The Tampa Bay Lightning pushed their win streak to three games with a 5-2 road win over the Nashville Predators on Tuesday at Bridgestone Arena.
Tampa Bay got the game’s first goal off the stick of Zemgus Girgensons midway through the first period, and Brandon Hagel doubled the advantage in the middle frame.
Nashville’s goal came on a power play five minutes into the third period, but defenseman Charle-Edouard D’Astous provided a cushion for the Lightning with his first NHL goal on a 3-on-1 rush.
Nikita Kucherov added an empty-net goal in the game’s final minutes, and Girgensons scored again in the closing moments of the game to make it 5-2.
Lightning goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy made 18 saves for his second win, helping Tampa Bay even their season record at 4-4-2. Kucherov, Hagel, Cirelli and Girgensons each finished with two points.
The Lightning return home to face the Dallas Stars at 7 p.m. Thursday, a game that will begin with a ceremony celebrating Nikita Kucherov reaching 1,000 NHL points.
Scoring summary
First period
TBL 1, NSH 0
10:31 Zemgus Girgensons (1) - Pontus Holmberg, Yanni Gourde
Girgensons’ first goal of the season made it 1-0 Lightning when he buried a centering pass from Pontus Holmberg.
Shots on goal: TBL 11, NSH 8
Second period
TBL 2, NSH 0
15:37 Brandon Hagel (2) - Anthony Cirelli
Brandon Hagel’s second goal in as many games doubled Tampa Bay’s lead as he whacked away to send a loose puck home just after a Lightning power play expired.
Shots on goal: TBL 13, NSH 3
Third period
TBL 2, NSH 1
5:05 Luke Evangelista (1) - Erik Haula, Brady Skjei - PP
A rebound goal from forward Luke Evangelista on a power play allowed the Predators to cut Tampa Bay’s lead in half.
TBL 3, NSH 1
7:57 Charle-Edouard D’Astous (1) - Brayden Point, Nikita Kucherov
D’Astous’ first NHL goal added a cushion for the Lightning. D’Astous scored on a 3-on-1 rush with his shot under Juuse Saros’ blocker.
TBL 3, NSH 2
17:54 Filip Forsberg (4) - Evangelista, Haula
The Predators made it a one-goal game with Filip Forsberg’s rebound goal at 6-on-5.
TBL 4, NSH 2
19:07 Kucherov (4) - Hagel, Cirelli
The Lightning added to their lead with an empty-net goal in the final minute.
TBL 5, NSH 2
19:32 Girgensons (2) - Holmberg, Erik Cernak
Girgensons scored his second goal of the night by burying a loose puck in the closing seconds of the game.
Total shots: TBL 30, NSH 20
