Brayden Point and Ryan McDonagh reached point milestones in leading the Tampa Bay Lightning to a 4-1 victory over the struggling Boston Bruins.
The game featured the first-ever matchup between brothers Morgan and Conor Geekie. The 20-year-old Conor is in his rookie season for the Lightning, while the 26-year-old Morgan is in his second season with the Bruins.
After a scoreless first period, the Lightning got on the board first when Anthony Cirelli scored shorthanded after putting in a rebound from a Brandon Hagel breakaway. With less than a minute left in the second period, Mikey Eyssimont gave the Lightning a 2-0 lead that they took into the second intermission. McDonagh got the other assist and picked up his 400th career point.
Anthony Cirelli gets Tampa on the board first with a shorthanded goal! ⚡️ pic.twitter.com/a2AO5yksY7
— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) January 10, 2025
The Bruins came out strong to start the period and cut the lead to one on a Mason Lohrei goal.
The Bruins could come no closer as Hagel scored an empty net goal with 90 seconds left in the game to allow the Lightning to regain their two-goal lead.
Point scored on the power play with less than a minute left to make the score 4-1 and picked up his 600th career NHL point. He is the third-fastest player in franchise history to reach the milestone behind Nikita Kucherov and Steven Stamkos.
This was the beginning of the “moms trip” for the Bruins, and they were hoping that it would help them turn their fortunes around from their recent struggles, as they are now 0-5-1 in their last six games. Their six-game losing streak is the team’s longest since 2010.
Play got a little chippy at the end of the game and the Lightning’s Emil Lilleberg picked up a cross-checking major and game misconduct in a scrap with the Bruins’ Mark Kastelic. Darren Raddysh and Justin Brazeau picked up penalties as time expired, and Brazeau was also assessed a game misconduct.
