The bad news was worse than the good was. for the Tampa Bay Lightning Sunday night. The Bolts were hammered early, came roaring back and then were re-hammered late in an 8-7 loss to Buffalo.
The teams, battling for the top spot in the NHL's Atlantic Division, played one of the wildest games of the year. Buffalo took over the division lead with 84 points, two ahead of Tampa Bay.
Buffalo got off 42 shots in the win, overwhelming Lightning backup goalie Jonas Johansson. The Sabres had several breakaway goals, including a shorthander by Alex Tuch.
After falling behind 4-1, the Lightning outscored Buffalo six of the next seven goals. Buffalo, however, scored four of the last four goals.
Nikita Kucherov had two goals for the Bolts. Also scoring were Corey Perry, Zemgus Girgensons, J.J. Moser, Brayden Point and Brandon Hagel. For Hagel, it was his 30th goal of the year.
The Bolts return to Benchmark International Arena Tuesday night to play host to the Columbus Blue Jackets at 7 p.m.
He is songs on the radio. He is drops in a rain forest. He is grains of sand on the beach.
He is Nikita Kucherov, and he deals in points.
Kucherov, the Lightning's creative forward, was at it again Saturday night. He had four assists in the Bolts' 5-2 win over Toronto, giving him a total of 100 points for the fourth straight season.
Too often, onlookers pay more atttention to goals than assists. But Kucherov is an artist, dealing the puck here, finding teammates in space throughout the game.
Perry scored on arrival./TIM WIRT
Kucherov, who had a slow start to the season, is now third in the NHL in points.
The Bolts gave up the first goal of the night, but then scored four straight in the rest of the first period. Ryan McDonagh, Jake Guentzel, Corey Perry and Oliver Bjorkstrand all scored for the Bolts.
Perry scored in his first game upon his return to the Bolts. He has 12 goals on the season.
Brandon Hagel scored an empty-net goal to finish the scoring for Tampa Bay.
The win broke a four-game losing streak for Tampa Bay. Toronto now has lost seven straight.
Andre Vasilevskiy stopped 27 of 29 shots for his 29th win.
The Bolts play in Buffalo today at 6 p.m. at the Keybank Center.
Blame it on the Olympics. Blame it on the schedule. Blame it the ebbs and flows of the NHL season.
Blame whoever, but the Tampa Bay Lighting are officially in a slump.
The Bolts lost their third straight game -- and played their fourth straight most disappointing effort -- in a 5-1 hammering at the hands of the Minnesota Wild. The Wild continued their dominance over the Lightning, who have been struggling since the Olympic break this year.
The Bolts have given up 16 goals in their three straight losses.
Goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy has given up nine goals in his last game and a half. Vasilevskiy, who had appeared as if he was going to make a run at the Vezina, has now given up the nine goals on 34 shots.
The Wild scored the game's first two goals and the last three.
Nikita Kucherov scored the only goal for the Bolts, his 32nd.
The Bolts visit Winnipeg on Thursday night at 8 p.m. at the Canada Life Centre.
Imagine a world with a pedestrian goaltender. Imagine Andrei Vasilevskiy getting overwhelmed.
It might look something like this.
Imagine an existence where Nikita Kucherov is just another skater in the crowd? Imagine no goals, no assists, no danger.
Yeah, like Saturday’s game.
The Tampa Bay Lightning took it in the nose, getting clobbered 6-2 by the Buffalo Sabres at Benchmark International Arena.
Buffalo didn't seem to care how hot the Bolts have been lately. They jumped to a 5-0 lead, scoring all of their goals off Vasilevskiy on 14 shots.
The Bolts only managed late goals by Dominic James and Victor Hedman. It was Hedman's first goal of the season.
Kucherov had a 12-game scoring streak ended.
"I think it's been a three-game trend for us since post-Olympics," said Lightning coach Jon Cooper. "Yes, the Toronto game went our way, but you could see holes in our game. These past two have been unacceptable.
"It's really disappointing. To go 50-plus games and put ourselves in the position we're in and play like this. No push-back, no urgency, no drive, no attention to detail. We gave a decently skilled team so much open ice. I'm surprised they didn't have 10. I was really disappointed with our compete level."
The Bolts now go on a four-game road trip, starting Tuesday night at 9:30 p.m. in Minnesota's Grand Casino Arena.
Friday, 4 a.m. Eventually, hot streaks cool. Eventually, the puck bounces wrong, and comebacks fall shot, and disappointment returns. The Tampa Bay Lightning was re-introduced to disappointment Thursday night, losing a 5-4 game to the leaders of the NHL’s Metropolitan Division at Carolina’s Lenovo Center. The Bolts lost for only the second time in regulation […]
Thursday, 4 a.m. Upon re-examination, there is some good news for the Tampa Bay Lightning. Yeah, they’re still the Lightning. The Bolts, if you recall, ended their pre-Olympic schedule as the NHL’s hottest team. In 21 games, they had only two losses — one of those in overtime. Wednesday night, they were at it again. […]
Friday, 4 a.m. This one, you would have to score as a knockout. The sizzling Tampa Bay Lightning put it to the Florida Panthers, 6-1, in a fight-filled game. The NHL will now take a break for the Olympics. The Lightning-Panthers game has turned into a rambling fisticuff exhibition. The Bolts had 81 minutes worth […]
Wednesday, 4 a.m. The game before, the improbability of the comeback was because of the score. This time, it was because of the clock. Say this for the Bolts. They can take a punch. Once again, the Lightning came from behind to win an unlikely game. This time, it was a 4-3 win over Buffalo […]
Monday, 4 a.m. Turns out, the Tampa Bay Lightning enjoys the evening air. The Lightning stormed back from four goals behind to win a 6-5 game over Boston in an outdoor game held at Raymond James Stadium. The Bolts fell behind 5-1 midway through the second period, but slowly came surging back to force it […]
Friday, 4 a.m. In a season that could have been derailed because of defensive injuries, Darren Raddysh has kept the Tampa Bay Lightning on the straight and narrow. Raddysh was excellent again in a 4-1 win over Winnipeg Wednesday night at Benchmark International Arena. Raddysh scored a goal and had two assists in the victory. […]
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About Gary Shelton
• No one covers Tampa Bay like Gary Shelton.
• No one has seen as many moments, as many athletes, as many coaches as he has over the last quarter of a century.
• No one has won more awards, including two national Associated Press Sports Editors Best Columnist awards and eight top 10 finishes. He also just received his sixth Sportswriter of the Year award for Florida by the NSSA.
• No one has seen more big events, including 29 Super Bowls, 10 Olympics and 11 Final Fours. Gary still goes into the locker rooms to obtain his stories.
• No one has made you angrier, or laugh louder, or think harder about what he has written.
Now, he begins a website designed to keep him in touch with the readers who have grown up on his words.
