Following yet another loss to the St Louis Blues, the Tampa Bay Lightning welcomed in their Atlantic division foe the Boston Bruins.
TAMPA BAY – The bad blood between the Tampa Bay Lightning and Boston Bruins is so thick that it’s nearly classified as a solid. Following their 4-1 series defeat in last seasons NHL Playoffs, this rivalry continues to build toward a boiling point. One of last seasons big headlines was the “Lick Heard Around the World” when Brad Marchand licked Ryan Callahan’s face. Luckily there was no licking from Marchand this evening.
Vasilevskiy passes Bishop
Heading into tonight’s game Andrei Vasilevskiy needed just three saves to pass former Bolt Ben Bishop for all time saves by a Lightning goalie. It almost took Vasilevskiy a full period to get that third save. The Lightning goalie only faced four shots through the first 20 minutes, and allowed one goal. On his final save of the period he officially passed Bishop to etch his name in yet another Lightning goalie record.
Oh Captain, My Captain
For the fifth time in his career Steven Stamkos has eclipsed the 40 goal plateau. Heading into the 2018-2019 season many fans and media members wondered if the Lightning captain could ever hit the 40 goal mark again. Tonight in the first period following a pair of unreal goals, Stamkos not only hit 40 goals he went one step further and got his 41st.
Making our tweets immediately irrelevant forever. We’re here for it. 41 for Stammer!#BOSvsTBL | #GoBolts pic.twitter.com/I4WOfovzh1
— p – Tampa Bay Lightning (@TBLightning) March 26, 2019
Sandwiched inside the two goal performance by Stamkos in the first was a goal by Marchand. As both teams headed to the locker rooms for the first intermission, the Lightning killed off a 5 on 3 due to penalties from JT Miller and Alex Killorn. When the second period began the Lightning had a 2-1 lead and were down a man for less than a minute.
Bruins pile it on in the second
It took less than six minutes for the Bruins to get a big lead in the second. Charlie Coyle, Brandon Carlo and Marchand would score to take a 4-2 lead. For Marchand it would be his second goal of the game. Miller nearly got the Bolts to within one late in the second, but the puck went crossbar to crossbar right along the line without actually going over the line.
Bolts bounce back
Following a second period where Boston took that two goal lead, Tampa would not go quietly into the night. While both teams have clinched playoff spots, when these two teams play it seems every play and score is personal. Victor Hedman who got the Lightning to within one goal.
Sneaaaaaaaky Heddy! 🙌#BOSvsTBL | #GoBolts pic.twitter.com/Zc52EiWl6B
— p – Tampa Bay Lightning (@TBLightning) March 26, 2019
The Bolts cool, calm demeaner allowed them to get another goal a little bit later. Following a rebound off Vasilevskiy, the Lightning goalie would get the puck to Stamkos on the boards, who then got it to Kucherov. With a shot on Tuukka Rask that would not be denied, Kucherov tied the score up at 4-4 with less than seven minutes remaining in regulation. With his assist on Kucherov’s goal, Stamkos notched his fourth point of the game (2g-2a). Anthony Cirelli would get the Lightning the lead very late in the third following Kucherov’s goal. Marchand wouldn’t help his team getting a interference penalty at 19:21 after knocking Erik Cernak’s stick out of his hand once again. Tampa would go on to win 5-4 after being down by two goals heading into the third period.
Three Stars
3rd Star – Anthony Cerelli: This kid scores when it matters, notches his 18th goal of the season.
2nd Star – Victor Hedman: One goal, one assist to inch the Lightning closer to history.
1st Star – Steven Stamkos: After getting the NHL’s second star of the week, Stamkos leads the way with two goals and two assists.
Up Next
The Lightning will have a few days off before welcoming in the Washington Capitals on Saturday March 30th at 7pm for their final meeting between the teams in the regular season.
Check out our YouTube channel for tonight’s locker room videos
