It was apparent that the Tampa Bay Lightning had lost their mojo in recent days.
But who knew they'd find it again in Seattle, of all places?
The Bolts, 2-9 in their previous 11 games, looked a lot like the team that had closed out the first portion of the season so strongly in a 6-2 romp over the Seattle Kraken in Climate Pledge Arena.
It did seem obvious that, no matter where the Bolts would rediscover its rhythm, Nikita Kucherov would lead the charge.
Kucherov had a hat trick -- the seventh of his career -- and five total points in the win. Brandon Hagel had three assists (plus a goal) and Anthony Cirelli had two assists (and a goal).
Andrei Vasilevskiy beat Seattle for the seventh time in his career without a loss. He stopped 16 of 18 shots for his 31st victory.
Kucherov now has 37 goals on the season (and 111 points).
Hagel scored his 32nd. Cirelli has 16 and Gage Goncalves has 11.
The Bolts travel to Vancouver's Rogers Arena Thursday night at 10 p.m.
The Tampa Bay Lightning get off a dreadful start, an absolutely miserable start. They fall behind 2-0 in a hurry.
And, surprise, they fight back. They tie score at 2-2, and turn catastrophe into something salvageable.
Then, ignoring the opportunity to take over, they fade away to another loss.
The Bolts fell to 2-7 in their last nine games with a 4-2 loss to Carolina. It's a pattern that has become common, a fight back onto to fade in the third period.
The Bolts tied the game in the second period on goals by Charle-Edoard D'Astous and Yanni Gourde. But Carolina shut the Bolts down in the third period.
The Bolts got off only 19 shots. Tampa Bay goaltender Andri Vasileskiy allowed three goals on 34 shots.
The Bolts are in Seattle to face the Kracken at 10 p.m. Tuesday at the Climate Pledge Arena.
Is it over? Is the plunge off of the cliff complete? Are the Tampa Bay Lightning through with their slump yet?
Well, for a night, it was, anyway.
The struggling Tampa Bay Lightning at least put their troubles on hold for a game Thursday night at Benchmark International Arena. The Bolts beat Atlantic Division rival Detroit, 4-1.
They had been 1-6 in their last seven games.
Goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy stopped 24 of 25 shots for his 30th win of the season (against 11 losses). It's the ninth straight season Vasilevskiy has won at least 30.
Gage Goncalves and Jake Guentzel each scored two goals for Tampa Bay. Goncalves now has 10 goals and Guentzel has 29. Nikita Kucherov had two assists, giving him 1,100 points for his career.
J.T. Compher scored Detroit's only goal.
The Lightning are home at Benchmark on Saturday night at 7 p.m.
Certainly not the Tampa Bay Lightning, who had the NHL's hottest streak interrupted by this year's Games. Since coming back, however, the Bolts are 2-6 and caught in mid-swoon.
The Bolts were blown away by the Columbus Blue Jackers Tuesday night at Benchmark International Arena. They've given up 37 goals in those eight games.
The Bolts suddenly seem out of rhythm. Too often, they chase the play and struggle to advance the puck. They don't kill penalties.
Gage Goncalves scored the game's first goal, but Columbus scored the next three. J.J. Moser scored the other Bolts' goal.
Andrei Vasilevskiy gave up four goals on 31 shots. He has 29 wins on the season, but he's given up 21 goals in his last five games.
The Bolts are home at Benchmark on Thursday night against Detroit at 7 p.m.
Monday, 4 a.m. Coming from behind was kind of cool. Falling from ahead? That was terrible. 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 […]
Sunday, 4 a.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, […]
Wednesday, 4 a.m. 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 […]
Sunday, 4 a.m. 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 […]
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. […]
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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.
