As with all hockey games, this contest has two stories to tell – one from each team’s perspective.
Let’s start with the Lightning’s side. After wrapping up a homestand in which they didn’t start well in five of the six games, the Lightning promptly began this four-game road trip with another terrible start. This poor first period came on the heels of one of their best starts of the season in Saturday’s win over Minnesota. One of the keys to the Lightning’s dominant first on Saturday was their ability to execute clean, tape-to-tape passes out of the defensive zone.