|
 And yet Michal Neuvirth played so well in net, stopping a
Lightning-record 26 shots in the second period, that the game was
tied late in the third period. Center Steven Stamkos took a pass
from rookie Jonathan Drouin and beat Neuvirth with 5:18 left,
allowing the Lightning to escape with a 2-1 win at Amalie Arena.
"Big players come out in big moments, and that's what he did
tonight," Lightning coach Jon Cooper said. "In the pressure point of
the game, Stammer came through. He does that more often than not,
that's for sure."
Stamkos put the Lightning (27-12-4) ahead with his 22nd goal of the
season, on Drouin's 15th assist and forward Alex Killorn's ninth.
Buffalo (14-26-3) has lost seven straight games, totaling just eight
goals along the way.
"(Neuvirth) played a great game -- hats off to him. He was a big
reason it was close like that," Lightning goalie Ben Bishop said.
"The guys were able to play a full 60 minutes and were able to come
out with the win there."
The Lightning set a franchise record with 26 shots in the second
period, but failed to score on any of them, with Neuvirth pitching
an impressive shutout. He finished with 44 saves in the loss.
 "Neuvy played one (heck) of a game for us," right winger Patrick
Kaleta said. "He deserves a win after that. During the game there's
going to be some momentum switches, but you just have to weather the
storm and get through it."
The Lightning set up the winning goal with the penalty-kill unit
getting through a Sabres power play just minutes earlier.
"We needed a big kill and they were there for us," Cooper said. "The
penalty kill has been great since Christmas."
Buffalo managed only five shots in the second period, but scored on
one of them, capitalizing on a power-play turnover for a
short-handed goal. Lightning defenseman Anton Stralman mishandled
the puck deep in his own zone, and Kaleta fed center Cody McCormick
for his first goal of the season, just 50 seconds into the second
frame.
The Lightning had jumped out to an early lead on center Valtteri
Filppula's eighth goal of the season, just 3:51 into the game. Right
winger Ryan Callahan missed from short range, but Filppula put the
rebound past Neuvirth, giving Callahan his 19th assist of the
season.
[to top of second column] |
Buffalo has just one win in its last 12 games. The Lightning had
gone 2-0-1 in the first three meetings between the teams, outscoring
the Sabres by an 11-3 margin, including a 5-0 home win on Dec. 4.
"We really got outplayed there in that second," defenseman Josh
Gorges said. "They came at us, controlled the puck, won the races to
the puck. If it wasn't for outstanding goaltending, that could have
been a different game going into the third."
The early goal had been a clear advantage both for the Lightning and
against the Sabres this season -- Tampa Bay came in 16-3-3 when
scoring first, while Buffalo was just 3-21-2 when its opponents
scored first.
NOTES: The Lightning played without D Radko Gudas for a fifth
straight game following knee surgery. D Mark Barberio and RW J.T.
Brown were healthy scratches. ... Buffalo RW Brian Gionta missed a
ninth game with an upper-body injury, and D Tyson Strachan and D
Nikita Zadorov were healthy scratches. ... Tampa Bay came in with
three of the NHL's top four players in plus-minus -- the red-hot
line of C Tyler Johnson and wingers Nikita Kucherov and Ondrej
Palat. ... Not only had Buffalo lost six straight games coming in,
but the Sabres had allowed at least four goals in five of the six
games, outscored 27-7. ... Tampa Bay next plays Monday at the
Philadelphia Flyers, while Buffalo returns home to face the Detroit
Red Wings on Tuesday.
[© 2014 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.]
Copyright 2014 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
 |
