The Lightning scored with a tenth of a second left on the clock to eke out an overtime victory over the Blackhawks in a game that was more tightly contested and had crisp plays up and down the ice.
Both teams traded shorthanded goals as the penalty kill units on each side neutralized the other. Kevin Lankinen and Andrei Vasilevskiy turned in solid efforts with 31 and 35 saves respectively.
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Starting Lineup
The starting lineup saw the forward lines blended again as David Kampf inched his way up to the 2nd line:
#Blackhawks lines tonight in warmups:
— Carter Baum (@CarterBaum) March 5, 2021
DeBrincat - Suter - Kane
Kubalik - Kampf - Hagel
Janmark - Soderberg - Kurashev
Highmore - Wallmark - Carpenter
Keith - Mitchell
de Haan - Boqvist
Zadorov - Murphy
Hey you!
— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) March 5, 2021
Yes, you.
Here are tonight's starters 😊@budlight | #CHIvsTBL pic.twitter.com/CE9kPkq1QV
Scoring Recap
1st Goal: Carpenter (1-0) SH
Ryan Carpenter hitting the post and water bottle after Brandon Hagel settles a pop fly puck is an energy we need bottled and sold, please.@NBCSChicago | #CHIvsTBL pic.twitter.com/J9VZkMUJGM
— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) March 5, 2021
2nd Goal: DeBrincat (2-0)
Goal No. 1⃣2⃣ of the season for No. 1⃣2⃣@NBCSChicago | #CHIvsTBL pic.twitter.com/K3pygG6XPw
— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) March 5, 2021
3rd Goal: Cirelli (2-1) SH
Rutta with the shot and Cirelli with the deflection 🙌 pic.twitter.com/l6gMRFVDQB
— Tampa Bay Lightning (@TBLightning) March 5, 2021
4th Goal: Stamkos (2-2)
It was about that time... 🔨Ⱐpic.twitter.com/gQrjguc4EA
— Tampa Bay Lightning (@TBLightning) March 5, 2021
5th Goal: Killorn (2-3) OT
Cutting it reaaaaaaal close... like 0.1 seconds close 😬 pic.twitter.com/C51jxxwADd
— Tampa Bay Lightning (@TBLightning) March 5, 2021
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Game Notes
Pressure by the 3rd Line
The 3rd line of Soderberg, Mattias Janmark, and Philipp Kurashev sustained pressure all game by way of Soderberg's big body keeping pucks in, Janmark's heavy pursuit, and Kurashev's fearless playmaking.
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Player Notes
Duncan Keith
After a substandard start to the season, Duncan Keith has come alive to ramp up to Norris-caliber ice flipping. He's getting increasingly unbeatable defensively via his stick work and crease clearing.
Adam Boqvist
This game may have been Boqvist's best defensive effort in his young career. His stickchecking was Keith-like. Also, his skating was much smoother which resulted in his gap control being almost flawless.
Ian Mitchell
Of the young D-men, Ian Mitchell is proving to be the most courageous at protecting the house. Not a pushover by any stretch, he battles hard often going toe to toe in order to shut down a crease crasher.
Brandon Hagel
In the 1st, Hagel had a hit on Ryan McDonagh as both went after the puck near the right corner. His check to eliminate McDonagh was a great example of how adept he is at playing the body to gain possession.
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See you on the boards!