Lightning Snuff Flames 3-0 in Tampa

Andrei Vasilevskiy made 28 saves in his fourth shutout of the season as the Tampa Bay Lightning beat the Calgary Flames 3-0 Thursday.

Statistically, the Flames led the Lightning in nearly every category. Calgary had more shots, hits, faceoffs won, blocked shots and takeaways, and they had fewer penalties and giveaways. Fortunately for the Lightning, Vasilevskiy put on a clinic. Thursday’s shutout was the 38th of his career. Brandon Hagel led the Lightning in scoring with a goal and an assist.

Despite the loss, Calgary goalie Dustin Wolf performed well. Wolf saved 19 of 21 shots on goal and earned the third star of the game.

Recap

A tripping call on Calgary’s Nazem Kadri gave the Lightning a powerplay late in the first period. With 45 seconds left, Tampa’s Nikita Kucherov sent the puck into a crease crowded with Flames defenders. The puck ricocheted off the skate of Calgary’s Mackenzie Weegar and snuck past Wolf to give the Lightning a 1-0 lead.

Pinball winner 🤭 pic.twitter.com/5ta1IIzmI4

— Tampa Bay Lightning (@TBLightning) February 28, 2025

Even with two powerplays for each team, neither found the back of the net in the second period.

Third Period

With just over 16 minutes on the clock in the 3rd period, Tampa’s Erik Cernak sent a quick wrist shot over Wolf’s right shoulder to extend the lead to 2-0. Wolf extended his left leg, having guessed Cernak would take a glove-side shot. Cernak secured his third goal of the season with assists from Hagel and Anthony Cirelli.

Beauuuuuuty 🤩 pic.twitter.com/cG7utg8rQ4

— Tampa Bay Lightning (@TBLightning) February 28, 2025

Calgary pulled Wolf from the net with three mintues left in the game, but wasn’t able to capitalize with an extra man on the ice. A quick clear by Hedman missed the net and gave Hagel a wide-open empty-net goal to secure the win for the Lightning.

A Tough Road Ahead

Tampa will face the top two teams in the Eastern Conference in its next two games. The Lightning are 1-1 against both the Washington Capitals and the Florida Panthers this season. They head on the road to face the conference-leading Capitals on Saturday at 12:30 p.m. They’ll return home to Florida and play in Sunrise against the Panthers on Monday.

Thursday’s win was the Lightning’s seventh in a row. Their current seven-game win streak is their longest since winning 11 in a row during the 2019-20 season. That season, they went on to win the Stanley Cup.

The Lightning currently sit at 34-20-4 with 72 points. They’re third in the Atlantic Division and three points behind the division-leading Panthers. The top of the Atlantic looks like the most competitive division in the NHL right now, and the Lightning will look to take the division lead in the weeks ahead.