Saturday, 4 a.m.
Suddenly, playing at home doesn’t seem to matter to the Tampa Bay Lightning.
The Bolts, who made this year’s NHL playoffs largely because of how they played at Amalie Arena, lost their second straight game at home Friday night, Marco Kasper scored his second goal of the night 3:22 in overtime.
The Bolts’ last three losses have all come in extra time.
It was Kasper’s second goal of the night. The Lightning had led 3-2 with 13 minutes to play before Kasper tied the game at 3-3.
The Bolts have only lost two home games in a row twice this season.
“Ultimately, you want to get the result,” said Lightning coach Jon Cooper. “You want the two points. But what we’re doing now…our process has not been right for the last little bit. It’s unfortunate. A lot of work has gone into the 70-plus games, and now it looks like we’re playing preseason games.
“If we play the way we can, the way you have to play if you want to win in the playoffs. We’re not doing it. We’re up 3-2 in the third period at home. This is time to get your game in order and, right now, we don’t have it.”
Anthony Cirelli scored his 27th goal for the Lightning. Gage Goncalves scored twice, his first multi-point game.
Kasper pulled away from a weary Yanni Gourde, who had been on an extended shot, to convert his winning shot.
The Lightning are at home on Sunday against Buffalo at 6 p.m.