By Michael Wax
The Lightning swept their three-game home stand and improves to 10-6-1. Here are Five things we noticed from the game.
Stamkos Starts Another Streak
After breaking his goalless drought last time out against the Stars, captain Steven Stamkos once again found the back of the net against the Flames on a rush opportunity. That goal, as well as an assist on forward Nikita Kucherov's power play goal, got Stamkos to 991 points in his illustrious career.
Philippe gets his first
Philippe Myers' tenure with the Lightning has been... mixed at best. There have been good moments, like his two-game point streak. There have also been some bad moments, like his terrible turnover against Anaheim that conceded the goal-tying goal. However, he's started to find his footing on the third pair with Haydn Fleury, and picked up his first goal with the Bolts in this one.
Myers goal was a big one, as it came just 10 seconds after the Flames had made it a 2-1 game. Sometimes, they don't ask how, they just ask how many, and for Myers it was goal number eight of his NHL career.
Another Big Game for the Big Cat
Andrei Vasilevskiy came into this game unlike his usual self, sporting an .898 save percentage after three rough games. Vasilevskiy put on an elite performance against the Flames, stopping 39 of 40 Calgary shots and absolutely robbing Flames forward Jonathan Huberdeau with a glove save on the back post.
Second-best Team
One of the reasons Vasilevskiy had to make so many big saves was the fact that the Lightning got outplayed. The Flames used their will and forechecking to beat the Lightning to loose pucks or, in many cases, simply bully them off the puck. The only line that was able to generate any significant chances for the Lightning was the first, and the rest saw a ton of time in their own zone making big blocks or watching Vasilevskiy do his thing.
More Injuries
Once again, the Lightning did not come out of a game at 100% health. Defenseman Nick Perbix did not play after the midway point in the second period, and forward Cole Koepke only took three shifts in the third before departing with an injury.
The Lightning should be getting one of Erik Cernak or Cal Foote back in the lineup for Sunday's game to cover the absence of Perbix, and recently-claimed forward Rudolfs Balcers should take Koepke's spot on the fourth line.
Three Stars
Our Three Stars
1. Vasilevskiy (TBL): 39 Saves
2. Kucherov (TBL): 2 Goals
3. Stamkos (TBL): 1 Goal, 1 Assist
Media's Three Stars
1. Vasilevskiy (TBL): 39 Saves
2. Sergachev (TBL): 2 Assists
3. Stamkos (TBL): 1 Goal, 1 Assist
The Lightning's next game will be against the Nashville Predators on Saturday, November 19, at 8 PM ET.
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