By Jake Ricker
The Tampa Bay Lightning looked to bounce back after a tough loss to the Ottowa Senators, but they would have to get through a Capitals team fighting for their playoff lives. Here is how they stacked up in last night's matchup.
Duclair - Point - Kucherov
Stamkos - Cirelli - Hagel
Eyssimont - Paul - Chaffee
Jeannot - Glendening - Sheary
Hedman - Raddysh
Perbix - Cernak
Lilleberg - Dumba
Vasilevskiy.
Here are the biggest takeaways from the Lightning's 4-2 loss vs the Capitals.
Nick Jensen
Late in the First period, Eyssimont laid a hit on Capitals Nick Jensen that sent him Awquardlly into the boards. Jensen did not move from that position and had to be taken off on a Stretcher. The play did not result in a penalty but the timing and positioning of the hit is what made this worse.
More importantly, Nick Jensen was seen moving as he was being loaded onto the stretcher, and the Capitals later announced that Jensen was doing well in the hospital and had feeling in all extremities. Best wishes to Jensen and hoping for a speedy recovery.
Push Back
The Lightning went down twice in this game, and both times, the Lightning did a good job of fighting back and tying in the game. One of the most important shifts in a game is right after a goal is scored and the Lightning did show a lot of fight in this game. The biggest issue for them was they ran into Lidgren, more on him soon.
For a game where the Lightning did not have much to play for, and the Capitals had everything to play for, their competitive level was good, and while they will need to ramp it up going into the postseason, it was much better than it had been in previous games. Vasilevskiy and Lindgren
The big stars of the show were the goaltenders in this one. Starting with Vasilevskiy, while he did allow four goals, he made a number of huge stops in the second period that kept this game tied at 2-2. This certainly was not the best game we have seen him play in recent games, but if not for some of these saves, this game could have been over a lot quicker.
As for Lindgren, he was great for the Capitals. The Lightning made a big push in the second period, but he made a number of huge saves to keep the Capitals in the game. One of those stops came against Brandon Hagel, who nearly scored shorthanded to give the Lightning a 3-2 lead in the second. Credit where credit is due, Lindgren was fantastic for the Capitals.
Final Thoughts
The Capitals just wanted this game more, and the third period was the difference. While you want to play your best hockey down the stretch, luckily for the Lightning, this game did not mean anything in the standings, but it meant everything for the Capitals. The Lightning will still have two games left at home to finish strong before heading into the postseason, and it shouldn't be a surprise if they are able to do just that.
Next game - Monday, April 15th vs. the Buffalo Sabres inside Amalie Arena @ 7 PM
Three Stars
Media's three-stars
1 Milano (2G)
2. Carlson (1G)
3. Lindgren(.941 SV%)
Our three-stars
1. Milano (2G)
2. Lindgren(.941 SV%)
3. Hagel (1G)
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