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The Tampa Bay Lightning, in spite of the inconsistencies that have at times plagued their 2015-16 season, are a battle-tested group that knows when it has to find that extra gear.
So when Erik Condra found the back of the net for his fourth goal of the season (and his first in Dec. 5) just 1:47 into Tuesday’s pivotal head-to-head showdown with the Detroit Red Wings, you had a feeling that the message was conveyed to everybody in that Tampa Bay locker room.
One dominant 6-2 finish, and a move upwards into a tie for first place in the Atlantic Division, later, and you can’t help but feel as if this was the start to the Bolts’ six-game homestand that the club needed.
When Vladdy Namestnikov came through with the game’s second goal, the shots favored the Bolts by a steep 12-to-3 mark, and the period ended with the Lightning at 15 and the Wings at 7.
Tampa pushed their edge to three just 33 seconds into the middle frame, too, behind Steven Stamkos’ 34th goal of the year, assisted by Nikita Kucherov and Victor Hedman. That put an end to the night for Jimmy Howard, too, as he left for Petr Mrazek after he stopped just 13 of 16 shots against.
The Wings did come back with a push of their own though, headlined by goals from Justin Abdelkader and Darren Helm, in a 7:17 span midway through the period.
But even then, it wasn’t enough, as the Lightning came back with a Kucherov power-play goal (a power-play goal!) just 2:17 after Helm’s goal to re-establish the Bolts’ two-goal lead through two.
Ondrej Palat came through with his 14th goal of the season just 1:03 into the third period, while Condra added his second of the night at 16:56 of the third to wrap up the game’s scoring.
Lightning netminder Ben Bishop finished the night a solid 23-of-25.
Random thoughts and notes
- This was Vintage Lightning, really. They dominated the puck off the jump, capitalized on their chances, and come through with support and insurance when the Red Wings began to push. But what I really enjoyed and took away from this one, anyways, was the balanced scoring the Lightning found in this victory. With the 11-forward, 7-defenseman format, the Lightning found goals from five different forwards (or one from every line if you include Condra, one of the two displaced forwards) in the win.
Like any team, when the Lightning find their offensive balance, they’re a dangerous team.
- Even if it came against a considerably average penalty kill, a power-play goal is a power-play goal for the Bolts. Mired in a drought that’s left Jon Cooper to try just about everything he can to revive the club’s man advantage with goals, the Lightning once again put forth another night of prime power-play chances, but this time actually came through with a goal courtesy of Nikita Kucherov. Huge.
- And while I think you had some heat in the Lightning-Stars head-to-head last week, this truly felt like a playoff game. It, of course, helps that these two teams do not like each other one bit, but there was a nasty snarl from both sides from the second the puck dropped on this one. From Cedric Paquette skating as the proverbial thorn in the Wings’ side to the fight between Detroit defenseman Brendan Smith and Tampa’s J.T. Brown, this one had its chippiness.
- Back in (a tie for) first place with the Florida Panthers. For now. The Panthers will play against the Boston Bruins on Thursday night, while the Bolts square off with the Islanders on Friday, before the two meet for a gigantic head-to-head at Amalie Arena on Sat. night.
Up next
The Lightning return on Friday for another big showdown with the New York Islanders. This will be the second of three head-to-heads with the Isles this season, with the Bolts taking a 3-2 loss in their only prior meeting this year, all the way back on Nov. 28. Special teams were the Bolts’ downfall that night.
Ty Anderson has been covering the National Hockey League for HockeyBuzz.com since 2010, has been a member of the Pro Hockey Writers Association's Boston Chapter since 2013, and can be contacted on Twitter, or emailed at Ty.AndersonHB[at]gmail.com.