sprawling rebound stop on Brayden Schenn.
Once the second period began, the Lightning tightened things up. Their puck management improved, so they limited turnovers. When the Blues possessed the puck in the offensive zone, the Lightning were structured in their coverage and boxed out well in front of Vasilevskiy. So even though the Blues fired 17 second period shots on net, they had fewer scoring chances than in the first.
The big story of the second period was the Lightning's penalty kill. The Blues received three power play chances in the second (with the second and third opportunities coming virtually back-to-back). The Lightning not only effectively killed off all six minutes, they produced several shorthanded scoring chances.
The third period was the Lightning's strongest. Thanks to their continued excellent puck management, they owned most of the puck possession. In the offensive zone, they were more consistent in getting pucks to the net and determined in retrieving pucks to maintain possession.
Overtime was a wide-open affair, as both teams enjoyed odd-man rush chances. Jordan Binnington made a point-blank save on Victor Hedman early in OT, but after that, some of the most dangerous looks didn't even yield a shot on net. Anthony Cirelli and Hedman began a two-on-zero rush, but Cirelli's pass to Hedman was off-line. Moments later, the Blues couldn't execute a three-on-one rush - a cross-ice pass had too much zip and it caromed into the corner. Eventually, though, Schenn tracked a loose puck in the offensive zone and wristed home the winning goal.
From a defensive standpoint, there was a lot to like about the Lightning's performance (especially after the first period). Puck management, d-zone coverage, rush coverage and overall structure helped them limit the number of scoring chances against. And, as mentioned earlier, the penalty kill was terrific. On the other hand, the Lightning weren't as dangerous in the offensive zone as they could have been. As Jon Cooper lamented afterward, the Lightning "were trying to pass the puck into the net", meaning that they squandered some potential shot opportunities. Additionally, while the Blues deserve credit for their d-zone structure, the Lightning weren't able to get to many loose pucks in front of Binnington. There were also a handful of close calls. The Lightning missed the net on some of their best looks and they hit two posts.
Those elements are easily correctable, however, and not among the important takeaways from this game. Instead, those takeaways included the Lightning's attention to detail and how well they executed defensively as the game progressed.
Lightning Radio Three Stars of the Game (as selected by Phil Esposito):
1. Jordan Binnington - Blues. 32-save shutout.
2. Andrei Vasilevskiy - Ligthning. 38 saves.
3. Yanni Gourde - Lightning.
