This was one of the best defensive performances of the season for the Lightning. Facing a New Jersey team that had won five of its previous six games, the Lightning effectively limited dangerous looks throughout the night. They checked tightly, contested shots, and didn’t allow rush chances. They also had another strong night on the penalty kill.
There weren’t many scoring chances in this game, but the Lightning generated more of them. Jacob Markstrom did his best to keep his team within striking distance. He allowed a first-period goal to Nick Paul but made saves on a handful of high-danger chances. Early in the third, however, the Lightning pulled away. Following an offensive-zone faceoff win, Darren Raddysh drilled a shot from the high slot past Markstrom’s stick at :39. Just over seven minutes later, Victor Hedman blasted a center-point shot into the top of the net during a Lightning power play. Anthony Cirelli finished the scoring with an empty-netter – Luke Hughes threw his stick at the puck to disrupt the play, so the goal was automatically awarded.
The Devils were credited with 10 of their 29 shots during four power-play chances. But even while shorthanded, the Lightning kept the high-danger chances to a minimum. New Jersey’s best look in the game came during the second period — Nico Hischier collected a puck in the crease and seemed to have an open side of the net, but Vasilevskiy snared the shot with his glove.
Certainly, the week-long layoff helped the Lightning reset. They came out of it with impressive wins over two of the hottest teams in the league. In beating Winnipeg and New Jersey, they held the opposition to one total goal and went 9-9 on the penalty kill.
They also won both games using a lineup configuration of 11 forwards and seven defensemen. This created several different line combinations within the games. One of the most impressive units against the Devils was a line of Paul, Jake Guentzel, and Gage Goncalves. They were on the ice for the opening goal of the game.
Hopefully, Brayden Point, who has skated each of the past two days, will be able to play when the Lightning begin a two-game road trip on Tuesday in Pittsburgh. Whether Point plays or not, we’ll see if the Lightning keep the same 11F-7D lineup configuration. And we’ll see if they can maintain the same high level of defensive hockey that they displayed in the wins over Winnipeg and New Jersey.
Lightning Radio Three Stars of the Game (as selected by Phil Esposito):
- Andrei Vasilevskiy — Lightning. 29-save shutout.
- Ryan McDonagh — Lightning.
- Jake Guentzel — Lightning. Two assists.
