Lightning Hit the Road to face Pittsburgh

The Tampa Bay Lightning will travel to take on the Pittsburgh Penguins on Saturday afternoon.

Late Season Stretch

Tampa Bay sits as the first wild card team in the Eastern Conference at 43-26-7 (93 pts). The Lightning are 10-1-1 in their last 12 games as they work towards a post-season berth for a seventh consecutive season.

The Lightning secured two wins in two nights in Canada to open their road trip. Tampa Bay defeated the Toronto Maple Leafs and Montreal Canadiens with strong performances by goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy and center Steven Stamkos. Vasilevskiy held his ground against the Maple Leafs, conceding only one goal with 28 saves, and Stamkos net two goals and an assist against the Canadiens a night later.

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Series against Pittsburgh

Saturday’s matchup marks the third and final meeting between the Lightning and the Penguins (35-30-11) this season.

In late November, the Lightning gave up a 2-0 lead and lost 4-2 on home ice. Tampa Bay had 10 giveaways in that game compared to Pittsburgh’s three. In another home matchup in December, the Lightning beat the Penguins 3-1. Vasilevskiy had 24 saves while NHL points leader Nikita Kucherov had a goal and an assist.

Postseason Implications

The last meeting between both teams serves as a crucial step towards the postseason, as the regular season comes to an end with six games remaining for each team.

The Lightning trail the Toronto Maple Leafs (95 pts) by two points for third in the Atlantic Division and have a 10-point cushion in their wild card spot. The Penguins are one of four teams in play for the third seed in the Metropolitan Division and the second wild card spot. They trail both the Philadelphia Flyers and New York Islanders by two points for third in the division and the second wild card spot respectively.

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Up Next

The puck drops Saturday at 1pm.