Carcone scores twice in Coyotes win against Lightning

TEMPE, Ariz. - - Michael Carcone scored twice for the Arizona Coyotes in a 3-1 win against the Tampa Bay Lightning at Mullett Arena on Tuesday.

Connor Ingram made 30 saves and had an assist for the Coyotes (10-9-2), who have won consecutive games after losing three in a row. Travis Boyd scored, and Alex Kerfoot had two assists.

“We played good defense, we had great goaltending, [Ingram] was really solid,” Arizona coach Andre Tourigny said. “And we found a way to score key goals at big moments.”

Brayden Point scored, and Jonas Johansson made 24 saves for the Lightning (10-8-5), who lost their second straight game, including 4-1 at the Colorado Avalanche on Monday.

“I thought we carried the play most of the night,” Tampa Bay defenseman Victor Hedman said. “[But] they packed it in pretty good in the middle and even though you have a lot of possession [time], you can’t get to those Grade A [scoring chances]. When we were able to penetrate, we got some really good looks, but Connor [Ingram] played well.”

Carcone gave the Coyotes a 1-0 lead at 3:21 of the first period, spinning at the edge of the right face-off circle and shooting a wrist shot past a screened Johansson inside the near post.

“I don’t think I’m fully there yet; I think there’s still more left in the tank,” Carcone said. “But offensively, it’s always been a strength for me.”

Boyd increased the lead to 2-0 at 5:42 of the second period with his first goal in 15 games. Josh Brown’s stretch pass set up Boyd’s wrist shot from the right circle and Ingram picked up his second assist of the season on the play.

“I thought they had good jump today. I thought they were the faster team, especially on the rush,” Point said. “They’re so good at getting their [defensemen] up in the play, and I thought that's where a lot of their chances came from.”

Point finished off a 2-on-1 with Nikita Kucherov to cut it to 2-1 at 15:22.

Before Point scored, Ingram had made 64 consecutive saves against the Lightning dating to Arizona’s 1-0 win Feb. 15, when he made 47 saves for his first NHL shutout. The goal ended his shutout streak at 109:25.

Ingram was a third-round pick (No. 88) by the Lightning in the 2016 NHL Draft.

“Tampa gave me an opportunity,” said Ingram, who is 8-3-0 this season. “There's guys in that locker room that I still know. I never would have played in the [NHL] without them, so it was a good steppingstone.”

Carcone made it 3-1 at 7:22 of the third period, picking up a loose puck in the corner and driving to the crease before sliding the puck five-hole on Johansson.

“He’s improving, he has more commitment defensively,” Tourigny said. “He’s way more responsible with the puck. I’m happy for him because he’s made some sacrifices with the puck and he’s still getting rewarded. So, that’s a good message for him.”

Tampa Bay, which came in with an NHL-leading 25 power play goals, was 0-for-2 with the man advantage. Arizona’s penalty kill is 18-for-18 in its past six games.

“When you’re not scoring on the power play, you have to score 5-on-5 in this league and it’s been tough on us,” Lightning coach Jon Cooper said. “It’s not like the guys aren’t trying. At some point, we have to start willing those pucks into the net.”

NOTES: Tampa Bay won four of five before back-to-back losses.… Kucherov has 14 points (four goals, 10 assists) during a seven-game point streak. He has a Lightning record 26 points (nine goals, 17 assists) in November; Vincent Lecavalier had 25 in Nov. 2007. … Point has four goals in his past seven games against Arizona. … Coyotes center Nick Bjugstad won 11 of 18 face-offs (61.1 percent).