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McDonagh Honored as Bolts Hang on to Sweep Homestand

Photo: Tampa Bay Lightning

This afternoon’s game began with a very moving tribute to Ryan McDonagh and ended in a nail-biting victory for the Lightning. Fans celebrated McDonagh’s 1,000th career game from Thursday night and the Bolts jumped out to a quick lead. They held a 3-0 lead at the end of the first and a 4-0 lead at the end of the second. The wheels started coming off in the third period and suddenly, the New York Islanders were within a shot of tying the game. But the Bolts held on by the skin of their teeth and managed an empty net goal with 14 seconds remaining to seal the deal in a 5-3 final. They sweep the three-game homestand and for now, move into a tie with the Florida Panthers for first place in the Atlantic division.

McDonagh Honored

On Thursday night, Ryan McDonagh became the 136th defenseman in the history of the NHL to play in 1,000 career games. Prior to this afternoon’s game, the Lightning organization presented him with a beautiful tribute. It began with his teammates sporting warmup jerseys with the phrase “Mac Truck” written across their backs. Next came the video which included Ryan’s father expressing the pride his son has brought to the family with his hockey career but even more so with his character. It also included messages of congratulations from former teammates and Bolt fan favorites Pat Maroon, Alex Killorn, and Steven Stamkos.

Johansson Returns

Lightning fans were a bit surprised that Andrei Vasilevskiy was not the goaltender leading his team onto the ice tonight. But Jonas Johansson had been out of the lineup dealing with a family situation for the past few games and the team definitely wants to keep him fresh as they finish out the season and prepare for the playoffs.

Another Quick Start

The Bolts have jumped out to early leads in the first two games of this homestand. On Thursday night against Utah, they scored just 1:30 into the game and ended the opening period with a 2-0 lead. On Tuesday night against Pittsburgh, they scored four goals in the first period to chase goaltender Tristan Jarry from the net.

This afternoon featured another quick start as Nikita Kucherov opened the scoring at the 2:02 mark when he drilled a shot past Ilya Sorokin.

Five and a half minutes later, Nick Perbix found a rebound and snapped it home for an unassisted goal. Once again, the Bolts were out to an early multi-goal lead.

Honored McDonagh Gets on the Scoreboard

With time winding down in the opening frame, the Lightning would strike once more. With just 2:03 remaining, Kucherov passed to McDonagh and “Mac” found Point open in front. Point wristed it in for his 37th goal of the season. The honored Ryan McDonagh earned his 25th assist.

Ending the Second on a High

The second period was relatively uneventful for scoring. The Islanders had some good chances but could not beat Johansson in net. They had a power play early on and although they looked dangerous, they could not score. The Lightning did appear sloppy defensively at times, but Johansson kept them in the game.

With time winding down, the Islanders were whistled for a penalty. But they would need to touch the puck in order to get that penalty. The Lightning did not let that happen. Johansson left the net for the extra attacker and the boys passed the puck all around until Brayden Point blasted it in for his second of the game with 16 seconds to go in the second period.

Unraveling in the Third

The Bolts seemed to have a comfortable lead going into the final period, but the score was not really an accurate reflection of how the game had been played. New York had outplayed Tampa Bay for many stretches of the game and Johansson had kept his team in their strong position.

The third period was a different story entirely. A little before the five-minute mark, Brandon Hagel took a hard check and fell to the ice. Line-mate Anthony Cirelli leapt to his defense and a scrum ensued. The only penalty assessed on the play was to Cirelli, sending the Islanders to the power play and the crowd at Amalie to chants of, “Refs, you suck!”

The Islanders capitalized on the power play opportunity as they finally broke through Johansson. Ryan Pulock scored his 10th of the season to pull within three. Under two minutes later, the Islanders struck again. Marc Gatcomb snapped a shot past Johansson for his sixth goal of the season. And exactly one minute later, Tony DeAngelo scored his fourth of the season. Suddenly, a four-goal lead was down to a one-goal lead and the Islanders were within one shot of coming all the way back to tie this game.

Lightning Regroup

With their lead on the brink of evaporation, the Lightning settled down. They tightened up defensively and Johansson returned to form. The Islanders had some chances to tie it up, and although the Bolts bent, they did not break.

Around the 18-minute mark, the Islanders pulled netminder Ilya Sorokin for the extra attacker. The Lightning missed a few glorious chances at the open net when they tried to get too fancy. Johansson made some more nice saves. Ultimately, as the time ticked away and just 14 seconds remained Jake Guentzel netted his 37th of the season from Kucherov and Hedman to seal this one as a 5-3 final.

The Bolts move into a temporary tie with the Florida Panthers (idle tonight) for first place in the Atlantic division.

Three Stars

1- Nikita Kucherov– 1 goal, 3 assists for another 4-point night

2- Brayden Point– 2 goals

3- Jonas Johansson– although he let in 3 in the a few-minute stretch in the third, he kept his team in the game for the first two period. His teammates all insisted that his play was the story of the game.

Up Next

The Bolts will hit the road for their next four games. Tuesday night, they will face off against these very same New York Islanders– this time in Long Island. Start time listed as 7:30pm.

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