Brayden Point met with the media after the 5-3 win on Opening Night.
Brayden Point met with the media after the 5-3 win on Opening Night.
"It's been a long offseason, so to play a meaningful game was really exciting and for the most part, I think we did pretty well. I think the second got away from us a bit but happy with how we responded."
The Bolts outshot Nashville 13-2 in the first period. Nikita Kucherov scored the first goal of the season and snagged the lead for the Lightning with a one-timer fed over by Victor Hedman.
Nashville pushed back and dominated the second period, outshooting Tampa 13-5.
When the third period began, both teams were tied 1-1, but almost immediately, O’Reilly forced a turnover inside the Lightning blue line. Nashville went up 2-1 but Nick Paul led the way, scoring a pair of power play goals and adding an assist.
“When you’re with good players, you just try to get them the puck," said Paul. "And then my job is just stay in there, take the goalie away and then the trash in front, put it in. Just got to keep it going and build confidence.”
The Bolts start the season with a 5-3 win.