Sergachev's Tampa Homecoming Spoiled by Utah HC's Worst Loss in Franchise History

When Mikhail Sergachev was welcomed back by the Tampa crowd, where he won back-to-back Stanley Cups with the Lightning, it gave the city a long-awaited chance to show its appreciation for him.

In fact, since being dealt to Utah in an offseason trade, Sergachev had yet to play in Tampa, going 71 games before finally returning back to the city where he spent seven seasons playing. Only recently had he even gotten to face his former teammates in a 6-4 Utah win last week. 

Sergachev’s homecoming was highly anticipated by everyone, highlighted by a pre-game tribute from Tampa in his honor.

"People here are very nice," said Sergachev. "I spent a lot of time here and I enjoy[ed] my time... we had some good times and people remember that. I appreciate that." 

While it took a while, Sergachev finally got to hear the cheers of a deeply appreciative crowd, thanking him for all he had done for the team.

But while the game started with good feelings, things were going to get rough fast for Utah. In fact, Utah was about to blown out in historic fashion.

Despite the heartwarming welcome, which included tribute videos and a Sergachev faceoff to start the game, the good feelings didn’t last long. Utah went on to suffer an 8-0 loss, its worst in franchise history and its first shutout defeat since a 1-0 loss to Boston on Nov. 21.

Being down 7-0 had already secured Utah’s worst loss of the season, surpassing its previous 7-1 road defeat to Edmonton. However, a late goal from Tampa’s Oliver Bjorkstrand pushed the final score to 8-0, marking both the most goals Utah had ever gave up in a game and the largest losing margin in franchise history.

"It was terrible," said Sergachev. "From the start to the finish. We didn't play nearly the game we wanted to play, and it showed."

The game was never close, as Tampa jumped out to a two-goal lead just 4:20 into the game, putting Utah in an early hole.

The first goal came from Tampa's Jake Guentzel, which also gave Ryan McDonagh an early assist in his 1,000th career game. Shortly after that, a goal from Victor Hedman extended the Lightning's lead to 2-0, giving them early control over Utah. 

"It's disappointing...," said head coach André Tourigny. "Everybody's in the same boat, we're all together. Coaches, player[s], we all have to look ourselves in the mirror. That's unacceptable. The good thing is we're playing tomorrow. So we just have to look ourselves in the mirror and make sure we have a chance to redeem ourselves."

Though a two-goal deficit after one period is never ideal, Utah still had hope for a comeback, especially considering it had beaten this team just a week ago.

But when the second period began, things only got worse for Utah, as it allowed four Tampa goals throughout the period—including one from Oliver Bjorkstrand with just 23 seconds left on the clock—to extend the Lightning’s lead to 6-0.

By that point, Utah had already subbed in backup goalie Jaxson Stauber, resting starting goalie Karel Vejmelka after forward Nikita Kucherov scored Tampa's fourth goal of the day.

While Utah couldn't stop Tampa's high-powered offense, it was also held scoreless and struggled to generate high-danger chances or shots near the net. Even though Utah ended the game with more shots on goal than Tampa, it hardly found any way to threaten the Lightning's defense.

Not only was the loss tough, but it came on a night when St. Louis rallied from a 2-0 deficit to win 3-2 over Nashville. With the Blues' victory, Utah is now 10 points out of the wild-card spot and will likely need to play perfectly in its final 10 games if it wants a chance at the postseason.

While Utah will need St. Louis to start losing big and for its eight-game win streak to be the last of its wins, Utah must first focus on its quick turnaround with a Friday, March 28 game against the Florida Panthers.

With a playoff spot still on the line and a need to redeem itself, Utah will already have plenty of motivation to play hard. Additionally, Utah will also be seeking revenge against the Panthers for their 4-1 win over Utah at the Delta Center earlier in the season.