Lightning not up to speed in their 1st game in Utah
SALT LAKE CITY — It didn’t take long for the Lightning to realize Saturday that their first game in Utah would be a challenge, as the Delta Center lived up to its billing as one of the loudest arenas in pro sports.
With its booming sound system and impassioned fans that seem to be right on top of the action, it’s no wonder it was known as one of the toughest places to play in the NBA for so many years.
In the Utah Hockey Club’s first season after relocating from Arizona, it’s been an amazing atmosphere. Combine that with a hungry young team intent on crashing the NHL playoffs, and it made for a tough task for the Lightning.
Tampa Bay’s 6-4 loss left it impressed with its opponent and the atmosphere, but also aware it didn’t play well enough to win.
“We’re like a yo-yo right now,” Lightning coach Jon Cooper said. “Good game, tough one, good game, tough one. Listen, I’m not taking anything from that team. They’re going to be a lot to handle. Hockey in Utah is here to stay. The environment was exceptional. ... And they’re going to be an exciting team in the years ahead.”
Inside the Lightning dressing room, players talked about Utah’s speed. But Cooper said it was more that his team lacked the necessary pace to win.
“I think they play with great energy,” Cooper said. “I think this atmosphere is amazing, that they’re fueled by their fans. So, there’s so many good things to like about hockey in Utah in general, and they have a good young team. But I can’t sit here and say speed was a factor other than the fact that maybe we played really slow.”
With Florida and Toronto losing Saturday, Tampa Bay (40-24-5) missed an opportunity to move into first place in the Atlantic Division by percentage points. The Panthers and Maple Leafs have two more points than the Lightning, but Tampa Bay has a game in hand on both.
Former Lightning defenseman Mikhail Sergachev skated a team-high 22:43 and was plus-3 for Utah in his first game since being traded to Utah in June.
Quick-response goals hurt
There’s nothing that kills momentum like scoring a goal and then giving one up on the next shift. The Lightning did that twice Saturday.
Just over three minutes after the Lightning successfully challenged an apparent Utah goal for a missed stoppage in play, Anthony Cirelli tied the score 2-2 at 5:22 of the second period. He scored from between the hash marks off a feed from Brandon Hagel.
But Alex Kerfoot scored just 36 seconds later after Utah spread out the Lightning in the defensive zone. Kerfoot was left alone at the back post, where Kevin Stenlund placed a puck from the left circle for an easy tip-in.
“You’re right back to where you were,” said Lightning center Brayden Point, who scored two goals but was on the ice for the Kerfoot goal. “And we’ve got to battle through that. That’s going to happen in games. That next shift is really important. And they came out hungrier on that next one than we did.”
Jake Guentzel tied the game back up with 2:37 left in the period, tipping in a Nick Perbix shot. But Utah scored against Cirelli’s line just 30 seconds later, as Logan Cooley tipped in John Marino’s shot from the right point.
“It’s terrible,” Cooper said. “We’re putting our guys out there that you’re depending on for that not to happen, and they’re giving them up. That definitely popped our balloon a little bit.”
Teammates don’t help Halverson
When Jonas Johansson, who was slated to start Saturday, had to leave the team to handle a family matter, the Lightning summoned goaltender Brandon Halverson from AHL Syracuse to make hit first NHL start.
The situation would have been overwhelming for any player, as Halverson arrived in Salt Lake City early Saturday morning for a 3 p.m. Mountain start after flying on multiple planes.
Halverson allowed five goals, all at even strength, on 24 shots. It was only his second NHL appearance and first since he played 12:33 for the Rangers in relief of Henrik Lundqvist on Feb. 17, 2018.
“That game was not on him at all,” Cooper said. “He gave us everything he had. It was definitely tough travel for him. ... The tough part is we didn’t give well enough in front of him, and you’re playing a hungry team that’s trying to battle for a playoff spot. So, if you’re not going to match that intensity, you’ve got no chance. We definitely didn’t match that intensity.”
On the game’s first goal, Josh Doan was left wide open just outside the crease between two Lightning skaters. The puck was gift-wrapped on a behind-the-net feed from Jack McBain that Halverson never saw.
Later in the first, Halverson made a suburb save on Michael Kesselring on a breakaway and kicked the puck away with his left pad. But Logan Cooley got a step on Nick Paul and put in the rebound.
After Cooley’s second goal gave Utah a 4-3 lead late in the second, the Lightning allowed straight three shots on net early in the third. The third shot found the back of the net, after Nick Schmaltz beat Victor Hedman to the puck.
“They’re a really talented team, and they’ve got a lot of speed, and I think they were just faster than us (Saturday),” Point said. “They won a lot of pucks, they made a lot of plays around us, and our structure wasn’t good enough to to kind of compete with their skill level.”
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