4
0
Lilleberg’s monster hit keys a big emotional win.
ANA-1
TB-5
Andrei Vasilevskiy allowed one goal on 20 shots for the victory. He didn’t have a ton of work, but he was on point when needed.
First Period
NO SCORING
Second Period
5:09 TB Hedman (7), (Stamkos, Kucherov)(PP)
10:56 TB Stamkos (17), (Point, Kucherov)(PP)
13:20 ANA Vatrano (21), (Fowler, Strome)(PP)
14:47 TB Stamkos (18), (Kucherov, Raddysh)(PP)
Third Period
9:06 TB de Haan (2), (unassisted)
18:05 TB Hagel (13), (Paul, Perbix)
Nikita Kucherov, Steven Stamkos, and Emil Lilleberg were the game’s three stars.
For years, the Lightning would often be snapped out of trances of apathy by the play of Yanni Gourde and his willingness to touch of a riot to drag his teammates into the fight. The team has missed that element in its game in many nights as it’s found players like Eyssimont and Jeannot to be pale substitutes for Gourde’s energy. Tonight, rookie Emil Lilleberg dragged his teammates into the fight with a mammoth, clean hit he landed on 6’5″ Brett Leason that left Leason wobbling and stunned and the Anaheim Ducks foaming at the mouth for revenge. And, from that point on, a very sleepy Lightning team woke up and absolutely smoked a Ducks team that was prime to get smoked. Tonight, IMO, Lilleberg cemented his place.
Max Crozier had 1 blocked shot in 13:00. He wasn’t terribly noticeable in his ice time, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing for a defenseman. With that said, it’s hard for me to imagine him sticking over other RHD options like Phil Myers or even Jack Thompson who flash in their cups of coffee.
Emil Lilleberg had 2 penalty minutes, 1 shot, 5 hits, and 2 blocked shots in 15:48. He made the team tonight. He needs to sign a lease on an apartment.
Gage Goncalves had 2 penalty minutes in 10:55. I thought he did enough in the last game to merit another game. I don’t think he did enough to merit a third look tonight.
Box score and extended statistics from NHL.com.
