Wednesday, 4 a.m.
No one is saying they are cured. For the Tampa Bay Lightning, there are still obstacles to overcome.
For the moment, however, the bleeding has stopped.
For the moment, that is enough.
The Bolts ended their 10-game swoon in a 5-2 victory over Philadelphia Tuesday night. Granted, the Flyers aren't exactly world-beaters, but the Lightning isn't exactly the world.
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The Bolts got two goals from both Alex Killorn and Nikita Kucherov to pace their victory. Ross Colton also scored.
Granted, the Bolts gave up 35 more shots -- their streak of 30-plua shots allowed is now at seven games -- but goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy stopped 33 of them for his 28th victory of the season. Vasilevskiy is second in the NHL in victories.
"The big thing for me was when we fell behind 1-0 and we came back," Lightning coach Jon Cooper said. "The power play was on tonight. The rebound after we fell behind was big for me."
The Bolts looked quicker and more decisive with the puck in the win.
"We executed," Cooper said. "When we’re executing, we look much faster and play faster."
The Bolts are home again on Thursday night, facing the Las Vegas Golden Knights in a 7 p.m. game at Amalie Arena.
