On March 6, the Tampa Bay Lightning acquired Yanni Gourde and Oliver Bjorkstrand from the Seattle Kraken in a three-team trade that also involved the Detroit Red Wings.
Lightning fans already knew Gourde very well before this trade, as he spent his seven seasons in Tampa Bay and was a fan favorite. Bjorkstrand, on the other hand, is an entirely new player for the Lightning, and he is making a great first impression.
During the Lightning's March 6 matchup against the Buffalo Sabres, Bjorkstrand made an immediate impact. At the 1:40 mark of the third period, he scored the game-winning goal for Tampa Bay. He certainly earned it, too, as he secured the puck by crashing the net before firing it past Sabres goalie Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen.
The Lightning brought in Bjorkstrand to provide the Atlantic Division club with more offense. He showed that he can do just that in his Lightning debut, and it will be fascinating to see how he builds off it from here.
In 62 games this season split between the Kraken and Lightning, Bjorkstrand has 17 goals and 38 points. With this, he is on pace to hit the 20-goal mark for the sixth time in seven seasons.
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