View of the Benchmark International Arena before the Lightning come out and take on the Detroit Red Wings. Photo courtesy of Lilly Bouchard.
The Tampa Bay Lightning faced the Detroit Red Wings, ending up in a 4-1 victory as they continue to work towards the Stanley Cup.
–
By Lilly Bouchard
TAMPA, Fla. — The Tampa Bay Lightning defeated the Detroit Red Wings in a 4-1 victory as they continued to work toward the Stanley Cup.
During the first period, the Lightning changed their forwards, Michael Milne and Wojciech Stachowiak, for Red Wings defenseman Ian Mitchell, which forced the Lightning to play more of a defensive style.
While the Lightning prepared for the Red Wings at their morning skate before the game, coach Jon Cooper worked on details that led to their victory.
“The secret sauce is the little things of the game we can control, and when we start getting back to that, we will be okay,” said Cooper.
Cooper said that mentality is how the Lightning pushes forward to win games like these, emphasizing the process.
“A lot of it is mentally, and you have to fight through those dog days,” Cooper said. “We skated better, much more emotion, decent getting the puck out of the other end. We played with much better pace and were more selfish with shots and pucks early on.”
The Lightning started strong in the first period. They had seven shots on goal while goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy blocked five attempts. Momentum started to build in the second period, resulting in a goal scored by Jake Guentzel, assisted by Nikita Kucherov.
The Red Wings are known to be a fast-paced team, using their speed to their advantage.
“They are a high-powered team, and we will have to move the puck and beat them,” said Gage Goncalves, one of the youngest players on the team.
“They can fly off the ice and move well in the neutral zone, so if we can slow down that zone and try to get pucks behind their defense to try and slow them down, it could help us out a lot,” Goncalves said. “We are doing a good job keeping our even cool throughout the season, not too high or low.”
Detroit is highly ranked in blocked shots in the league, but the Lightning still had many shots throughout the game, which is the mentality they were looking for going into this matchup.
Shot blocks were one of the many strategies that the Lightning knew they had to emphasize before the game. Staying inside and making rebounds, as Cooper says, those are the components you need to win. During their morning skates, the focus is on fine-tuning those components until game time.
[interview image here]
Writer for the Minaret, Lilly Bouchard, interviewing Gage Concalves after the Lightning’s morning skate. Image courtesy of Lilly Bouchard.
“I was trying to feel the puck, and this late in the season, it is more about getting puck touches. You go out after practice and work on the tips, trying to get ready for the night,” said Goncalves.
That worked for Goncalves as he scored two goals, both in the third period, one at 1:35 and the other at 16:22. Both were off deflections, helping to secure the win and reaching his career high: 10 goals in a season.
The Lightning continue to focus on the recipe for that secret sauce as they enter the Stanley Cup Playoffs.