Monday, 3 a.m.
Things were going along swimmingly for the Tampa Bay Lightning Sunday evening.
Right up to the point they drowned.
The Bolts, looking to win their eighth game in their last 10, were cruising along with a 2-0 lead over a mediocre Vancouver team. Vancouver had managed just one shot in 20 minutes. It looked like a layup.
So how do you explain a 6-2 loss?
The Bolts gave up five goals (on 20 shots) in the third period to watch the game slip away.
The Bolts had taken a 2-0 lead on goals by Nikita Kucherov and Jake Guentszel in the first 25 minutes of the game. But Vancouver scored six straight. Quinn Hughes had four assists on the night.
Goaltender Jonas Johansson gave up five goals on 17 shots.
It was Vancouver's first win in the Lightning's building since 2018.
The Bolts are 4-5 at Benchmark International Arena.
Tampa Bay is home against New Jersey on Tuesday night at 7 p.m.