Lightning Hold Onto Playoff Spot

The Tampa Bay Lightning keep their NHL playoff hopes alive with a 4-1 win over the Toronto Maple Leafs Thursday in Toronto.

Slow Beginnings

After Tuesday’s 4-0 loss to the Boston Bruins, the Lightning seemed all but ready to leave the 2017 post-season behind. A shaky season (40-30-10) combined with a home ice advantage for Toronto left a narrow path for success. A scoreless first period perhaps caused some angst for the Lightning but less than halfway through the second period, Brayden Point scored on a power play.

POINTER ON THE BOARD! pic.twitter.com/pqkNjSTC7j

— Tampa Bay Lightning (@TBLightning) April 7, 2017

However, the celebration did not last long. Toronto tied it up only two minutes later. Two minutes after that, Nikita Kucherov gave the Lightning a 2-1 lead. It seemed that a painstaking game was about to play out.

Lightning Surge

Tampa Bay came alive at the start of the third period. They grabbed a 3-1 lead at the 2:00 mark and added another goal from Brayden Point later in the period to seal the win.  Andre Vasilevskiy made 26 saves throughout the game, many during a four minute Toronto power play.

https://twitter.com/TBLightning/status/850181123825168385

Playoffs

Tampa Bay needs just two points in their next two games to secure an appearance in the post-season. Head coach Jon Cooper says the spot in the playoffs is in their hands. The Lightning are currently battling Toronto and the New York Islanders for the Eastern Conference spot. The Maple Leafs are in a three point lead and need two points in their final two games. New York defeated the Carolina Hurricanes 3-0, making the race even tighter.

What’s Next?

Tampa Bay will stay in Canada to play Eastern Conference top seed Montreal tonight while Toronto will play the 50-win Pittsburgh Penguins. And the Islanders will play the New Jersey Devils with all these games having playoff implications.