Andrei Vasilevskiy makes 22 Saves In Season Debut, Lightning Win It 8-2

The Tampa Bay Lightning scored 8 times on just 14 shots last night to beat the Carolina Hurricanes 8-2.

The Tampa Bay Lightning scored 8 times on just 14 shots last night to beat the Carolina Hurricanes 8-2. Andrei Vasilevskiy got his first start of the season, eight weeks after undergoing surgery to repair two herniated discs. He appeared to have he picked up where he left off.

The Canes held the Lightning to just one shot on goal during the first period, and that shot came from the neutral zone. Regardless of that, the Bolts defended well and protected the net. Vasilevskiy wasn’t left to face as many scoring chances because they played extremely well in front of him.

"Guys played unbelievably in front of me," Vasilevskiy said. "Lots of blocked shots, obviously the goal support is remarkable. It couldn't be more perfect for a first game."

Steven Stamkos kicked off the scoring for the Bolts, securing one from his “office” on the power play. The captain moved within one of becoming the seventh player in NHL history to record 200 power-play goals with a single franchise.

Brayden Point and Nikita Kucherov quickly began to tilt the ice in their favor. Point secured the third hat trick of his career, putting him at 29 points on the season.

Nikita Kucherov recorded six points, making him the first Lightning forward to do so. He’s currently leading the league with 35 points.

It wasn’t just the core scoring last night though, Luke Glendening and Brandon Hagel also hit the back of the net.

"I liked the fact that we held them to 12 even-strength shots. That’s what we did," Lightning coach Jon Cooper said following the win.

"We talked about it this morning and we didn’t really give them anything. When you’re going to do that, eventually we were going to get our looks. Holding them to 12 even-strength shots and our special teams were outstanding. That was the game.”

The Lightning’s 57.1 shooting percentage in the game is the highest-recorded percentage since the NHL began tracking that statistic in 1955.

The Bolts will travel to Colorado for “Dad’s Weekend” to take on the Avalanche Monday night.