The Lightning grinded their way to a franchise-record-tying eleventh consecutive victory.
They were playing their third game in four nights and the second half of a back-to-back (both on the road) against a rested opponent. Their execution might not have been as sharp as in some other games during the winning streak, but their battle level remained high. This high compete helped them limit opposition chances. And when the Penguins did create Grade-A looks, Andrei Vasilevskiy provided key saves.
The Penguins also defended hard and brought a high battle level. As a result, it was a fairly low-chance game. The Pens generate some good looks on their three power-play opportunities, posting six shots on net. Vasilevskiy stopped all of them. The Lightning were less dangerous on their three PP opportunities, all of which came after Pittsburgh’s three chances. The first PP was the best of the bunch—they recorded three shots on goal during that man advantage, and Darren Raddysh rang another shot off the crossbar. That was one of three crossbars the Lightning hit in the game.
Thanks to the strong defensive play from both teams and excellent goaltending from Vasilevskiy and Arturs Silovs, the game was scoreless late into the third period.
Then the Lightning caught a break when Silovs didn’t realize he hadn’t frozen the puck after making a save on Yanni Gourde’s rush chance. J.J. Moser, who was trailing the play, did see the puck in the blue paint and poked it in the net at 14:13.
The Penguins tied the game at 17:44 on Evgeni Malkin’s six-on-five goal. The Lightning failed to clear the zone multiple times before Malkin whistled a shot from the inner part of the right circle past Vasilevskiy’s stick.
The Pens had the better of the chances in overtime, posting four dangerous shots on net (and seven overall attempts). Vasilevskiy denied the four shots to preserve the tie. At the other end, Silovs stopped a Kucherov in-alone chance.
In the shootout, Gage Goncalves converted on the Lightning’s first attempt. Egor Chinakhov tied the game on Pittsburgh’s third shot. But Kucherov still had a chance to win it on the Lightning’s third attempt. He chipped the puck over Silovs’ blocker to secure the second point for Tampa Bay.
After a brief respite at home, the Lightning continue the five-game trip Friday in St. Louis.
Lightning Radio Three Stars of the Game (as selected by Phil Esposito):
- Andrei Vasilevskiy — Lightning. 26 saves.
- J.J. Moser — Lightning. Goal.
- Arturs Silovs — Penguins. 30 saves.
