The Tampa Bay Lightning pummeled the Utah Hockey Club in the rematch on home ice 8-0. The onslaught was highlighted by Lightning forward Brayden Point scoring his 300th career goal.
Defenseman Ryan McDonagh joined the milestone party by playing in his 1,000th career game. Goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy picked up his 40th career shutout in the effort.
It was the first time that Utah had been shut out since Nov. 21.
The Scoring Never Stops for the Lightning
The Lightning opened scoring in the opening minutes on a goal by Jake Guentzel (35). Victor Hedman (13) made it 2-0 and finished up scoring for the first period.
Heading into the second period, the offensive explosion began to take hold. Gage Goncalves (5) tipped one in to make it 3-0, and Nikita Kucherov (32) extended it to 4-0. Guentzel (36) picked up his second goal of the game after that, and Oliver Bjorkstrand (18) picked up the fourth goal of the period and the sixth overall.
After a pause in scoring early in the third period, Point scored his 300th career goal to make it 7-0. Bjorkstrand (19) picked up his second goal of the game to wrap up the action on the night.
Five players on the Lightning had multipoint nights, including a four-point night by Kucherov.
Vasilevskiy saved all 25 shots on goal. Utah required both goalies in the losing effort. Karel Vejmelka saved just seven of 11 shots before being pulled in favor of Jaxson Stauber halfway through the game. Stauber saved just six of 10.
The Lightning stay home for their next game on Saturday when they take on the New York Islanders. Puck drop is set for 2 p.m. EDT. Meanwhile, Utah heads south to take on the Florida Panthers in Sunrise, Florida. Puck drop is set for 6 p.m. EDT.
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