Peaking At Right Time: Lightning Rout Utah For Dominant Win

Following a huge 6-1 win against the Pittsburgh Penguins on Tuesday, the Lightning remained at home to face the Utah Hockey Club in a Thursday night clash.

Tampa Bay (42-25-5) picked up right where it left off, steamrolling the Hockey Club (32-29-11). The Lightning jumped to a early 2-0 lead and never wavered in a one-sided 8-0 annihilation of Utah.

First

After scoring four goals in the first period against the Penguins, Tampa Bay started off hot yet again, with two goals in the first five minutes of the game. Only a 1:30 into the first period, the Lightning struck with their first goal. A blocked shot from right wing Nikita Kucherov rebounded perfectly off the skate of left wing Jake Guentzel, who elevated a backhand into the roof of the net for Tampa Bays fist goal.

With the atmosphere already electric in the Amalie Area, defenseman Victor Hedman sent a snap shot just over the right shoulder of Utah goaltender Karel Vejmelka to bring the score to 2-0 with only 4:20 of hockey played in the first. The scored remained 2-0 at the conclusion of the first as Lightning’s powerful offensive passing game was on full display early and picked back up in the second period.

How we feelin’ this morning?! pic.twitter.com/3xGIG3Y5T1

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

Second

The Lightning kept their foot on the gas in the second period and scored an impressive four goals while goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy continued to stay on fire and shut out the Hockey Club.

5:05 into the second period, Tampa defenseman Emil Lilleberg launched a rocket toward the net that was redirected by center Gage Goncalves for the Lightning’s third goal of the game and Gonclaves’ fourth goal of March.

Continuing to dominate the ice, the Lightning struck again just over four minutes later. Center Brayden Point took the puck the length of the rink nearly halfway through the second period, and with a slick pass between two Utah defenders, hit Kucherov for an elevated backhand shot that was sunk into the upper-left corner untouched. Kucherov’s 32nd goal of the season put Tampa Bay ahead 4-0 as the Lightning showed no signs of slowing down its deceptive passing and face-paced play.

Utah moved Jaxson Stauber into the net after Vejmelka allowed five goals, but the second-year goalie didn’t fare any better, allowing four of his own.

Lightning did strike twice for Guentzel in Thursday’s game as he added his second goal of the night and 36th of the season. With 2:06 remaining in the second period, Guentzel showcased his shiftiness during a Lightning powerplay, sinking a wrist shot just past the right of Stauber.

With the final seconds of the period winding down, center Yanni Gourde centered the puck to right wing Oliver Bjorkstrand, who jammed a snapshot just past the right pad of Stauber. Bjorkstrand’s goal gave the Lightning a commanding 6-0 lead with 23 second left in the second period.

https://twitter.com/TBLightning/status/1905424785762382290

Third

With Utah all but out of it, the Lightning kept control of the game in the third period and even added two more goals to cap the dominant shutout.

Despite an uneventful first half of the third, the Lightning continued to keep up the pressure, launching multiple shots off the post for close calls. Finally, 8:59 into the final period, a shot from Kucherov ricocheted into the air and was struck down by Point into the goal. Point’s miraculous mid-air hit marked his 300th career goal and put his elite hand-eye coordination on display as Tampa Bay took a 7-0 lead.

With just over five minutes remaining in the game, Bjorkstrand quick skating and fancy footwork allowed him to dance through multiple Utah defenders and launch a missile of a snapshot past Stauber for his second goal of the night. The Lightning held their 8-0 lead until the buzzer to take home their first win by at least eight points this season and secure a statement win over Utah.

https://twitter.com/TBLightning/status/1905430391424454893

Vasilevskiy’s shutout in Thursday’s win included 25 saves and was his sixth shutout of the season and 40th of his career. The 11th-year goalie ranks second in the NHL in both wins (35) and save percentage (0.921).

4️⃣0️⃣ looks good on Andrei Vasilevskiy.

Congratulations to the @TBLightning netminder, who becomes just the 5th Russian-born goaltender to record 40 NHL shutouts! pic.twitter.com/Uhg0QOspU8

— NHLPA (@NHLPA) March 28, 2025

Up Next

After losing four of seven games to start March, the Lightning’s back-to-back dominant wins have them tied with the Panthers for second in the Atlantic Division, with 89 points and looking like one of the scariest teams in the NHL.

Following dominant showings in their weekday games, Tampa Bay will look to build on its performances when it hosts the New York Islanders, who are on a three-game losing skid, on Saturday at 2 p.m.