Sunday, 4 a.m.
No wonder they call them the Devils. Games like this can leave an opponent feeling like hell.
The Tampa Bay Lightning saw a game they had in control lost in a total collapse Saturday afternoon in a 5-3 embarrassment against New Jersey. The Bolts blew a 3-1 lead on home ice, breaking a nine-game point streak.
"The team outworked us," said Lightning coach Jon Cooper. "It was simple. It doesn't matter if you're in the NHL. If you’re going to get outworked, you're playing with fire. That sense of arrogance we had about us today. It was like we got up 3-1 and this was going to be easy. We got what we deserved."
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The Lightning, two-time Stanley Cup champions, fell to 9-4-3 on the season.
Goals by Jan Rutta, Pat Maroon and Victor Hedman had put the Bolts ahead 3-1. But in the final period, the Devils got goals for Yegor Shafangovich, Dawson Mercer, Jimmy Vesey and Tomas Tabor in the third.
Goalie Mackenzie Blackwood had 31 saves, including a penalty shot by Brayden Point and a two-on-none breakaway where the shot was taken by Alex Killorn.
"We deserved what we got," echoed Maroon. "I think we just didn’t come out and play the way we’re capable of playing. We had spurts throughout the whole game when the goalie makes huge saves and they capitalized. Moving forward, when we have a 3-1 lead, we have to bear down defensively."
Tampa Bay is back on the ice at Amalie Arena again today, facing the Minnesota Wild at 5 p.m.