This was a close game that came down to one extra play made by the winning team. Unfortunately for the Lightning, the Red Wings were the team to make that extra play. David Perron’s rebound goal with 2:40 remaining in the third period broke a 2-2 tie and ended the Lightning’s nine-game point streak.
The Lightning had their strong moments in this contest, especially in the offensive zone. They finished with 36 shots on net and created numerous scoring chances. Goalie Alex Lyon was sharp for Detroit. In the first period alone, he made 17 saves, many of which were tough stops. The Lightning did put two pucks past him (at least two that were counted as goals). Anthony Cirelli finished a shorthanded chance with a right-circle wrist shot that tied the game at one in the second period. Steven Stamkos evened the score at two in the third period when he tallied a power-play goal off a left-circle one-timer. Cirelli had two other potential goals that didn’t count. Both came prior to his short-handed strike in the second period. On the first, he slid into Lyon and the puck went in the net. After initially ruling it a goal, the officials determined that Cirelli pushed Lyon and the puck into the goal. Then, Cirelli had an in-alone chance during the same penalty kill on which he would later score. Lyon had the puck slip between his pads — he pushed his right skate against the inside of the post and into the net. Officials couldn’t see the puck across the line, so the play was ruled as a no-goal.
The Lightning had other close calls. In the third period, during a stretch in which they dominated possession for multiple shifts, Brayden Point almost scored. Jeff Petry swept the puck away just before it crossed the goal line.
So the Lightning did enough to score more than two goals. But they weren’t able to maintain their high-level defensive play which was such a big part of their point streak. They had some miscues with the puck. They made some unforced errors. And they yielded more scoring chances than they had in either of the two earlier games during the homestand. Andrei Vasilevskiy, like Lyon, was very good in this game. But he couldn’t stop Patrick Kane’s rebound goal off a rush chance in the second period. And the Lightning failed to close off J.T. Compher when Compher angled to the net early in the third. Although Compher lost possession of the puck, it came directly to Robby Fabbri. Fabbri finished a point-blank chance. On the eventual winner, the Lightning committed an unforced icing infraction following a d-zone faceoff win. The icing allowed the Red Wings to put Compher on his strong side and Luke Glendening on his weak side. Compher won the second faceoff. Mo Seider’s shot from the point led to Perron’s rebound goal.
As Jon Cooper stated after the game, the Lightning weren’t going to run the table for the rest of the regular season. They were due to lose in regulation at some point. Now they’ll look to respond with a strong outing in Toronto on Wednesday.
Lightning Radio Three Stars of the Game (as selected by Phil Esposito):
- Alex Lyon — Red Wings. 34 saves.
- Mo Seider — Red Wings. Assist.
- Steven Stamkos — Lightning. Goal. Eight shots.
