A less-than-stellar second-period performance from the Tampa Bay Lightning opened the door for the Nashville Predators to take down the Bolts.
In the final game on the road trip, the Tampa Bay Lightning lost 3-2 against the Nashville Predators. The game set up the two best teams in the league, both at 14-5-1 on the season.
Louis Domingue starts for the fourth consecutive game after the Lightning announced starting goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy will be out 4 to 6 weeks. Domingue has proved solid behind the net but can not do it alone.
The first period started off right for the Bolts with a goal from Victor Hedman. Erik Cernak notched his first NHL career point with an assist on Hedman’s goal. Nashville later scored a power-play goal in the first to the game at one.
The second period is a dull one for the Bolts as Filip Forsberg and Ryan Johansen both score for the Predators, to take the lead 3-1.
Late in the second, it looks like a spark for the Lightning is lit when Alex Killorn punches one in the net. However, Killorn is called for tripping while he scored the goal, and it ends up being no goal. The Predators finished the period on the power play.
The third period the Bolts came out like a new team, and three minutes in Nikita Kucherov scores a beautiful goal to bring the Lightning within one. Brayden Point and Ryan McDonagh recorded the assists on Kucherov’s goal, and Point now has 26 points on the season.
While there are plenty of chances in the last minutes of the game, the Lightning cannot close out the game and the Predators take this one. The Toronto Maple Leafs now take the lead of the Atlantic Division after beating the Columbus Blue Jackets 4-2.
The final shot count was 31 shots on goal, however, the Lightning did not shoot much until the end of the game. A constant stream of passes will not always lead to goals, and the Bolts needs to continue shooting to keep up the goals per game average of 3.57.
The Lightning comes back home to play the Florida Panthers this Wednesday, which will be the first of five in the home game stand.