TAMPA BAY, Fla. — After experiencing a tough break last week from losing two straight games on the West Coast (Tampa Bay Times, 2025), the Tampa Bay Lightning bounced back with a much-needed win. Last night, March 25, the Bolts hosted Sidney Crosby and the Pittsburgh Penguins at Amalie Arena and dominated with plenty of goals and player milestones.
Longtime forward of the Lightning, Anthony Cirelli, competed in his 500th NHL game with the Bolts and put on a big show for the fans in attendance. In the first period, he opened the scoring with help from Nick Paul.
A different look, wearing the fishbowl, did not change his performance whatsoever. Cirelli made it 3-0 right after Ryan McDonough’s 2-0 goal at 13:30.
However, the scoring wasn’t done in the first, as Brayden Point wristed one past Tristan Jarry off the rebound.
From Point’s goal came the assists, and Nikita Kucherov collected his 100th point this season as he continues to climb the top point-scoring ranks in the NHL. Jarry’s night also ended after giving up four unanswered goals in four minutes, so Alex Nedeljkovic took over and finished the game.
Fifteen minutes into the middle frame, Kucherov grabbed another point, making it 5-0 on the power play. This was after he was knocked down in the crease, drawing a power play, by a Pens defender and had to leave the ice briefly.
Then minutes before the buzzer, another star player for the Bolts, Brandon Hagel, netted goal number-six for his team.
In the third, the scoring action was over for the home team, but they still held their lead and ground despite giving up a single goal to Bryan Rust at 14:15. So, in other words, Andrei Vasilevskiy’s 40th shutout win will have to wait for another day.
Final score of this matchup was 6-1 Tampa Bay. Shots on goal: 15 Pittsburgh, 27 Tampa.
Three Stars
- Kucherov (1G-2A)
- Cirelli (2G)
- McDonough (1G-1A)
The Tampa Bay Lightning will host the Utah Hockey Club for the first time ever, as the team welcomes back former defenseman Mikael Sergachev to Tampa on March 27.
ITR 45: Everything Is Happening – Inside The Rink
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