Brayden Point scored twice and Andrei Vasilevskiy stopped 26 shots to lead the Tampa Bay Lightning over the Buffalo Sabres 4-2 in the season finale on Sunday at Amalie Arena.
Braydon Coburn and Victor Hedman also scored for Tampa Bay who went 8-1-1 in their last ten games.
William Carrier and Evander Kane scored for Buffalo and goalie Linus Ullmark made 33 saves in his first start of the season.
Tampa Bay finishes 42-30-10 with 94 points, three fewer than last season.
Thirteen of Brayden Point’s 18 goals came since February 10.
The Lightning tied the game at one at 5:59 of the second period on Point’s 17th goal. Victor Hedman earned the assist on the goal for his 300th NHL point.
Defenseman Braydon Coburn gave Tampa Bay a 2-1 lead at 12:20 of the second period with a shorthanded goal. Alex Killorn passed to Vladislav Namestnikov to start a 2-on-1 rush and Coburn finished it with his fifth of the year.
The game winning goal came with 1:24 left in the third period as Brayden Point’s centering pass deflected off of Sabres defenseman Rasmus Ristolainen and past Ullmark.
Victor Hedman sent a slap shot from his own zone into the empty net to extend the lead for the Lightning in the final seconds.
The Lightning went 19-6-5 in the final 30 games after being in last place in the Eastern Conference on February 4.
Bolts Quotes
“His growth has been phenomenal. It’s just a committed kid. There’s not enough guys like him.” – Jon Cooper on Brayden Point
“There was a time in early February where we weren’t relevant at all. This group found a way to be relevant until game 81.” – Jon Cooper
“I thought I learned a lot. I’m a better player now than I was at the start of the year, for sure.” – Brayden Point
“These fans are so loyal.” – Jon Cooper
“To go north of 70 points… That’s a phenomenal year. He’s put himself in the upper echelon class of defensemen.” – Jon Cooper on Victor Hedman
Audio
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