Vasilevskiy wins 10th straight, helps Lightning top Blackhawks

TAMPA --Andrei Vasilevskiy made 19 saves for his 10th straight win, and the Tampa Bay Lightning defeated the Chicago Blackhawks 4-2 at Amalie Arena on Thursday.

Vasilevskiy matched his NHL career high for consecutive wins. He also won 10 straight from Feb. 9 to March 5, 2019. Vasilevskiy has won all five starts against the Blackhawks this season.
"I've got some confidence going now, and our team is playing extremely well," Vasilevskiy said. "I didn't think I played my best games the last 2-3 times, but in the end we've gotten the W. Sometimes the guys are helping me, sometimes I am helping our guys."

Victor Hedman had a goal and an assist, and Ross Colton scored the game-winning goal at 5:32 of the third period for the Lightning (21-6-2), who are 5-0-1 against the Blackhawks this season.
"He is playing phenomenal," Tampa Bay forward Yanni Gourde said of Colton, a forward who played his fifth NHL game. "He's works really hard. He makes the simple plays, he finishes his hits, wins draws … he does it all. It's very fun to watch."
Mattias Janmark had a goal and an assist, and Dylan Strome scored in his return after missing 11 games for the Blackhawks (14-12-5) while in NHL concussion protocol. Kevin Lankinen made 19 saves in Chicago's third straight loss.
"It was nice to get back out there with the guys, I'm feeling a lot better," said Strome, who last played Feb. 19. "We did a lot of skating while I was out, got back to skating, so the legs felt good tonight, but unfortunately we couldn't get the win."
The teams will finish the two-game set here Saturday.
Colton received a pass from Mathieu Joseph as he got behind the Blackhawks defense and beat Lankinen with a backhand to make it 3-2.
"[Our line] tries to play a gritty type of game," Colton said. "[Pat Maroon] is so effective below the circles, and [Joseph] has unbelievable speed. I think I am pretty effective down low as well. We're going to get offensive-zone time with Joseph's speed. It's not always about scoring, it's about creating momentum for the other lines."
Hedman scored into an empty net with 16 seconds remaining for the 4-2 final.
"All four lines played good tonight," Gourde said. "When we're making the simple plays -- chipping the puck in and working down low -- you just have to play smart, and we did that in the third period after we got the lead."

Janmark put the Blackhawks ahead 1-0 at 2:10 of the first period with a power-play goal, tipping a pass from Dominik Kubalik at the side of the net.
Alex Killorn tied it 1-1 when he tucked the puck past Lankinen on a wraparound at 13:15.
Gourde made it 2-1 at 17:02 with a power-play goal on a backhand through Lankinen's five-hole.
"They're a deep lineup, and that's the thing you realize against them is, as soon as you give them a sniff or a chance at a play, a lot of times they'll take advantage of it," Chicago defenseman Connor Murphy said. "it seems like they did that."
Strome answered to tie it 2-2 at 18:45 with a power-play goal.
"I thought we played really well," Blackhawks coach Jeremy Colliton said. "Disappointed in the result. There's always little things that we'd like to improve. Throughout the game, I think there were a few more plays out there where if we execute better we can create more in transition. In the third, we passed up the opportunity to shoot, to give yourself a chance to get a bounce, create some havoc."
NOTES: Five of Killorn's eight goals this season have come against the Blackhawks. ... Louis Domingue holds the Lightning record for consecutive wins with 11 from Nov. 29, 2018, to Feb. 19, 2019.