Once again, the Lightning defended at a high level. They limited opposition scoring chances and received timely saves from Andrei Vasilevskiy. It has been a formula that has worked well during their season-long seven-game winning streak.
Still, the Lightning didn’t start the game particularly well. They were flat during the first half of the first period, and the Flames carried the action. Vasilevskiy made seven saves during the opening frame to keep Calgary off the board. The Lightning began elevating their play as the period progressed, however, and they leveled the ice. During a late first-period power play, they received a fortunate bounce. Moments after Victor Hedman held in a Calgary clearing attempt at the offensive blue line, Nikita Kucherov threw the puck from the right circle that deflected off MacKenzie Weegar and caromed into the net at 19:15.
The final 40 minutes were evenly played. Both clubs kept Grade-A looks to a minimum, and both goalies were sharp. The Flames had two near breakaways in the second period that didn’t yield much. Yegor Sharagovich’s shot was disrupted by a back-checking Kucherov, and Ryan Lomberg missed the net.
The Lightning received a key insurance goal from Erik Cernak at 3:51 of the third. After entering the offensive zone, Brandon Hagel fed Cernak in the middle of the ice. Cernak zipped a shot past the stick of Dustin Wolf. The Flames pressed the attack in the middle of the period but had difficulty generating high-danger chances. That stretch included one final Calgary power-play chance. The Lightning killed it off successfully. With just under three minutes left, the Flames pulled Wolf for an extra attacker. Hedman rifled the puck wide of the net. Hagel negated an icing by being first to the puck as it caromed off the end board and put it into the vacated net.
After a slow start, the Lightning got dialed in defensively. It was not a game in which they were especially dynamic offensively. But the key to their win was a strong, defensive mindset. They’ll look to take that approach on the road as they face the Conference-leading Washington Capitals on Saturday afternoon.
Lightning Radio Three Stars of the Game (as selected by Phil Esposito):
- Andrei Vasilevskiy — Lightning. 27-save shutout.
- Brandon Hagel — Lightning. Goal and assist.
- Erik Cernak — Lightning. Goal.
