Lightning Young Guns Show Promise as well as Inexperience in Loss to Predators
By Alyssa Shimko | Thunderstruck Sports
The Tampa Bay Lightning controlled much of the play in the second preseason game against the Nashville Predators, but sloppy late turnovers ultimately led to a 3-2 overtime loss. With many of the team's marquee names staying home, the Bolts' pipeline prospects had a golden opportunity to make their case for staying up with the club to start the season.
From the opening puck drop, it was clear the Lightning wanted to play an up-tempo game. Head coach Jon Cooper called on two reliable workhorses in Zemgus Girgensons and Pontus Holmberg, along with gritty new winger Jeff Viel, to set that tone early on the first line.
Most of the first period, the Lightning managed the puck well and limited Nashville's looks at the net.
It took the Predators nearly five minutes to get their first shot through to Lightning goalie Dennis Hildeby. The 6'7” goaltender acquired from Toronto on July 1 and the Bolts' defense held Nashville to just one shot on net for nearly 12 minutes.
The Lightning had chances to get on the board throughout the opening period, but Nashville goalie Justus Annunen held them at bay.
Viel, Lightning Break Through in Second Period
The Lightning finally broke the stalemate on a brilliant play between Viel and Girgensons at 16:16 of the second period. A Girgensons forecheck kept Nashville from clearing the puck from their defensive zone and forced a turnover.
Viel wheeled around, scooped up the loose puck, and took two strides to the top of the slot to beat Annunen cleanly on a wrist shot.
Viel would score a second time at the 4:54 mark of the third period when Pontus Holmberg found the sixth-year veteran on the backdoor.
"Apparently, goals!" Veil said later when asked what fans should expect from him this season. Prior to tonight, Veil had scored only six goals in 99 NHL games.
With the Lightning team leadership not travelling for the game, Veil, Zemgus Girgensons, and Charle-Edouard D'Astous were named alternate captains.
Predators Rally in Third Period
Despite opening a two-goal lead, the Lightning soon fell victim to their own mistakes.
Predator forward Matthew Wood redirected a puck over Hildeby's shoulder to put Nashville on the scoreboard at 13:30 of the third period.
Wood led Nashville with six shots on goal, all happening in the final few minutes of regulation.
The second-year starter tied the game at two with 2:19 left in the third period to force overtime, powering around Bolt defenseman Tomas Kralovich to rip a shot past Hildeby.
A sloppy overtime turnover by Michael Callahan allowed Predators forward Felix Nilsson to score the game-winner for Nashville at the 2:33 mark.
Cooper Likes What He Sees Despite Mistakes
Despite errors that led to the preseason loss, this young Lightning squad showed plenty to like in Nashville.
"There was a lot of good to the game," Cooper said. "You're not going to play the perfect game, and they had a pretty sizable lineup in there of NHL gamers."
“A lot of good things, but we let that one get away at the end," Veil said. "It's preseason, and that's the time to learn, so we are going to go back to work tomorrow and learn from it.”
The Lightning went 27-of-48 (53.6%) on faceoffs. Bolts center Jansen Harkins went 10-of-15 (67%), Conor Geekie was 7-of-11 (64%), and AHL phenom Sam O'Reilly matched up well from the faceoff dot with Nashville star center Ryan O'Reilly.
Hildeby stopped 23 of 26 shots, further entrenching his position as backup to Andrei Vasilevskiy when the season starts next week. Cooper praised the Swedish goalie on his first effort in Lightning blue.
"We probably shot ourselves in the foot a little bit, puck management, some turnovers and stuff like that at some inopportune times," Cooper said. "But the goalie looked good. They had some chances, and he kept us in it, so a lot more good than bad from tonight.”
“He was the biggest reason why we were in the game for the whole game. He was outstanding," Veil said of Hildeby after the game. "He was standing on his head the whole time when we had breakdowns in the D zone, so, obviously, a great, great game.”
As the squad returns to Tampa, there will be no rest for the weary, and plenty to dissect from Tuesday night's game. Training camp continues on Wednesday morning at Brandon TGH Ice Plex.
"It’s unfortunate; you want to walk away from the game with the win," Cooper said. "But I think it was a growing moment for a lot of the players.”
Three Stars of the Game
Matthew Wood, Nashville. Two third-period goals tied up the game and forced overtime.
Felix Nilsson, Nashville. Scored the game-winner in overtime.
Jeffery Viel, Tampa Bay. Scored twice for the Lightning to take an early lead.
Up Next
The Battle of Florida ramps up as the first installment of this classic series begins on Thursday at Benchmark International Arena. Game time is at 7 pm.
Looking forward to more coverage this season!