Overtime has been an ongoing issue this season with losses in Buffalo and at home against Toronto, in which the Bolts were chasing the puck from the beginning.
A spooky-filled Monday night at Amalie Arena came with a third straight overtime loss for the Lightning. They've lost 10 of their last 11 games that required an extra frame, which includes the recent playoff losses to Toronto.
The Lightning were outshot 43-37, including a 20-9 deficit in the first period. They looked somewhat fatigued at puck drop, a stark difference from where they left off in their two shutout wins against Carolina and San Jose.
Regardless of the slow start, Nikita Kucherov quickly began to light it up. He led the Lightning with a game-high eight shots on goal, the most shots taken in a game by any Bolts skater this season.
The Lightning began tilting the ice in their favor, coming back from a two goal deficit and clamping down on their defensive play in the second and third period. By that time, they still found themselves in a similar situation, heading into overtime.
Overtime has been an ongoing issue this season with losses in Buffalo and at home against Toronto in which the Bolts were chasing the puck from the beginning.
“You’ve got to have the puck. It can be a lot of work out there if you don’t have the puck and you’re just kind of trying to get it away from them,” said Tanner Jeannot.
“That’s the way it goes sometimes. You’ve just got to try to play it the best you can, stick with your guy and wait for your opportunity to get it. We’ve been working on it and we’re just going to continue to do that.”
History repeated itself when the Bolts lost the faceoff to begin overtime 3x3 which ended in them barely touching the puck.
“It comes down to, we haven’t won a faceoff in overtime. If you’re not going to win faceoffs and you’re going to take penalties, it’s really hard to do anything in overtime,” Lightning coach Jon Cooper said after the game.
Seattle held onto it for well over a minute but things appeared to be moving in the right direction for the Lightning when they finally gained possession. Brayden Point set up Nikita Kucherov at the side of the net, but Kucherov’s puck hit the post.
Later the Lightning took a penalty, and Seattle cashed in quickly on the power play, beating the Bolts for the first time.
“We've had a little bit of time off and you could tell,” said Jon Cooper after the game. “We didn't game it out near to the desperation we played with as that game went on in the second and third. Disappointing from that respect, but if you're going to sit here and spot them three goals and say you're going to get a point out of it, we'll take it.”
The Lightning finished their homestand earning eight of 10 possible points. The two overtime losses, specifically the loss to Toronto left players with some frustration.
“It’s not like we go out there and not try to get the puck or not try to score,” Brandon Hagel said following the OT loss.
“It’s just one of those things that’s come to haunt us and we just can’t find a way out of it right now.”
The Lightning won 30 of 50 draws last night, led by Nick Paul who went 7/10 on faceoffs. They'll look to pick things up again as they hit the road for a four-game road trip, starting on Thursday night in Columbus.