This was the Lightning’s strongest outing on their just-completed three-game road trip. Their compete level was high, and their execution was sharper than it had been in either of the two previous contests. While they didn’t get rewarded with a win, they did rally to earn a come-from-behind point in the standings.
In the first period, the Sabres capitalized on a couple of Lightning mistakes and grabbed the lead. A miscue on a line change allowed Zemgus Girgensons to skate unguarded down the left wing and snap a perfect shot over the glove of Jonas Johansson. Later in the frame, the Lightning lost coverage on Jeff Skinner; Skinner buried an open look from the side of the net. So those two errors were costly. But they were the only goals the Lightning would allow during regulation time.
It was clear from the opening period that the Lightning were skating with urgency. They battled for possession and generated several good looks. But they came out of the period without a goal. Buffalo goalie Devon Levi made key saves. Levi was also helped by the fact that the Lightning missed the net on a handful of excellent scoring chances.
That trend continued during the second period. Levi was strong in net, and the Lightning kept missing the net. Through 40 minutes, the Lightning had directed 37 shots towards the Buffalo net. Eighteen of those missed, while just 13 were shots on goal.
One of those SOG went in, however. Hard work by Anthony Cirelli, Tanner Jeannot, and Brandon Hagel deep in the offensive zone allowed the Lightning to keep the puck alive. Eventually, Jeannot and Cirelli forced the puck to the low slot, where Hagel fired it in. The goal at 17:58 pulled the Lightning to within a goal.
The Lightning continued to grind away in the third. They did a better job of getting pucks on net (of their 18 attempts, 10 went on goal), and they owned a majority of the possession. Just past the halfway point of the frame, they navigated successfully through a penalty kill, ensuring that the deficit stayed at one.
But the Sabres were defending well and protecting the front of the net. So the Grade-A scoring chances weren’t plentiful. It wasn’t until the closing seconds that the Lightning managed to tie the game. Along the boards near the right circle, Brayden Point threw the puck to the net, where Hagel swatted it off the side of the goal. Rasmus Dahlin swept it around the boards, where Point cut it off and again wired it to the net. Hagel deflected the puck. Levi made the initial save, but Hagel jammed the rebound in at 19:53.
The Sabres controlled the opening faceoff in overtime and never really relinquished possession. They generated three dangerous looks: a slot shot from Tage Thompson that Johansson stopped; Owen Power’s shot from the same spot that hit the post; and Dylan Cozens’ winning tally from the right circle, which he put just inside the far post.
As a whole, the Lightning played hard enough to earn at least a point out of this game. Thanks to Hagel’s two tallies, they were able to erase a multi-goal deficit and bank that one point.
Lightning Radio Three Stars of the Game (as selected by Brian Engblom):
- Rasmus Dahlin—Sabres. Assist.
- Brandon Hagel—Lightning. Two goals.
- Devon Levi—Sabres. 20 saves.
