Andrei Vasilevskiy recorded the 38th save of his career as the Tampa Bay Lightning defeated the Calgary Flames Thursday night, 3-0. Nikita Kucherov and Erik Cernak scored as the Bolts recorded their seventh straight win to wrap up a highly successful month of February.
Vasilevskiy carried Tampa Bay through the first two periods almost singlehandedly. Unlike the past two homestand games, the Lightning struggled early to match the Flames’ energy. Despite being even on shots during the first period, the Bolts struggled to keep from turning over the puck.
Yet, the team overcame the lackluster effort. Tampa Bay scored on a late-period power play when Nikita Kucherov sent a puck bouncing off Calgary’s Mackenzie Weegar and past goalie Dustin Wolf.
Moreover, the second period saw the Flames continue to push the Lightning to the brink. However, Vasilevskiy made some key saves, including one on Jonathan Huberdeau on a Calgary power play, that kept the Bolts in control of the game.
“Well, that was clearly a huge save (against Huberdeau),” Lightning head coach Jon Cooper said. “Calgary was leaning on us a little bit there, especially in the second.”
“We needed him and he delivered for us.”
The Lightning came out in the third period and methodically kept Calgary out of the net with stellar defense. Brandon Hagel found Cernak after making a sweeping move against three Calgary defensemen. Cernak took a moment to allow Wolf to commit to moving to his left before the Slovakian native wristed a tight shot over Wolf’s right shoulder.
Beauuuuuuty 🤩 pic.twitter.com/cG7utg8rQ4
— Tampa Bay Lightning (@TBLightning) February 28, 2025
“We were doing right things the whole time,” Cernak said. “It was amazing the play by Hags (Hagel). He got a puck off the boards to me in the middle of guys.”
“It was pretty easy for me to score.”
The Lightning continued to repel Calgary’s advances towards the end of regulation, when Hagel iced the game away with an empty-net goal in the final minutes. The Lightning were 7-1 in February, with their last loss coming on the first.
Vasilevskiy Continues to Stand Out
Vasilevskiy has quietly started to build a fantastic season thus far. The Russian goalie is 8-2 in his last 10 games, with a 1.60 GAA and two shutouts. His .921 save percentage this season has him at the top of the NHL goalie leaderboard. Meanwhile, his 2.26 GAA ranks him third behind only Jacob Markstrom and Darcy Kuemper.
“He’s (Vasilevskiy) the best in the world,” Cernak replied when asked about the star goaltender. “He’s been there for us at the right time, always. And we’re happy we have him in net.”
“This season, he’s been unreal and helping us!”
Three Stars of the Game
1. Andrei Vasilevskiy, Tampa Bay. The Big Cat recorded his 38th shutout with a gritty performance in front of the home crowd tonight.
2. Eric Cernak, Tampa Bay. While Calgary pressed, Cernak gave the Lightning a vast momentum swing with an impressive goal early in the third period.
3. Brandon Hagel, Tampa Bay. With two points tonight, Hagel made an impressive move to get the puck over to Cernak for the key their period goal.
Up Next
After wrapping up a three-game homestand tonight, the Lightning will return to the nation’s capital to face red-hot Alex Ovechkin and the Washington Capitals on Saturday afternoon. Game time is at 12:30 p.m.
