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Bolts Gain Ground In Southeast

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By ERIK ERLENDSSON, The Tampa Tribune

Published: February 8, 2008

NASHVILLE, Tenn. - Don't look now, but the climb to the top of the Southeast Division has a few less rungs.

Vinny Prospal scored his 23rd goal of the season 58 seconds into overtime to give Tampa Bay a 2-1 victory against Nashville on Thursday, the Lightning's first victory in overtime - not counting shootouts - in five decisions.

Despite still sitting in last place in the Eastern Conference and just two points from falling into the league cellar, Tampa Bay pulled to within six points of division-leading Washington with Thursday's win. The Lightning also gained ground on Florida and Atlanta, both of which lost on Thursday, to set up a big divisional showdown Saturday in Atlanta.
Johan Holmqvist made 18 saves for his fifth consecutive road win while Tampa Bay won its sixth consecutive road game, the second-longest road winning streak in franchise history. Brad Richards finished with a goal and an assist, picking up the primary helper on the game-winner.

After a lifeless first period, followed by a stronger second period, the intermission talk centered on setting up the third period as the most important 20 minutes of the season, minus the extra 58 seconds it required to secure the two points in the standings.

"It really was the biggest period of the year, it set us up again," Richards said. "Now we have to battle even harder on Saturday."
Defenseman Dan Boyle, out on an extended shift in the overtime, made a play to keep the puck alive in the offensive zone before sliding a puck over to Richards at the bottom of the right circle. Richards was able to get a shot on net before Prospal knocked in the rebound through the legs of goaltender Dan Ellis.

"I don't even really know what happened on that play; I don't know how to describe it," Prospal said. "We turned the puck over, we get it back, Danny finds Richie and we score. We wanted it more than they did and I think we were luckier than they were."

Boyle knew he was out longer than expected, but it was a calculated risk he knew was needed in that situation.

"We needed the two points, let's be honest," said Boyle, who has seven points in six games since returning from wrist surgery. "We needed the win so I decided to stay on the ice and jump in the play. The puck kind of went off my skate there in the offensive zone, I got it back, gave it to Richie and went to the net. I'm not quite sure how it went, but Vaclav put it in.

"One point at this point just isn't good enough."

Predators right wing Alexander Radulov upped his scoring streak to eight games with a goal at 12:37 of the first period. Lightning defenseman Shane O'Brien tried to make a pass from the sideboards back to his defensive partner, Filip Kuba, but the puck hit the side of the net and it wasn't long before it was in the net when Jason Arnott fed a pass from the sideboards to an open Radulov in the left circle.

Richards pulled the Lightning even in the second period when he was able to poke in a rebound of Marty St. Louis' deflection shot at the 13:09 mark, a play that started when Richards forced a turnover just outside the Nashville blue line and carried the puck into the zone before finding Vinny Lecavalier across the ice to set up St. Louis' attempt.

The Lightning, meanwhile, held the Predators to just two shots on goal and none in the final 13:07 of the second period. And though it's not tracked anymore by the league, Tampa Bay must have owned a wide margin in time of possession in the neutral zone and offensive zone as Nashville had just the two shots and three missed shots, although the Lightning blocked four other attempts in the second period. Nashville went a total of 18:15 between shots before Ryan Suter put a wrist shot on frame 5:08 into the third period.

That seemed to open things up for Nashville, which had 10 shots on goal in the third period after having nine through the first two. But Holmqvist held the fort, coming up with a big stop on Arnott who skated in alone with the puck down the right wing before blasting a slap shot at 11:15.

And though it wasn't a textbook type of victory, it's the kind of win needed to pull a team out of the doldrums in the standings.

"We just played a simple game and gave ourselves a chance to forecheck, unlike what we did in the first period," Lightning coach John Tortorella said. "We started to create some pressure; we scored a goal in the second and then I thought both teams played back and forth in the third.

"But we found a way to score in the overtime."

Reporter Erik Erlendsson can be reached at (813) 259-7835 or eerlendsson@tampatrib.com.

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