Detroit Red Wings buzzed by Tampa Bay Lightning, 3-0: Game thread recap
Detroit Red Wings (28-21-8) vs. Tampa Bay Lightning (36-17-4)
When: 8 p.m. Saturday.
Where: Little Caesars Arena in Detroit.
TV: Bally Sports Detroit.
Radio: WXYT-FM (97.1; other radio affiliates).
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Game notes: If the Wings’ recent hot streak — seven wins in eight games, and nine wins in 12 games — has you flashing back to the franchise’s most recent playoff appearance in 2016, consider this: A win tonight would give the Wings wins in three of their four games this season against the Lightning, and a win in the season series against the Bolts for the first time since the 2011-12 season — when the teams played just once. (How long ago was that? The Wings’ seventh-leading scorer that season was, yes, a Bertuzzi — Todd. The uncle of now-Wing Tyler finished with 14 goals.) ... Lucas Raymond remains out of the lineup with a lower-body injury.
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The Wings beat the Lightning by two goals in Florida on Dec. 6 and by three goals at LCA on Dec. 21, with Michael Rasmussen picking up three goals and two assists in the two games combined (albeit with one of the goals coming on an empty net). The Lightning will have a tough choice in goal — well, as tough as a goalie choice can be with half of it including all-everything netminder Andrei Vasilevskiy. The former Vezina and Conn Smythe winner — coming off five straight top-five finishes in Vezina voting, with another one likely this year thanks to a 2.60 GAA and .916 save percentage — was torched in Buffalo on Thursday, giving up six goals on just 23 shots faced. Tampa Bay coach Jon Cooper — who got his coaching start at Lansing Catholic Central — could go with backup Brian Elliott instead, but the 37-year-old has just two starts this month, both losses, and was stung by the Wings for five goals in that Dec. 21 loss.
Then again, picking goalies is a little easier when you can count on a lot of offense: The Lightning are fourth in goals per game (3.58) thanks to their quartet of 20-goal scorers already. That group is led by 26-year-old Brayden Point with 34 tallies, including one in each of the teams’ meetings this season. Lightning captain (and one-time Wings free-agent target) Steven Stamkos isn’t far behind; the 32-year-old has 26 goals (including one against the Wings on Dec. 6) and joined the 500-goal club back on Jan. 18.
The Wings, meanwhile, have just one 20-goal scorer: Captain Dylan Larkin, who has seven goals this month en route to 22 on the season. Larkin had an assist Thursday night after his early ejection on Tuesday snapped a seven-game point streak. He’s probably hoping Cooper goes with Elliott in net, as Larkin struck twice against him (and assisted on an empty-netter) in that Dec. 21 victory.
Since that game, the Lightning have been electric, buzzing through the league with at least a point in 19 of their 25 games (16-6-3), putting them into third place in the Atlantic Division and a near-certain matchup with the Toronto Maple Leafs in the first round. The Wings, meanwhile, climbed into the East’s second wild-card berth (promising a near-certain matchup with the Boston Bruins in the first round) with their win Thursday, though the Sabres leapt into a tie with them on Friday night, thanks to their win over the Panthers.
After tonight’s matchup, the squads will have six weeks to think about it; they won’t meet again until the season finale, set for April 13 in Tampa. More immediately, the Wings will have Sunday off to head to Ottawa for a back-to-back set on Monday and Tuesday created by a winter storm postponement back in December. The Lightning, however, will be in action Sunday night, wrapping up their two-game road trip against the suddenly struggling Pittsburgh Penguins.
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This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Red Wings lose to Tampa Bay Lightning, 3-0: Game thread recap
