Although Minnesota got on the board first, the Lightning quickly tied it and maintained a strong lead throughout coming out with their fourth-straight win and a 7-3 victory over the Wild on Thursday night at AMALIE Arena.
A strong offensive game for the Bolts led with Waltteri Merela scoring his first career NHL goal, Victor Hedman's four-point night, and Anthony Cirelli, Nikita Kucherov, and Brayden Point all having three points.
Tampa Bay now heads on the road for a three-game road trip starting with the first of back-to-back games against the Buffalo Sabres on Saturday at 12:30 p.m. ET.
Scoring Summary
1st Period
MIN 1, TBL 0
5:17 Joel Eriksson Ek (18) – Brock Faber, Jacob Middleton
The Wild got on the board first with just over five minutes left in the first period. Jacob Middleton and Brock Faber gathered the puck at the blue line and played it to Joel Eriksson Ek. Eriksson Ek on his way to the Bolts crease immediately took a shot and beat Andrei Vasilevskiy over the right shoulder.
MIN 1, TBL 1
6:12 Victor Hedman (8) – Brayden Point, Nikita Kucherov
Tampa Bay responded less than a minute after the Minnesota goal. Victor Hedman took a shot from the blue line, but Filip Gustavsson padded it back into traffic. Brayden Point and Nikita Kucherov played the puck back up to Hedman and his one-timer reached the back of the Wilds net.
2nd Period
TBL 2, MIN 1
00:16 Anthony Cirelli (9) – Brayden Point, Victor Hedman - PPG
The Bolts scored with one second left on their abbreviated power play to start the second period. Brayden Point played the puck through the neutral zone to Anthony Cirelli on the rush and his slap shot beat Filip Gustavsson stick side.
TBL 3, MIN 1
3:20 Waltteri Merela (1) – Conor Sheary, Nick Perbix
Waltteri Merela scored his first career goal in the NHL on a pass from Conor Sheary. After Sheary kept the puck in the offensive zone, he played the puck to Merela on his way to the Wild’s crease and his slap shot beat Filip Gustavsson.
TBL 3, MIN 2
10:52 Marco Rossi (13) – Jacob Middleton, Kirill Kaprizov
After Tampa Bay gave up an odd-man rush, Kirill Kaprizov grabbed the puck in the neutral zone and played it to Jacob Middleton at the left point. Middleton’s shot ended up on the skate of Marco Rossi who tipped the puck into the Bolts crease.
TBL 4, MIN 2
12:41 Brayden Point (21) – Nikita Kucherov
Brayden Point grabbed the puck in the neutral zone and played it to Nikita Kucherov as he skated into Minnesota territory. Kucherov tossed the puck to Point from behind the crease and his initial shot came loose, but grabbed his own rebound to beat Filip Gustavsson.
TBL 4, MIN 3
19:45 Jacob Middleton (6) – Marco Rossi, Mats Zuccarello
Marco Rossi and Mats Zuccarello tossed the puck back-and-forth before Rossi crossed the puck to Jacob Middleton. Middleton was in the Bolts blue paint and tipped the puck past Andrei Vasilevskiy with just 15 seconds left in the second period.
3rd Period
TBL 5, MIN 3
1:09 Steven Stamkos (19) – Nikita Kucherov, Victor Hedman - PPG
A penalty call on Marcus Johansson for high-sticking led to a Tampa Bay power play. Just over a minute into the call, Nikita Kucherov and Victor Hedman kept the puck in possession as Steven Stamkos got into position at the left point. Kucherov crossed the puck to Stamkos and his one-timer beat Filip Gustavsson glove-side.
TBL 6, MIN 3
6:59 Mikey Eyssimont (7) - Anthony Cirelli, Darren Raddysh – PPG
Kirill Kaprizov got sent to the box for tripping Brayden Point which led to another Bolts power play. Anthony Cirelli shot the puck from the top of the point and Filip Gustavsson got the wrist-save, but the rebound came loose and Mikey Eyssimont jammed the puck into the Wild’s net.
TBL 7, MIN 3
17:52 Anthony Cirelli (10) – Brandon Hagel, Victor Hedman
With just over two minutes left in the contest, the Bolts struck once again. Brandon Hagel made a turning pass to Anthony Cirelli who was skating to the Wild crease and tipped the pass behind Filip Gustavsson.