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Vinny's Penalty Shot Secures Bolts' 4-1 Win Over Flyers

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By ERIK ERLENDSSON | The Tampa Tribune

Published: January 16, 2009

Updated: 01/16/2009 06:00 am

TAMPA - The Lightning returned home Thursday carrying the weight of a lopsided loss in San Jose two nights before.

Fortunately, they were still carrying Vinny Lecavalier with them as well.

The Lightning captain, subject of a myriad of trade rumors all week, converted on a third-period penalty shot to ensure Tampa Bay's 4-1 victory against Philadelphia to start a five-game homestand.

Marty St. Louis, Ryan Craig and Andrej Meszaros scored within a span of two minutes, three seconds late in the second to erase a Philadelphia lead while Mike Smith stopped 31 shots for the victory.

With all the talk this week focused on the possibility of Lecavalier being moved, the team rallied around the situation, skating with a purpose and playing a strong team-oriented game.

"Rumors are going to go on and they are obviously going to happen, but the good teams don't worry about what is going on in the media and just try to play hockey and focus in on what we are supposed to do," Smith said. "Tonight, I thought it was one of the best games of the year for a 60-minute effort and every guy contributed."

Lecavalier admitted that getting onto the ice helped to insulate him from everything swirling around him off the ice.

"The last four or five days, especially the first two or three days ... I want to say I wasn't distracted, but I was, I think anybody would because these were rumors that had a lot of legs," Lecavalier said. "But it was nice to go out there and play, when you're on the ice, you don't think about what goes on outside the rink."

The victory improved the Lightning to 7-4-1 in the past 12 games, showing the improvement the team has displayed in the past month, a tough task Thursday after flying cross country following the worst loss of the season.

Reporter Erik Erlendsson can be reached at (813) 259-7835.

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