For Tampa Bay Lightning 300-game winner Andrei Vasilevskiy, there is no rest for the weary.
After reaching the milestone Thursday night by cooling off the Winnipeg Jets, the NHL’s hottest and best club, the goaltender will likely start again at home searching for No. 301 on Saturday night against the visiting New Jersey Devils.
Tampa Bay never trailed in the 4-1 win against Winnipeg, a team that had won its previous seven games and outscored opponents 33-12 in that span. The Lightning kept the best power-play unit in the NHL scoreless in five tries and did so without top center Brayden Point, who missed his third consecutive game with a lower-body injury.
Captain Victor Hedman moved into second place on the franchise’s all-time assist list, dishing out No. 583 and inching him within five of legendary playmaker Martin St. Louis’ 588.
Anthony Cirelli scored his 100th career goal and Brandon Hagel netted one in his 200th game wearing a Lightning jersey.
But the night belonged to Vasilevskiy, the backstop the club affectionately calls “The Big Cat,” who became the fastest player to reach the victory total in NHL history.
The 2019 Vezina Trophy winner did it in 490 career games, 31 fewer than previous record-holder Jacques Plante.
“How do you become the best?” said Lightning coach Jon Cooper, whose club broke a four-game losing streak. “You are put in the big moments at the big times and you deliver time and time again.
“To do what he’s done and get 300 wins in the time he accomplished that, along the way winning the Vezina and two Stanley Cups and participating in four Finals, I’m not sure what else you could say about the man.”
After a 1-0 home loss to the San Jose Sharks on Sunday, New Jersey headed on a three-game road trip in Florida. In a rare two-game stop against the same team in three days, the Devils defeated the defending Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers 4-1 on Tuesday and 6-2 on Thursday.
New Jersey has won five of its past six games, including four road matchups, ahead of its matchup in Tampa on Saturday.
In the two wins against the Panthers, the Devils took early leads before pulling away.
Jacob Markstrom, who was selected in the second round in 2008 by Florida, starred in goal Tuesday, making 34 saves. Jesper Bratt recorded his second career hat trick Thursday after his two-assist performance in the first win over the Panthers.
“We won the (first game) by playing really, really good defensively and capitalized on our chances,” Bratt said after his three-goal outing. “We took a little more command of the game offensively (tonight). We played a little more with the puck and had more time in the (offensive) zone.
“I think we took a step as a group and built some character. We’re playing another really good team (in Tampa).”
Tampa Bay won the last matchup between the teams, earning an 8-5 victory in New Jersey on Oct. 22. The Lightning have won eight of the past nine games in the series.
After their game Saturday, the teams will complete their season series Jan. 11 in New Jersey.
–Field Level Media
