Tampa Bay has given up the opening goal in five-consecutive games but has rallied to win three of those contests. That includes Sunday night's thriller in Ottawa when the Lightning fell behind 2-0 in the first period but methodically worked their way back into the game and tied it with 26.4 seconds remaining on an unbelievable individual effort play by Ryan McDonagh to keep a puck alive, a play that eventually ended with Brayden Point putting a one-timer in the back of the net to send the game to overtime.
Fourteen seconds into the extra session, Yanni Gourde got the Bolts both points with his rebound goal to sweep the two-game road back-to-back in Canada.
"I felt besides our slow starts to both games, we responded well to having those slow starts and really utilized our speed to get in on the forecheck, to control the puck, to move the puck around the offensive zone, get our defensemen involved," Lightning captain Steven Stamkos said. "For the most part it was, at times, we had a lot of possession on the puck, which was great. If we can just fix those slow starts and play that way from the beginning, it should be a much more solid effort and we won't have to come back. I thought we showed a lot of character and got a big four points on the trip."
Tampa Bay is 5-2-0 this season when its opponent scores first, the Lightning's .714 win percentage in such situations tops in the league, a nice stat to be sure but not necessarily one the Lightning want attached to their name.
"If you can spin a positive, we started overtime fairly well, so that's a good thing," Lightning head coach Jon Cooper joked about the Bolts' performance Sunday in Ottawa. "In 82 games, I don't anticipate our starts being the same as they've been the last few games. It is unfortunate that pucks have gone in and we've addressed the issues and they've still happened. It's not going to continue. At some point, we will score the first goal in a game. But, in saying that, we've played some really good hockey here for the last little while. Has it been the perfect 60 minutes? No, but it's been close. And just to be able to go on the road and win hockey games and we've just got to continue that consistency and then just see where everything falls. We lost the Nashville game, and I thought we played pretty well in that game. That's going to happen. But it would be nice to get off to a little better start than we have."
Getting off to a good start tonight will be imperative against the Connor McDavid-led Edmonton Oilers. If the Lightning don't begin the game on time against the Oilers, McDavid can make them pay, as the Bolts found out last season in Edmonton when he scored four goals in a hurry in a 6-2 rout of the Lightning at Rogers Place.
"He's one of a handful of players in this league that anytime he's got the puck, you almost expect something to go well," Stamkos said. "His speed is obviously world class. The way he can handle the puck at that speed is world class. I've had the opportunity to train with him the past couple summers and see the work he puts in. It's no surprise he's one of the best players in this game, if not the best. I'm sure Pointer's line will have their hands full tonight. It's always a challenge when you're playing some of the best in the world, and tonight's no different."
