But in the third period, the Rangers pulled away - and not just on the scoreboard. The third period stat line shows that the Lightning outshot the Rangers, 11-9, but that number is misleading. The Rangers dictated play for much of the final frame. They successfully killed off three Lightning power plays in the third. And they scored the eventual winning goal on a power play of their own. The Rangers owned an advantage when the third period was at even-strength, too. They ended Lightning plays in the New York defensive zone and avoided turnovers. At the other end of the ice, a Lightning d-zone turnover occurred shortly before Barclay Goodrow's insurance tally.
In the first period, however, this game looked very different. Most of the action was played five-on-five. The Lightning skated with pace and enjoyed several extended offensive zone shifts. While they didn't accumulate a high volume of shots or shot attempts, they generated several good scoring chances on Igor Shesterkin. The second period featured more special teams action, which took some of the flow out of the game. Still, five-on-five shots though the first two periods were close - just 13-12 in favor of the Rangers. That's a fair representation of how the game was played when the teams were at even strength. But during the opening 40 minutes, the Rangers registered 13 additional shots during three unsuccessful power play opportunities. They also posted four shorthanded shots, one of which went in the net.
So even though the Lightning's lone goal came during a five-on-three power play, Tampa Bay was outplayed on special teams in this game. The Rangers, when they were on the penalty kill, were much more effective at limiting the amount of time spent in the defensive zone. When they had a chance to clear pucks, they did it. The Lightning, on the other hand, often spent much of their kills stuck in their own end. During New York's first period power play, the Lightning lost all three face-offs. This led to plenty of New York possession time. On the final three kills, however, the Lightning went 3-1 on face-offs. But then they struggled to clear pucks after winning those draws. As a result, the Rangers were able to apply consistent power play pressure. Mika Zibanejad's power play goal in the third came moments after the Lightning won a face-off, but failed to get the puck down the ice.
Entering the third period with the game tied, the Lightning had a chance to earn at least one point out of this contest. Unfortunately, that didn't happen.
They will look to bounce back when they face Columbus on Friday.
Lightning Radio Three Stars of the Game:
1. Mika Zibanejad - Rangers. Two goals.
2. Igor Shesterkin - Rangers. 26 saves.
3. Andrei Vasilevskiy - Lightning. 36 saves.
