The Lightning completed a back-to-back road weekend sweep by delivering one of their best performances of the season.
They played as a five-man unit in all three zones. They checked. They won puck battles. They managed the puck and avoided costly turnovers.
This high standard allowed them to play most of the game in possession of the puck. When the Rangers did gain possession, they didn’t have it for long and didn’t do much with it. That was especially true in the first period, a frame in which the Lightning held the Rangers to just two shots on goal and only 10 shot attempts.
New York goalie Igor Shesterkin was starting both ends of a back-to-back for the first time this season, and he did his best to keep his team in the game. He made 10 first-period saves, several of which came on high-danger chances. The Lightning also missed the net on a breakaway and hit a goalpost. But they didn’t come out of the period empty-handed. Brandon Hagel’s shot from the left hashmarks caromed off the skate of Carson Soucy and into the New York net at 10:53.
The Lightning’s territorial advantage wasn’t quite as pronounced in the second period, but they still owned more possession and created a handful of Grade-A looks. Nearly nine minutes into the period, they extended the lead. Shesterkin stopped Hagel’s breakaway, but Hagel chipped in the rebound from the side of the net.
A rare d-zone turnover from the Lightning led to J.T. Miller’s goal at 17:31 of the second. Adam Fox’s centering pass hit Miller’s skate and deflected into the goal. It was the second such goal (off a skate) Miller has scored against the Lightning this year.
Shesterkin took an interference penalty in the closing seconds of the second, putting the Lightning on a power play that carried into the third. During that New York penalty kill, Shesterkin made a save on Nick Paul’s close-range shot. The Lightning ended up not scoring on the power play, but they converted 21 seconds after it ended. Nikita Kucherov fed Paul in front and, from a similar spot where he’d been stopped earlier, Paul lifted the puck into the top of the net at 2:02.
The Rangers didn’t record their first shot of the third period until there were less than eight minutes left and they were on a power play. They had some earlier attempts that were either blocked or missed the net. But the biggest reason was that they didn’t have the puck. The Lightning put on a possession clinic for much of the third period and kept the Rangers pinned in the defensive zone.
The Rangers did post two shots during that power play, and one more just as it ended. But they only registered one other for the rest of the game, which came during the six-on-five after they’d pulled Shesterkin for an extra attacker. The Lightning blocked three shots during the extra-attacker sequence. Five others missed the net.
The Lightning also missed the (empty) net twice before Jake Guentzel finished the scoring at 19:42.
The Lightning get a well-deserved day off on Sunday. They’ll have a practice on Monday before concluding the trip against the Islanders on Tuesday.
Lightning Radio Three Stars of the Game:
- Brandon Hagel — Lightning. Two goals.
- Nikita Kucherov — Lightning. Three assists.
- Darren Raddysh — Lightning. Three assists.
