It was an interesting match-up of the best road team in the NHL facing the best home team in the league. The Canucks were tied for the best road record and the Lightning were going after their eighth straight win at Amalie Arena.
Alex Killorn netted two third period goals, Ben Bishop was outstanding in net and the Lightning penalty kill was a perfect seven for seven as the Bolts defeated the Canucks 4-1 going into the All-Star break.
The first period was a scoreless defensive one, mostly played in the neutral zone. The Canucks didn’t get their first shot on goal until 5:23 left in the period. The Bolts had two power play chances but spent most of that time passing and not shooting. Lightning goalie Ben Bishop wasn’t tested much, but his best save was made on a point blank shot from Radim Vrbata at 16:19.
The Bolts outshot the Canucks in the period 6-4.
The second period saw Tampa Bay get called for three straight penalties in 1:30 of play and kill off all three. After that, the period was a back and forth affair with both goalies at their best.
The Lightning finally broke through as Valtteri Filppula scored his ninth of the season off a cross-zone feed from Steven Stamkos at 13:32. Ryan Callahan was credited with an assist on the play.
The Bolts fourth line of Brenden Morrow, Brian Boyle and Brett Connolly stood out in the period, creating scoring chances with solid offensive zone possession.
Shots for the period were Vancouver 11, Tampa Bay 10.
The third period started with a bang as Alex Killorn scored his tenth from Victor Hedman and Filppula just 15 seconds in. Killorn skated up to the right circle and ripped it past Ryan Miller.
At 4:16, Brian Boyle scored his ninth from Brett Connolly and Brenden Morrow to make it 3-0 Lightning. Boyle ripped a one-timer from the slot that dribbled under Miller’s pads. The assist was Connolly’s first of the year and first in 58 games dating back to March 24, 2012.
The Canucks made it 3-1 when Frank Corrado backhanded one past Ben Bishop before crashing into him at 8:09.
Alex Killorn scored an empty netter from Cedric Paquette and Victor Hedman at 17:34 to seal the 4-1 Lightning victory.
Shots in the third period were 12-10 in Vancouver’s favor. For the game, the Canucks outshot the Bolts 28-26.
Goalie Ben Bishop was outstanding again in his fourth straight start, yielding only one goal while stopping 27 shots to earn his 24th win.
Tampa Bay’s penalty kill was the story of the game, killing off seven Vancouver power plays, including two five on three man advantages.
Tampa Bay goes into the break leading the Eastern Conference with 30 wins and 64 points.
Mark Barberio (healthy), J.T. Brown (healthy), Radko Gudas (knee surgery) and Matt Carle (abdominal surgery) were the scratches.
The Lightning visit the Carolina Hurricanes Tuesday night, January 27th after the All-Star break.
(Feature Photograph/Getty Images)
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