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Stamkos, St. Louis Lead Lightning Past Sabres

March 26, 2013, 11:36 PM ET [37 Comments]
Michael Stuart
Ottawa Senators Blogger • RSSArchiveCONTACT
The Buffalo Sabres were dealt a harsh dose of reality on Tuesday night as they fell to the Tampa Bay Lightning and had their already wavering playoff hopes dashed to near extinction. The Lightning looked hungry, played with drive, and showed new coach Jon Cooper that they are ready for business. Ultimately it all paid off as the Lightning officially began the Cooper era with a much needed 2-1 victory.

Right from puck drop, the Lightning’s incredible team speed was on full display. Despite only generating two shots in the first frame, the Lightning skated well, confounded the Sabres with slick puck movement, and created problems for the Sabres’ defense. Simply put – the Lightning looked like the hungrier team. With four minutes left in the first frame, Steven Stamkos opened the scoring on the power play with his 23rd marker of the season. Martin St. Louis found Stamkos in the slot and he wired home a one-timer that no goaltender in the league is ever going to stop.

The Lightning’s one goal lead held up until midway through the second period when Martin St. Louis scored his eighth of the season, also on the power play, to extend it to two goals. The second frame was kind to the Lightning in many ways as they peppered Ryan Miller with sixteen shots, made plays, and showcased a whole lot of confidence. Since Jon Cooper was named head coach of the Lightning, the two words that have regularly popped up are ‘consistency’ and ‘accountability’. If Tuesday night was any indication, that culture change is already starting to take hold.

Mathieu Garon’s shutout bid was busted with only three minutes left in the game when Jordan Leopold fired home a beautiful slap-shot from the high slot. Unscreened, Garon was simply beaten by a big league shot. While fans and analysts might want to see that one stopped, it’s hard to argue with a 2-1 Lightning victory that saw the team limit its opposition to only fourteen shots on net. Simply put – it was a complete game for the Lightning, and they were full value for the victory.

With two days off to work with new coach Jon Cooper before he makes his “behind the bench” debut, the Lightning now look towards Friday’s contest against the New Jersey Devils. At Cooper’s introductory press conference earlier on Tuesday, he spoke at length about making this team competitive and aiming for the playoffs. To paraphrase – he indicated that he is definitely looking to mess with Steve Yzerman’s draft pick. As Cory Conacher so eloquently stated, Jon Cooper is a guy who hates to lose more than he likes to win. With only fifteen games left in this shortened 2013 season, it will be most interesting to gauge just how much of a stamp Cooper is able to make.

As always, thanks for reading.
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