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Thumbs Up, Thumbs Down: Lightning Get Goalied by Blue Jackets

March 31, 2021, 12:04 AM ET [0 Comments]
Michael Stuart
Tampa Bay Lightning Blogger • RSSArchiveCONTACT
The Tampa Bay Lightning dropped a 3-1 decision to the Columbus Blue Jackets on Tuesday night, and got a potentially catastrophic scare in the process. Here are tonight’s thumbs:

Thumbs Down: Getting Goalied

The Bolts were the better team tonight by a wide margin, outshooting, out-chancing, out-hitting… basically out-everything-ing the Blue Jackets in every category except the one the matters at the end of the game. They were stumped by Elvis Merzlikins, who somehow took a Blue Jackets team that only generated 34% of the five-on-five expected goals (Natural Stat Trick) across the finish line. This game – in so many days – was a reminder of the 2019 playoff sweep. Thankfully this one didn’t count for too much.

Thumbs Down: Missing the Big Save
Curtis McElhinney wasn’t terrible in this game, allowing only two goals on 20 shots faced, but he wasn’t the difference maker the Lightning needed him to be given what was going on at the other end of the ice. There was really nothing he could do on the first Blue Jackets goal, but a big stop on the second would have been a huge help for Tampa.

Thumbs Down: The Hedman Scare
The two points up for grabs quickly took a back seat to a bigger concern for Jon Cooper and the Lightning when Victor Hedman fell awkwardly into the boards and limped off the ice. Already dealing with a thin blue line, the loss of Hedman would have been catastrophic for Tampa Bay. He’s arguably the best player on this roster, and is certainly the second most irreplaceable behind Andrei Vasilevskiy.

Thumbs Up: Hedman Returns
Thankfully, Hedman was okay and seems to be no worse for wear:


Thumbs Down: The Gourde Line
For the first time in a long time, the Gourde line was noticeably bad. They spent a lot of time in the defensive zone, and allowed Columbus to generate a number of shot attempts. Natural Stat Trick seems to back up what the eye test suggested, as they show the trio as generating a five-on-five expected goal share of only 20% (!).

Thumbs Down: Right Back in the Thick of Things
Now with three straight losses on the books, the Lightning have spent the little bit of breathing room they’d earned themselves in the Central Division. The race is incredibly tight, with Tampa and Florida tied right at the top, and Carolina only one point behind. The prize for first place in this division is as significant as any other in the league, because the gap between third and fourth is so significant.

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The Lightning will have a chance to get things back on track on Thursday against these same Blue Jackets.

As always, thanks for reading.
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