
Friday, 4 a.m.
That strong defense that had highlighted a winning streak by the Tampa Bay Lightning abandoned them on Thursday night.
The Bolts, who had allowed three goals in their three victories before Thursday, collapsed in a 7-6 overtime loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets. Tampa Bay held a 3-0 lead in the game, but the Jackets led the way in the final two periods, repeatedly escaping for breakaway opportunities.
Content beyond this point is for members only.
Already a member? To view the rest of this column, sign in using the handy "Sign In" button located in the upper right corner of the GarySheltonSports.com blog (it's at the far right of the navigation bar under Gary's photo). Not a member? It's easy to subscribe so you can view the rest of this column and all other premium content on GarySheltonSports.com.
Bolts’ goaltender Jonas Johansson gave up seven goals — six of them after the first period — on 42 shots.
The Bolts built their 3-0 lead on goals by Brayden Point, Brandon Hagel and Cam Atkinson.
The Blue Jackets tied the game with a pair of goals in the first two minutes of the second period. After that, the game was tied at 4, at 5 and at 6.
The Bolts’ final three goals came from Mitchell Chaffee, Anthony Cirelli and Conor Geekie.
Nikita Kucherov had three assists, giving him 902 career points.
Zach Werenski scored the winning goal in overtime.
The Bolts play Dallas at Amalie Arena on Saturday night at 7 p.m.