Brayden Point and the Tampa Bay Lightning came into the Gila River Arena riding a five-game winning streak. Their opponents, the Arizona Coyotes, were on the other side of the coin, having won only seven games this season. In a game many speculated could be a trap for the Bolts, they responded first with their power play.
Having generated several scoring chances in the opening half of the first period, Tampa Bay wondered when their opportunities would turn into a goal. This would happen on a power play filled with dazzle and a bit of razzle. It began actually before the power play even happened as the Lightning pressed Arizona into their own zone for what seemed like an eternity.
This pressure caused Arizona defenseman Alex Goligoski to take a slash at Lightning forward Ryan Callahan, who was a constant thorn in the Coyotes’ side. After that, it was the textbook power play we have seen from the Lightning this season that cashed in.
Properly placed passes and a threatening slap shot by captain Steven Stamkos paved the way for Vlad Namestnikov to bury the rebound and put the Bolts up by one 11:30 into the first. This was quickly followed with a breakaway by Point, who caught Arizona goaltender Antti Raanta dead to rights and stretched the Lightning lead to 2-0.
Nikita Kucherov recorded another notch in the belt tonight, remaining tied for the league lead in goals with 22. With his team up by two, the Russian sniper used a little bit of luck as his shot deflected past the Arizona net minder to stretch Tampa Bay’s lead to 3-0 in the second period.
This unblemished game for Lightning goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy, came to an end in a flurry of power plays. What started off as an even four on four two-minute game of hockey turned ugly as Alex Killorn went to the box and left his team short.
The Lightning were able to finish off the first penalty, but the second did them in as Vasilevskiy lost his goalie stick and was prey to a screen that saw Arizona’s Clayton Keller bring his team within two with plenty of hockey still to be played.
Point notched a Gordie Howe Hat Trick with a goal, an assist, and an impressive fight. However, it wouldn’t be the only fight, as anger hit it’s boiling point and this one ended in fists.
The hostility level definitely rose during this period. It all started with a sniping goal by Tyler Johnson, which put the Lighting up 4-1. Feeling a bit of frustration, Arizona let it show as they proceeded to add a sense of aggression to their game. This escalated into Point’s first career game of dusty mitts as he dropped them with Brad Richardson.
In this one, the Lightning would run into a bit of bad luck as Ryan Callahan crashed hard into the boards and left the game holding his right shoulder.
The final buzzer sounded and the Lightning won this one by a score of 4-1. This was their sixth straight win and they face the Colorado Avalanche on Saturday night at 9 pm.
My Three Stars of the Game
1st Star: Brayden Point – 1 goal, 1 assist, 1 fight
2nd Star: Tyler Johnson – 1 goal and 1 assist
3rd Star: Andrei Vasilevskiy – 32 saves, 1 goal allowed
