The Backcheck: Lightning trust process to split back-to-back, beat Montreal

The Tampa Bay Lightning started their week by halting a four-game losing streak and earning a split on their Canadian back-to-back.

Tampa Bay suffered a shutout loss to Toronto on Monday but quickly made up for it by ending their four-game skid with an emphatic 6-1 win in Montreal on Tuesday.

The Lightning improved to 17-11-2 this season with the split and were back atop the Atlantic Division on Wednesday morning.

The Lightning will now head to New Jersey for Thursday’s 7 p.m. game against the Devils (17-12-1) at Prudential Center before they close their road trip against the New York Islanders on Saturday.

Toronto edges Lightning despite strong Johansson showing

For a fourth straight game, the scoring chances were there for the Tampa Bay Lightning, but the win was not as they opened the week with Monday’s 2-0 loss to Toronto at Scotiabank Arena.

Despite the visitors dominating the earlygoing and earning quality chances on offense, it was the Maple Leafs who opened the scoring and then never conceded their advantage.

The Maple Leafs made it 1-0 with 3:34 remaining in the first period.

Lightning forward Jake Guentzel chased down Toronto defenseman Morgan Reilly on the backcheck and got a piece of the puck while the Maple Leafs entered the zone on a rush chance, but the final bounce went in favor of the hosts.

Reilly fought through the stick check, and the loose puck rolled right back to his tape near the goalmouth, where he dove to bury the game-opening goal while falling with 3:34 remaining in the first period.

“It was tough coming in after the first period without the lead…it was one of those that just looked like whoever was gonna score first was going to win, and that’s pretty much how it ended,” Lightning coach Jon Cooper said of the loss postgame.

“A little bit unfortunate for us, especially because we’ve been playing pretty well and unfortunately losing. And tonight I thought we took a step back, honestly. It was a little disappointing, especially the desperation level we should have after dropping three straight. Thought it was a winnable game, and turned out it wasn’t.”

Tampa Bay forced Toronto goalie Dennis Hildeby into some difficult saves over the course of the game, outshooting the hosts 29 to 25.

With the Lightning attacking at 6-on-5 with 90 seconds remaining, a Darren Raddysh point shot hit the post before falling in the crease, where Hildeby covered the loose puck before the Bolts could bury the tying goal.

Toronto captain Auston Matthews closed the night with an empty-net goal in the final second of the game.

Monday marked the return of Brayden Point after a seven-game absence due to a lower-body injury, and Lightning leading scorer Nikita Kucherov also returned from his one-game rest.

Tampa Bay goalie Jonas Johansson gave his team a chance to win, stopping 23 of 24 shots faced for a season-high .958 save percentage in the loss.

"I feel like it was a pretty close game, you know, chances at both ends,” Johansson said. “Tight game and we came up on the losing end. So we've got to keep our heads up and keep working."

The game marks the first of four contests between the Atlantic Division rivals this season, the next coming Feb. 25 at Benchmark International Arena.

Benjamin’s Three Stars:

1. Dennis Hildeby, TOR (29-save shutout)
2. Morgan Reilly, TOR (Game-winning goal)
3. Jonas Johansson, TBL (23 saves)

Furious first period halts losing skid in Montreal

Tampa Bay trusted the process and stopped their losing skid with an emphatic start at the Bell Centre on Tuesday night.

After being shut out in back to back games, Tampa Bay's offense was bountiful on Tuesday, and the visitors followed a booming beginning to a 6-1 victory over their Atlantic Division opponent.

Brayden Point’s fourth goal of the season made it 1-0 Tampa Bay only 2:27 into the game, and Pontus Holmberg doubled the visitors’ advantage with a jailbreak rush fresh out of the penalty box less than four minutes later.

A falling Oliver Bjorkstrand slid the puck to Guentzel in the defensive zone, and the latter chipped the puck to the far blue line. Point beat Montreal defenseman Jayden Struble to the bouncing puck, skated around the defender and slipped his shot inside the left goalpost for the game-opening goal.

The assist gave Guentzel his 600th career point, making him the 58th U.S.-born player in NHL history to reach the mark.

After Montreal flubbed a pass to the point, Holmberg buried the 2-0 goal fresh out of the penalty box on a breakaway. Holmberg’s second goal this season saw him deke to his forehand before firing a shot through the legs of Montreal goalie Jakub Dobes 6:03 into the game.

The Lightning put a bow on a near perfect first period with Nikita Kucherov’s 3-0 goal, this one a one-timer from the right side of the offensive zone after a pass from defenseman Max Crozier with 2:48 remaining.

The offensive downpour wasn’t over even after a goalie change for the Canadiens during the first intermission—a Lightning player familiar with Montreal pushed the lead to 4-0 against goalie Samuel Montembeault.

Kucherov shook off a pair of defenders behind the Canadiens net, where the puck found him again. He skated out to feed a dashing Charle-Edouard D’Astous near the left goalpost, and the defenseman tapped the puck under the legpads of Montembeault 2:43 into the middle frame.

The goal came in the 27-year-old D’Astous’ first game against his hometown Canadiens. He finished the night with a game-high plus-five rating in and a career-high five shots on goal. His plus-five rating tied for the best of any NHL player this season.

“I can’t imagine being French Canadian and getting to play in this atmosphere. I’m from the west coast and I think it’s sick. It’s a really special place,” Cooper said of D’Astous and the Bell Centre. “It’s one of a kind, and to be able to grow up—and I think he had like 40 people here tonight…really happy for him. That’s got to be a dream come true for him.”

Johansson made his fourth consecutive start for Tampa Bay, stopping 26 of 27 Montreal shots on goal. He was particularly strong in the second period, making 15 saves in a period that the visitors were outshot 16 to four.

The only blemish against Johansson came on a Canadiens power play in the final minute of the second period. Forward Oliver Kapanen buried the rebound with 54 seconds remaining to make it 4-1.

Johansson now holds a 6-5-0 record and .910 save percentage this season.

Lightning defenseman Victor Hedman left Tuesday’s game after the first period with an injury and did not return. It was his third game back after a 12-game absence.

“It’s a little bit of a concern. We’ll get him re-evaluated here,” Cooper said. “We still have a couple games on this road trip, but it’s tough to lose the big guy. He’s such an important part of our team, so fingers crossed here.”

Raddysh helped fill that void on Tuesday, playing a team-high 24:26 time on ice and scoring two goals in the third period in what was his 200th career NHL game. He continues to lead the Lightning blue line offensively this season and now has 20 points in 24 games.

Raddysh ripped a shot off the crossbar and in from the bottom of the right circle 1:22 into the third period to extend the Lightning lead to 5-1, also later adding a power-play goal on a screened shot from the point.

Raddysh co-led the Lightning in offense with his two goals, as Point and Kucherov each finished with a goal and an assist.

Benjamin’s Three Stars:

1. Charle-Edouard D’Astous, TBL (Goal, +5)
2. Darren Raddysh, TBL (2 goals)
3. Brayden Point, TBL (Goal, assist)