Trending: Lightning stay hot against Wings, 3-2

TAMPA-- The streak continues.
The Detroit Red Wings knew that it would be a tough game against the league's top team but seemed to make it tougher on themselves, losing 3-2 to the Tampa Bay Lightning Saturday night at Amalie Arena in Tampa.

The Wings have now lost 14 straight regular-season games to the Lightning and 13 straight regular-season games in Tampa.
Thomas Vanek (power play) and Anthony Mantha scored for the Wings. Ryan McDonagh and Nikita Kucherov (two) lit the lamp for the Lightning.
Detroit goaltender Jonathan Bernier made 30 saves. Tampa Bay goalie Louis Domingue had 22 saves.
The Wings fell to 24-34-10 while the Lightning improved their league-best record to 52-13-4.
Up next for the Wings is the second half of their back-to-back set Sunday evening in south Florida against the Panthers.
The Lightning travel to Toronto to face the Maple Leafs Monday and then will meet the Wings in Detroit Thursday.
1. The streak: There are a lot of players currently playing for the Wings who have not been a part of the long losing streak to the Lightning. But the fact remains that they have now lost 14 in a row in the regular season, dating back to a 2-1 win on Nov. 3, 2015. If you include the playoffs, the streak is also 14, which goes back to April 17, 2016, a 2-0 Game 3 victory in Detroit. The Wings have lost 13 in a row in the regular season in Tampa, with their last victory coming Feb. 17, 2011, a 6-2 win. If you include the playoffs, the Wings have lost 13 straight in Tampa, which goes back to Game 5 in 2015. The Wings will have one more chance to snap the skid next Thursday at Little Caesars Arena.
Quotable: "It's obviously frustrating. They've had our number here. Obviously, a lot of one-goal games. We got a chance next week to play these guys, so look forward to that opportunity but I didn't think we were quick enough executing out of our own zone and playing in our own zone for a lot of the game and it's tough to get anything going in the offensive zone because a lot of times you're changing." -- Justin Abdelkader
Quotable II: "It's really frustrating. I think it started that year they won in the playoffs. So it's pretty much the whole time I've been here. It sucks every time we're in against these guys. I don't know what it is. Bernie played unbelievable. We couldn't get anything offensively, couldn't grind in their zone like we wanted to." -- Mantha

Quotable III: "It's a great measuring stick. It's the best team in the league. Obviously, some of their players are some of the best in the league at their position. We'll get another chance to measure ourselves next week, so let's get ready. That part of it's good. We didn't rise to the occasion tonight. Not even close. Too many guys weren't skating. You gotta skate yourself out of pressure. You gotta skate yourself to get open. You gotta want the puck. You gotta get it in and you gotta pressure it on the forecheck. We didn't do a good enough job. We just didn't skate. I thought we self-induced mistakes. Too many self-induced mistakes coming out of our end. They're pressure was hard for sure. I just thought we did a poor job of handling it."-- Wings coach Jeff Blashill
2. Thomas Vanek: The Wings had plenty of power-play chances during the second period, with the Lightning getting called for three minor penalties. Tampa Bay defenseman Victor Hedman took two of those, including tripping Darren Helm at 17:58. With one second left on the man-advantage, Niklas Kronwall fired the puck from the left point and Vanek's backhand deflection beat Domingue with four seconds left in the period. Filip Zadina got the second assist, his first NHL assist and second NHL point. Vanek finished with 23 shifts for 17:15, had three shots, one giveaway and was even.

Quotable: "He's one of those players that even when he's not at his best, and I didn't think he was tonight, he can still produce offense because of the fact he's good around the net and he's smart and he's cagey. The tip is something he's good at. Again, he along with everybody else has to be better." -- Blashill
3. Jonathan Bernier: It was not the most auspicious beginning for Bernier, who did not see McDonagh's shot from the left point at 3:06 of the first period. At 8:31, Bernier got a break when Hedman's shot appeared to beat Bernier but a review showed the puck never crossed the goal line. But at 11:56, there was little Bernier could do when Kucherov was left all alone in front of the net. Kucherov picked up his 32nd goal, assisted by Brayden Point and Hedman, which was also his 109th point of the season, setting a new franchise record. The old record was held by Vincent Lecavalier. Bernier made a couple of great saves on Kucherov when the Lightning were on a power play in the second. Perhaps Bernier's best saves came at 5:46 of the third when Justin Abdelkader was in the box. Yanni Gourde was alone on the left doorstep and Bernier stoned him twice. The Lightning appeared to take a 3-1 lead at 9:10 of the third when Steven Stamkos shot the puck from the mid-slot, putting it top shelf, but the Wings challenged and the officials ruled the play was offside so the goal did not count. Bernier then proceeded to make some excellent saves on Cedric Paquette and Anthony Cirelli. But Kucherov got his second goal of the game at 13:53 of the third to provide the insurance marker for the Lightning. Bernier had 30 saves in the loss, falling to 6-16-5 this season.

Quotable: "You can't control that. At the end of the day, this is a league that you gotta win and you gotta find a way to win. Unfortunately I've been on the opposite side of that. I just gotta find a way to maybe make that one extra big save. It's just been a really tough year but I'll keep battling until the end and move on." -- Bernier
Quotable II: "I have had conversations with him. He's a pro. Not that that makes it easy. It's hard. You gotta stay mentally tough. He understands that. But there's certainly times you get tested. I thought he kept us in it as the game went along, made some huge saves. We just gotta keep grinding and he's gotta keep grinding." -- Blashill