5 Takeaways from the Lightning’s Win Over Edmonton

In their first game in eight days, the Tampa Bay Lightning held on for a 5-3 win over one of the hottest teams in the NHL. The Edmonton Oilers had won five of their last six games after firing their head coach, Dave Tippett. Edmonton brought their best as Tampa Bay found a way to win despite not playing their best game.

Tampa Bay took a 4-1 lead in the second period before Edmonton would push back to make it a 4-3 game in third. The Lightning would hold off the hard charging Oilers who have not won in Tampa since 2009.

Let’s break down how it happened.

1. Getting Through the Opening Minutes

In their last game following a long layoff, the Lightning got off to a poor start against Colorado and essentially had to play the entire game from behind. Tampa Bay’s start in this one was nothing special, but they were able to get through the opening minutes against one of the best skating teams in the NHL. Tampa Bay even managed to score the opening goal with Pat Maroon being the beneficiary of a fortunate bounce just past the midway point of the period.

2. Going into the Break Ahead

Edmonton controlled much of the possession in the opening period and did not allow Tampa Bay to get much going offensively. A big turning point came in the final seconds of the period as Steven Stamkos’ no look snipe found the top corner on the short side to give the Lightning a 2-1 lead going into the second intermission. The go-ahead goal was a bit of a backbreaker for the Oilers who played better than the Lightning in the first period but still ended the period trailing.

3. Goaltending Matters

The Edmonton Oilers have been searching for a top end goaltender for years. Former Lightning netminder, Mike Smith has had his struggles this season in the Edmonton crease, and they continued Wednesday night as he allowed the first three Lightning goals on just nine shots. Andrei Vasilevskiy did not have his absolute best either, but he made some timely saves, especially late and some difficult saves on Edmonton breakaways.

4.  Tough Night for the Defense

Connor McDavid presents one of the most difficult matchups in the history of the NHL. McDavid and the Oilers brought their skating legs in this one and found themselves in behind the Tampa Bay defense on multiple occasions for breakaways and partial breakaways. Few people in this league can match up with the speed of McDavid, but you can’t allow Edmonton to get through the defense as much as they did. Andrei Vasilevskiy was big to bail the Lightning out as many times as he did.

5. Career Goal Number 400 for Perry

Corey Perry notched the 400th goal of his Hall of Fame career in vintage fashion on the powerplay. The Worm has made a living of scoring goals at the front of the net and his redirection off the shaft of his stick put the Lightning ahead 4-1, for what would end up being the game winning goal. Perry looks to be on his way to his first 20 goal season since the 2015-16 season in what has been a very impressive first season in Tampa Bay.