4 a.m.
In one heartbeat, the Tampa Bay Lightning could feel pretty good about itself.
In the next, they could not.
The Lightning lost a wild, 3-2 game in overtime to the New York Islanders. Seconds after tying the game and forcing overtime, they gave up a breakaway goal. New York won its seventh straight game.
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.
The Islanders were in control for most of the last two periods. With 45 seconds to play, however, Nikita Kucherov scored on a shot that went off the ankle of Jean-Gabriel Pageau and into the net..
It was the third goal this season in a six-on-five situation.
Yeah, it was thrilling. It was also brief.
Seventy-eight seconds later, former Lightning draft pick Tony DeAngelo got behind Brandon Hagel, took a long pass from Simon Holmstrom and slapped it past Andrei Vasilevskiy.
Ilya Sorokin saved 30 shots for the Islanders. Vasilevskiy stopped 33 shots.
Jake Guentzel scored earlier in the game for the Bolts, his 26th.
The Bolts didn’t score on three power plays. Despite 30 shots and repeated scoring chances, they had trouble scoring again. They have scored six goals total in their last four games.
“I’ve said this before,” Lightning coach Jon Cooper said. “There was probably a time we were scoring more than expected. Now, we’re definitely scoring less than expected.
“But we’re not giving up a ton. When you’re giving up two goals or less, you’re giving yourself a chance to win. Some of these we’ve let slip out because we haven’t been able to score. You can’t just keep getting chances, chances, chances and they’re not going in. The tide is going to turn. It tests your will and your patience.”
The Lightning is home against Ottawa on both Tuesday and Thursday nights.