Nikita Kucherov scored 3:28 into overtime to give the Lightning the 2-1 victory over the Red Wings in Detroit on Friday night. Kucherov and Brayden Point worked their magic in the Wings zone with just over 90 seconds left in OT to give Tampa Bay a well-earned two points.
The action was tight in the first two periods with a couple of fights being the main attraction to the fans at Joe Louis Arena.
No goals until 8:03 in the 2nd as Detroit captain Henrik Zetterberg beat Andrei Vasilevskiy to give the Wings a 1-0 lead.
Ondrej Palat tied it up a little under six minutes into the 3rd as he found a rebound in front and slammed it past Detroit goaltender Petr Mrazek to tie the game at 1.
With the Islanders also winning, the Bolts REALLY needed two points tonight and they got that to keep themselves in the playoff race. The Lightning are now one point behind the Isles and Bruins for the final playoff spot.
Vasilevskiy had a solid night in net, stopping 29 of 30 shots. Mrazek was pretty good as well, stopping 30 of 32.
What's Next for the Bolts : The Lightning are back in action Monday night as they welcome the Chicago Blackhawks to Amalie Arena. Game time is slated for 7:30pm with the pregame show kicking things off at 7:00pm on NewsRadio 970WFLA.
SCORING SUMMARY
1ST PERIOD
NONE
2ND PERIOD
1. Detroit - Zetterberg - (Nyquist, Nielsen) - 8:03
3RD PERIOD
1. Tampa Bay - Palat - (Coburn, Kucherov) - 5:53
OVERTIME
1. Tampa Bay - Kucherov - (Point) - 3:28
PENALTY SUMMARY
1ST PERIOD
1. Tampa Bay - Palat - (Delay of Game) - 4:23
2. Tampa Bay - Gourde - (Roughing) - 17:24
3. Tampa Bay - Vermin - (Interference) - 17:24
4. Tampa Bay - MAJOR - Erne - (Fighting) - 17:24
5. Detroit - Abdelkader - (Cross Checking) - 17:24
6. Detroit - Abdelkader - (Roughing) - 17:24
7. Detroit - MAJOR - Athanasiou - (Fighting) - 17:24
2ND PERIOD
1. Tampa Bay - MAJOR - McKegg - (Fighting) - 2:33
2. Detroit - MAJOR - Mantha - (Fighting) - 2:33
3. Detroit - Mantha - (Instigator) - 2:33
4. Detroit - Mantha - (10-Minute Misconduct) - 2:33
5. Tampa Bay - Erne - (Interference) - 5:52
6. Tampa Bay - Dotchin - (High Sticking) - 12:49
7. Tampa Bay - Stralman - (Tripping) - 15:56
8. Detroit - Zetterberg - (Hooking) - 17:08
3RD PERIOD
1. Tampa Bay - Killorn - (High Sticking) - 8:30
2. Detroit - Athanasiou - (Holding) - 13:39
3. Detroit - Tatar - (Interference) - 17:03
SHOTS ON GOAL
Detroit - 30
Tampa Bay - 32