After facing each other just 48 hours earlier, the Lightning and Blues rematch happened in Florida. The reigning Stanley Cup Champions looked to protect their home ice this time around. The previous game was a show stopper. Lightning took a 3 goal lead quickly in the first, but the Blue’s fought back and ended up winning the game in a shootout. Tampa Bay regained Steven Stamkos to their lineup after being home for the birth of his kid. The Blues on the other hand were missing Jordan Binnington (COVID protocols) and Justin Faulk (COVID protocols) from Tuesdays win.
Period One
With having just faced each other, it didn’t take long for each offense to start clicking. The familiarity of their opponent led to some decent chances early on in the game. Lightning did strike first as Ville Husso got caught sliding too far over and Ondrej Palat was able to tap it in. Other than this, both goalies played strong through the first 20 minutes. The Blue’s did kill off one penalty before time expired. Lightning lead 1-0 after one.
Period Two
St. Louis had several good opportunities early in the period. They didn’t carry real sustained pressure until Tampa took a penalty. Their offense looked lethal but Andrei Vasilevskiy stood tall in the net to keep his team up by one. He kept up his great play until the Blues finally got on the board during their second power play. Brandon Saad positioned himself perfectly to redirect a pass into the net and pick up his 9th of the year. They found some confidence and kept up the pressure until they took a penalty of their own. Tampa had several great looks during their man advantage but Ville Husso kept his net clean. The second finished tied 1 each.
Period Three
Tampa came out ready for the third. They continued winning a majority of faceoffs and carried that possession. St. Louis took an unfortunate penalty early on, and it didn’t take long into the man advantage for Anthony Cirelli to score. Tampa took back the lead with the power-play goal. Their lead didn’t last for long as they took a penalty and Pavel Buchnevich of the Blues made them pay it. Less than a minute after that though Victor Hedman rocked a shot from the point and got the Lightning their lead back. He extended their lead a little later with his second of the night. In a desperate attempt the Blues pulled Husso with almost 3 minutes left. They did have a few chances but neither team got one during it. Lighting win 4-2
Takeaways
Tampa Bay didn’t want to give up this one. They stepped up big late in the game and played solid defensively compared to Tuesday’s game. Vasilevsky had his home shutout streak snapped but he still did come out of this game with the win. His offense stepped up big time and knew Husso is still learning the league. The Lightning did struggle on the power play giving up 2 goals out of the 4 chances, but their 5 on 5 play was solid. They now look to carry this momentum as they head back on the road to face the Boston Bruins on Saturday.
St. Louis looked great through the first two periods. Missing a couple key components and a couple minor injuries during the game lead to some depth issues for the players on the ice. They didn’t do themselves any favors by making some key errors in their own zones and allowing Tampa to do what they do best and score. Husso’s glove was hot and snagged several shots that he really had no business saving, but that can only last for so long against an offensive power house like the Lightning. The Blues look to bounce back as they continue a tour of Florida and face the Panthers on Saturday.
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