Bolts Win Again Behind Carlson, Hildeby
By Mike Smith | Thunderstruck Sports
John Carlson scored twice, and Dennis Hildeby played spectacularly in net as the Tampa Bay Lightning beat the Minnesota Wild 3-2 on Thursday night. Nikita Kucherov notched two more assists, continuing his opening-season point streak.
The win was the Bolts' third straight, capping a three-game home stand.
After a quiet start to the first period, the Lightning found their groove and scored twice in 36 seconds. Anthony Cirelli scored his first goal of the season at the 5:26 mark of the first period, redirecting an Erik Cernak shot past Wild goalie Jesper Wallstedt.
Cirelli won nine faceoff draws on Thursday and leads the Lightning in faceoff wins this season with 35.
Carlson scored his first goal as a Bolt moments later at the 6:02 mark when he blasted a shot from the point through a screen set up by Gage Goncalves. Carlson fed the puck to Kucherov, who drew two Wild defenders.
Kucherov immediately passed the puck back to an open Carlson, who followed through to put the Lightning up 2-0.
"It wasn't much. We talked about in the o-zone how their wingers play it," Carlson said of his first goal in Lightning blue. "And most teams kind of play it like that, kind of hugging the dot, and there were plays around it to be had. I kind of got lucky. It was a 'good screen, goalie didn't see it' kind of goal."
The Bolts continued their first-period dominance Thursday night, with 14 shots. Tampa Bay has outshot their opponents in the first period, 46-24.
Power Play Finally Arrives
The Lightning have had power-play opportunities this season but haven't scored, going 0-for-13 in the first three games. Another chance halfway through the first period went by the wayside as the Bolts managed only two shots.
Minnesota star defenseman Quinn Hughes brought the Wild within one when his wrist shot found the back of the net at the 2:32 mark of the second period.
A few moments later, Wild center Michael McCarron was sent off holding Cirelli, and Tampa Bay's power play finally broke through.
Carlson fired a slap shot past Wallstedt at the 4:55 mark when Kucherov found him driving to the net from the high slot. The shot was reminiscent of the play the Lightning have relied on for years on the power play.
"They executed, and it was an authoritative power play goal, and that's what you wanted to see," Lightning coach Job Cooper said. "And it turns out being the game-winner. You're going to need it. You can't go the whole year without them, but they'll get rewarded. I know they will."
Carlson has recorded 79 goals via a slap shot since 2009-10 (when shots by type were officially tracked) and tied P.K. Subban for the most among all defensemen over that time span.
"That power-play goal is reminiscent of what we've seen in the past, that big bomb at the point," Cooper said. "Hopefully that's going to be a good trigger for us to get that going."
Carlson finished with nine shots on the night, one shy of his career-best.
"Good for him. I was thinking too; he went right down Broadway in the third period too," Cooper said of Carlson's nine-shot performance. "And Wallstedt made a good save on him. I was like, 'Wow, is he gonna get a hat trick?'
The game was Carlson's 11th multi-goal game, and he is on a three-game point streak, scoring in each of his first three games at Benchmark International Arena.
"But it was good for him because we need him to do that; we need him to shoot. That power-play goal is reminiscent of what we've seen in the past, that big bomb at the point. Hopefully that's going to be a good trigger for us to get that going."
Hildeby Stellar in the Crease
When Dennis Hildeby was acquired in a trade with Toronto for forward Nick Paul, questions arose about whether he could handle backing up a legend like Andrei Vasilevskiy.
If Thursday night was any indication, Hildeby will fit right in.
The goalie from Jarfalla, Sweden, stopped 34 of 36 shots, including a flurry from point-blank range as time dwindled down to preserve the 3-2 win.
“It was fun just battling out there, and we did a great job keeping it tight," Hildeby said of weathering the late push by Minnesota. "The chances they had were shots off the ice, which is a pretty good recipe there. Great job at the end there from everybody.”
"He did great. It was some big stops at big times," Carlson said of Hildeby. "Especially late, they had a few flurries in the third, as expected, as a good team coming back and trying to claw back into the game. He was huge for us."
Hildeby outlasted a 15-shot third period, including an awkward puck that bounced off a camera porthole in the corner glass and ricocheted toward the net.
Hildeby quickly dropped to the post, and the wayward puck deflected toward Joel Eriksson Ek's stick, who flicked the puck back at the Lightning net. Hildeby, sitting flat on the ice, still managed a glove save to keep the Bolts' lead intact.
"It was outstanding ... he (Hildeby) made some big saves when we needed them," Cooper said. "I wanted to sneak him in here at home for his first start, and he delivered. I thought he was calm out there and he was poised, and he was seeing through traffic, and he did a heck of a job."
Cooper also praised the team's performance tonight as part of the three-game homestand and how the Lightning have played since an opening-night loss a week ago to the New York Rangers.
"You're going to be in a ton of one-goal games, and when you're in them, you have to find a way to close them out," he said. "We've been fortunate in the three games when we've been able to do that because in some of the games you're sitting there after two periods and you're like, 'God, it's only a one-goal game', and you're kind of feeling like you could be up a little bit more than that."
"But the guys aren't sitting here saying, 'Oh man, we should be up more than this'. They're digging in regardless of the score, the time, or whatever, and it was good to see."
Three Stars of the Game
John Carlson, Tampa Bay. Two goals, including the game-winner on the power play, as part of a nine-shot performance.
Dennis Hildeby, Tampa Bay. Stopped 34 of 36 shots in his first win for the Lightning.
Nikita Kucherov, Tampa Bay. Two assists keep his four-game point streak alive as the season begins.
Up Next
The Tampa Bay Lightning head north to the Empire State for a Saturday matchup with the New York Islanders. Puck drop is at 7:30 pm.
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