Through two periods, this looked like a game between a team desperate for points (Pittsburgh) against a team that had just clinched a postseason berth (the Lightning). The Penguins played with higher urgency and built a 4-1 lead. However, the script changed in the third. The Lightning dictated action in the final 20 minutes and rallied to tie the game. But Michael Bunting’s goal with 5:28 left gave Pittsburgh the lead back. Despite a furious push in the closing minutes, the Lightning were unable to force overtime.
Thanks to regulation losses on Friday by Washington, Detroit, and Philadelphia, the Lightning clinched a playoff spot for the seventh consecutive season. The Penguins also benefitted from those results — a 5-0-2 surge run pulled the Pens to within two points of a playoff spot. But the Penguins still need points badly, and they played like a desperate club from the get-go on Saturday. The Lightning didn’t record a shot on goal until the first period was more than halfway complete. At that point, the Penguins had grabbed a 1-0 lead and had generated multiple scoring chances. That trend continued throughout the first two periods, especially when the teams were skating five-on-five. The Lightning did look very dangerous during two power-play opportunities. They netted a goal on their first PP chance and applied heavy pressure during the other. After 40 minutes, the Lightning had recorded 22 shots on goal. Nine of those were power-play shots.
Down 4-1 entering the third, the Lightning raised their level of five-on-five play. They scored on the opening shift of the frame when Nick Paul snapped a left-circle shot into the top of the net. Anthony Duclair tallied a goal off the rush at 7:23, and Stamkos recorded another PPG at 10:45. In the third period, the Penguins registered only four shots on goal. But one of those went in the net. Following a defensive-zone turnover, the Lightning allowed a rebound goal to Bunting. A late power play for the Lightning led to a six-on-four and some anxious moments for the Penguins. But the Lightning couldn’t quite find the tying goal for a second time.
Give the Lightning credit for pushing hard in the third and turning this one into a barnburner. But their play in the first 40 minutes put them in a hole that gave them no margin for error. Therefore, the one goal they allowed in the third proved to be the difference in the game.
Lightning Radio Three Stars of the Game (as selected by Brian Engblom):
- Evgeni Malkin — Penguins. Two goals and assist.
- Nikita Kucherov — Lightning. Three assists.
- Steven Stamkos — Lightning. Two goals.
