After splitting the back-to-back against the Red Wings and Devils, Tampa Bay closes out the road trip against Columbus. In their most recent contest in New Jersey, the Lightning twice failed to hold onto a lead but did manage to earn a point in a 5-4 shootout loss.
Lightning at Blue Jackets: Projected lines, storylines
The Lightning look to close out the three-game road trip with a win in Columbus
Lines from Thursday's Morning Skate. Subject to change
Forwards
Vladislav Namestnikov - Steven Stamkos - Nikita Kucherov
Ondrej Palat - Brayden Point - Yanni Gourde
Chris Kunitz - Gabriel Dumont- Ryan Callahan
Alex Killorn - Tyler Johnson - JT Brown
Defense
Victor Hedman - Jake Dotchin
Mikhail Sergachev - Anton Stralman
Braydon Coburn - Dan Girardi
Andrej Sustr - Slater Koekkoek
Goalie
Andrei Vasilevskiy expected to start
THURSDAYS MATCHUP
The Lightning and the Blue Jackets are playing their first of three meetings this season and first of two at Nationwide Arena...The two teams meet twice in a span of 17 days, the Blue Jackets making the trip to Tampa Bay on Nov. 4...Columbus was one of six teams (ARI, NSH, PIT, SJS and VAN the others) to sweep Tampa Bay in 2016-17, winning all three games by a combined 13-5 score and outshooting the Bolts a combined 107-87 (fourth-worst shot differential for Tampa Bay in 2016-17)...Tampa Bay fell 5-1 to Columbus in its lone visit to Nationwide Arena last season (11/29/16), Andrei Vasilevskiy getting the loss after allowing five goals on 38 shots...Despite getting swept by Columbus last season, the Lightning have won eight of their last 12 matchups against the Blue Jackets, including three straight in Columbus until last season's loss...Lightning captain Steven Stamkos has tallied seven goals and
13 points in 12 career games against Columbus, including tallying two goals and an assist in each of his last two games vs. the Blue Jackets (3/13/2016 and 12/26/2015)...Tampa Bay is 5-6-0 with one tie all-time in Columbus and 14-10-0 with one tie all-time overall against the Blue Jackets.
THURSDAY'S STORYLINES
The Lightning conclude a three-game road trip, their first multi-game road trip of the season, tonight in Columbus...Going back to last season, the Bolts are 13-2-2 in their last 17 regular season games , the best points percentage (.824) in the NHL over that period, and 25-7-5 over their last 37, again tops in the league for points percentage (.743) over that stretch.
INJURIES
2017-18 Regular Season Man Games Lost: 1
Current injuries: none
TRANSACTIONS
Oct. 9 -- Assigned F Michael Bournival to AHL Syracuse
POWER SURGE
The Lightning have scored at least one power-play goal in all seven games so far this season, tying a franchise record for consecutive games with a power-play goal to begin a season also set in 2002-03 and 2000-01...Ondrej Palat scored a power-play tally Oct. 17 at NJD, becoming the seventh different Lightning player with a power-play goal this season, tying the Bolts with New Jersey for most players with at least one power-play goal...Tampa Bay's seven-game power-play goal streak is its longest since Nov. 6-18, 2010 (Lightning franchise record for consecutive games with a power-play goal is 10 from Nov. 27-Dec. 22, 2005)...The Bolts are tied with four other teams (NJD, PIT, NSH and TOR) for the NHL lead for total power-play goals (8).
IN THE NIK OF TIME
Tampa Bay right wing Nikita Kucherov scored a goal and added an assist Nov. 17 at NJD for his fifth multi-point game of the season (out of 7 total games) and 61st of his career...Kucherov has scored at least one goal in every game this season, becoming the sixth player in the NHL's modern era (since 1943-44) to score in each of his team's first seven games.
