Sharks vs Lightning Game Recap

A face-off between the 3rd and 4th highest goal scorers in the league, Celebrini and Kucherov. The Sharks go again after a win against the Florida Panthers yesterday, playing the Tampa Bay Lightning again after their 3-7 loss on the 4th of Jan. The Lightning are hoping to keep their win streak against the Sharks strong, and the Sharks are hoping to redeem themselves and prove their newfound skills in this game.

(Image credits to "Inside The Rink")

The first period kicked off with Vasilesky in goal for the Bolts, and Askarov in goal for the Sharks. 2 minutes in, a shot by the Lightning was saved by Askarov, but was close enough to push the Sharks to make more attempts, leading to a shot by the Sharks being blocked by Vasilesky. 3 minutes into the period, Ryan Reeves sends the puck to the shooting end of the ice, giving the Sharks an opportunity to get on the board. Unfortunately for them, nobody was close enough to capitalise on the chance, leading the puck back to the Lightning. The young line of Celebrini-Graf-Smith kept the Lightning on their toes, trying to keep up with the quick movements of the line. Dmitri Orlov (Tampa Bay Lightning) held a strong defence, keeping the puck moving at all times and making it hard to score easily. Michael Misa has returned to the team since playing for Canada in the World Juniors, and Will Smith is still finding his feet since coming back from a 7-week absence due to a shoulder injury. The Sharks defence seemed shaky as the Bolts got a good opportunity but went slightly wide and missed the net. JJ Moser has a good attempt from the Lightning, blocked by Askarov to keep the score nil all. It was a strong period for the Lightning who kept a heavy possession and had good control over the puck across the ice. Tyler Toffloli found an opportunity and took it, assisted by Eklund and Wennberg, shooting and taking the score to 1-0 for the Sharks. Not even a minute later, the Lightning evened the score with a goal by Hagel, assisted by Cirelli and Kucherov. The possession was even across the last couple minutes of the first period, the teams going into the break at 1-1.

2 minutes into the second period, Brandon Hagel assisted Anthony Cirelli for the Lightning after taking the puck around the net. Just one minute later, Lightning scored again with a strong shot by James, taking the score to 3-1. Tampa Bay continued with their relentless attempts on goal, some shots going wide and others being saved over the first 6 minutes of the game. Ryan Reeves was sent to the penalty box for a 2-minute minor after holding Declan Carlile, sending the already 2 goals up Lightning into a power play advantage. A shot by Celebrini was saved by Vasilskey, preventing the Sharks from closing in. With 8 minutes remaining in the second half, the score remained at 3-1, despite shots on goal being drawn at 12-12 for both teams. 12 minutes into the second period, Gage Gonclaves served a 2-minute minor for interference, giving the Sharks a power play which allowed them a good shot on goal which was saved by Vasilesky. Towards the end of the second period, the Sharks took the lead on shot attempts with 14 over the Lightning’s 12, despite still only having one goal scored. In the last seconds of the second period, Kucherov took the puck the whole way down the ice and got a close shot but just missed out, ending the period at 3-1 to the Lightning.

In the third period, Will Smith had a good attempt on goal but it was stopped by the Tampa Bay defence, keeping the score as it was. The Sharks played a strong period, getting to a total of 19 shots on goal but still not scoring any goals, whilst the Lightning stayed at 14 shots on goal, focusing on their defensive plays for the period. The Lightning began to press and apply pressure with 10 minutes left, taking possession in the Sharks' defensive third and attempting to line up a shot for another goal. After a close shot by Tampa Bay Lightning’s Darren Raddysh, the Lightning had a fresh wave of confidence, leading to another shot by Raddysh which was saved by Askarov and a Nick Paul shot also saved by Askarov. With 5 minutes left, Macklin Celebrini won the face-off against Zemgus Girgensons but the puck was quickly retrieved by the Lightning, leading to further shots on goal, however none led to any goals scored. After another face-off win for Macklin Celebrini, the Sharks take the puck to the offensive line and take it up the ice, however they were once again unable to capitalise on their opportunities. A couple of close shots by the Lightning caused Askarov to save multiple shots in a row, keeping San Jose fans holding their breath. With 4 minutes left of the period, the Sharks decided to pull Askarov out and play with an empty net and an additional player on the ice. It was a risky move as it gave the Lightning a better chance of scoring if they managed to get a shot, but they took a chance on hoping to use all their manpower to even the score. Celebrini had a good shot at the Lightning’s goal but just missed the crossbar. The Lightning’s Brandon Hagel scored into the empty net, bringing the score to 4-1 with 2 minutes to go. Fans in the stadium threw hats down, believing it was a hat-trick for Hagel, however they were unaware that the second goal had been credited to Cirelli. The game ended with a 4-1 final score in the Lightning’s favour.

The Lightning took the lead of the Atlantic division with 64 points, whilst the Sharks remained in third place of the Pacific division with 53 points. This game was a frustrating one for the Sharks who felt that they could’ve achieved more in the game, but were just short of more goals. The Lightning will be happy with this result. They defended well and played the puck in a way that worked exceptionally well for them, and this will be a good step for them going into preparation for the Stanley Cup playoffs. The Sharks know that they are generally playing well but will have to work on their precision and control if they want to guarantee a good playoff run.

Article written by Milla Sinfield