A very disappointing loss for the Lightning. Not just because they started so well and could have put the game out of reach. But it was especially disappointing because they allowed their play to dip so substantially.
Yes, some bad bounces went against them (for the second home game in a row). But they played a part in Vancouver’s rally from a 2-0 deficit. The Lightning lost the special teams battle. They committed some costly turnovers. They failed to tie up sticks in front of their goalie. They allowed three crucial goals in a 1:40 span early in the third period that thoroughly changed the complexion of the game.
The first period, though, was a different story. The Lightning dominated play. They held Vancouver to just one shot on goal and only six total attempts. The Lightning produced several good scoring chances, but they were unable to solve Kevin Lankinen until the final minute of the frame. That’s when Nikita Kucherov’s right-circle one-timer beat Lankinen at the short side post.
Jake Guentzel’s deflection goal early in the second extended the Lightning’s lead. But then the tide began to turn. Tampa Bay took two penalties before the halfway mark of the frame, and the Canucks scored on the second of those to cut the deficit in half. Vancouver won the faceoff to begin the power play, and Elias Pettersson’s shot from the slot led to Jake DeBrusk’s rebound goal at 9:26.
The Lightning failed to score on two late second-period power plays. A goal on either one of them would have re-established a two-goal lead before the period ended. Instead, it stayed a 2-1 game after 40 minutes.
The Canucks tied it when they received an early third-period power play. Similar to their other PPG, they won the draw to begin the advantage and scored soon after. Brock Boeser delivered a shot-pass from the left circle that Kiefer Sherwood deflected in the slot. The puck then bounced off J.J. Moser at the side of the net and bounced in at 4:11.
On the next shift, the Lightning turned the puck over in the defensive zone. MacKenzie MacEachern backhanded the puck from the slot to the net, and Linus Karlsson tipped it in. Less than a minute later, Drew O’Connor deflected in a Quinn Hughes point shot, extending the lead to 4-2.
A goal from Charle-Edouard D’Astous was negated due to a Vancouver challenge for a missed stoppage—it was determined Guentzel knocked down a puck with a high stick to hold it in the offensive zone. Shortly thereafter, MacEachern tipped a shot that caromed off D’Astous and into the net. An empty-netter from Marcus Pettersson finished the scoring.
Certainly, the Canucks benefited from some fortuitous puck luck. But they also earned their luck by having a willingness to shoot and get bodies to the front of the net.
The Lightning hope to have some injured players back in the lineup this week, perhaps as soon as their next game on Tuesday against New Jersey.
Lightning Radio Three Stars of the Game (as selected by Phil Esposito):
Kevin Lankinen — Canucks. 28 saves.
Quinn Hughes — Canucks. Four assists.
Jake Guentzel — Lightning. Goal.