January has been a month of little recuperation time for the Tampa Bay Lightning.
Thursday’s game at AMALIE Arena marked the team’s ninth game over the first 16 days of 2025. Despite a packed schedule and tired group, the Lightning fought their way to a 4-3 shootout victory over the Anaheim Ducks.
Thursday’s win required a shootout, where forward Jake Guentzel scored the lone goal. The win is Tampa Bay’s first shootout victory this season, improving the team to 24-16-3 and keeping them third in the Atlantic Division standings.
“This is a grind, but this is what we love doing is playing hockey games,” Lightning defenseman Victor Hedman said postgame. "This month has been very extreme with all the travel and kind of back and forth, but we’re not complaining when you’re winning games like this. So we just gotta keep that up.”
Hedman made franchise history on Thursday, becoming the first player to record 600 career assists with the team. Tampa Bay’s captain hit the mark in the first period with his secondary assist on Anthony Cirelli’s power-play goal which tied the game 1-1.
Anaheim opened the scoring 6:03 into the game on a redirection by forward Troy Terry, but the Lightning tied the score eight minutes later on the power play. Hedman got the puck at the left point and fed forward Brandon Hagel in the right corner, where the latter passed the puck to Anthony Cirelli at the back post for a tap-in and a tie game.
Hedman is only the 19th defenseman in NHL history to record 600 career assists and narrowly beat teammate Nikita Kucherov, who has 598 assists after his two-assist night paced the home team against Anaheim.
“You play 600 games in this league, that’s a big career. You get 600 points, but he’s got 600 assists. And it just goes to show the level he’s played at for an entire career,” Lightning coach Jon Cooper said of Hedman. "Because it’s not like you get half of those in one season, it’s a consistency thing. And he’s been fantastic at that.”
Tampa Bay earned its first lead of the game 2:51 into period two on another power-play goal, this time from Guentzel. Kucherov found Guentzel standing in front of the net, where the latter secured his own rebound and deposited his 22nd goal of the season.
The Lightning scored on the power play for the first time in four games and had multiple goals on the man advantage for the first time since Dec. 28. Tampa Bay changed its setup ahead of the game and had Kucherov on both power-play units for Thursday.
The adjustment ended with each power-play group scoring a goal, something Hedman said was key.
“To get five opportunities and four kind of quickly after one another and go 2-for-4, that’s a big reason we're obviously successful on the power play is when we can move the puck. Kuch is really good on playing either side, so you can get different looks that way,” Hedman said. “It's a nice feeling when the power play is clicking like that.”
Anaheim tied the game 2-2 on a Leo Carlsson shot 11:26 into the second period, but Brayden Point put the home team ahead once again later in the middle frame.
Point’s team-leading 26th goal of the season followed a two-on-one save by Lightning goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy in the Lightning defensive zone, a stop which sprung Kucherov and Point on a rush the other way. Point got the puck at center ice, entered the offensive zone and deked to the right around Anaheim goalie Lukas Dostal.
Point’s shot appeared blocked by Anaheim defenseman Olen Zellweger at the goal line and play continued, but a league review minutes later stopped play to award the goal to the Lightning.
"I didn’t know it went in. I thought he blocked it. Like, I really didn't think it went in,” Point said. "And then the horn went, and I was actually pretty surprised.”
The Lightning forward said his stickhandling required some late adjustments.
“I thought I ran myself out of room to be honest, and he got a poke check on it. I was able just to kind of grab it and sling it at the net, and it just crossed the line.”
Ducks forward Robby Fabbri tied the score again with 10:07 to play on yet another redirection, this time on a point shot by teammate Jacob Trouba. The 3-3 score stood through regulation, and neither team scored in overtime.
Guentzel scored the only shootout goal by either team, skating into the right faceoff circle before beating Dostal with a shot between the goalie’s pads. Vasilevskiy stopped all three Anaheim shooters in the shootout and finished with 34 saves for his 19th win of the season.
“I liked what we did,” Cooper said. "We’re a really tired group. We stayed the night in Boston (Tuesday), so there wasn’t an off day. It’s get up and jump on a plane and go three-and-a-half hours back, and before you know it you’re back at the rink again and you have another game. … It’s been a grind for these guys, and they keep answering the bell. Sometimes it’s not always pretty, but they found a way tonight.”
Tampa Bay’s schedule continues with a 7 p.m. game against division opponent Detroit at AMALIE Arena on Saturday.
Benjamin’s Three Stars:
- Andrei Vasilevskiy, TBL (34 saves, W)
- Nikita Kucherov, TBL (Two assists)
- Jake Guentzel, TBL (Goal, shootout winner)
