Mishkin's Extra Shift: Lightning 6, Stars 0

Thanks to a four-goal first period outburst, the Lightning broke this game open early. Then, as Ondrej Palat noted during a postgame interview on Lightning Radio, the Lightning "played the right way" all the way to the end and the Stars weren't able to chip away at the Lightning's advantage.

Dallas entered the game with the second lowest team goals against average in the league. So it was impressive how the Lightning generated - and finished - their first period scoring chances against a strong defensive opponent. On the opening goal, Palat made a perfect cross-ice pass to Stamkos, who scored the first of his two power play goals. Mikhail Sergachev and Nikita Kucherov zipped shots into the top of the net. And Stamkos led Tyler Johnson for an in-alone redirection goal.
Sometimes, it can be tricky for a team to maintain focus when it builds a big, early lead. At the time that Kucherov made it 4-0, there were still over 45 minutes left in the game. But the Lightning did well to manage the rest of the contest efficiently. The Stars posted 32 shots in the game, but only a handful of scoring chances. Andrei Vasilevskiy took care of those, including a second period breakaway save on Mattias Janmark and a third period skate stop on Tyler Seguin's wraparound attempt. But those were isolated looks for the Stars. The Lightning's defensive performance was crisp and they didn't allow loose, sloppy play to creep into their game after the first period onslaught.
The Lightning have now scored 22 goals in their last four games, all wins. Kucherov produced another four-point game - his sixth performance this season in which he has recorded at least four points. He has 11 points in his last three games. Stamkos netted the two power play goals and added an assist. Similar to the other games in the win streak, the Lightning also received balanced scoring. Three of the four forward lines were on the ice for even-strength goals. Vasilevskiy's shutout was the 17th in his career. He tied Ben Bishop for the all-time franchise lead.
The Bolts wrap up their three-game homestand on Saturday against division-rival Montreal.
Lightning Radio Three Stars of the Game (as selected by Phil Esposito):
1. Nikita Kucherov - Lightning. Goal and three assists. 2. Andrei Vasilevskiy - Lightning. 32-save shutout. 3. Steven Stamkos - Lightning. Two PPG and assist.