Greg M. Cooper-USA TODAY Sports
It’s like a broken record for the Tampa Bay Lightning, but bad bounces contributed to a 2-0 loss against the playoff bound Boston Bruins.
Anders Lindback did everything he could, saving 22 of 24 shots. That wasn’t enough, however, as Tuukka Rask had 30 stops to shut out one of the NHL‘s most explosive offenses. This marked Tampa Bay’s ninth defeat in 11 games, something that probably has fans and players alike asking “When will it end?”
Tonight leaves Lightning fans asking whether god hates this team because, quite frankly, they outshot, outchanced and outplayed Boston. It wasn’t worth anything though, simply because they failed to solve the enigma that is Bruins goaltending. Whether it be Tim Thomas, Rask or even the newbie Anton Khudobin in net, Tampa Bay can’t beat this team for the life of them.
Head Coach Jon Cooper touched on the Lightning’s overall play, saying he “felt bad for the guys because they battled hard for 60 minutes but couldn’t convert any chances.”
There were a couple fights, beginning with former Bruin Benoit Pouliot bloodying Andrew Ference‘s nose. That was supposed to give the Lightning some jump, which it did to a degree, but not arriving in Boston until 3 a.m. Thursday morning proved to be killer. Keith Aulie then engaged Milan Lucic in an epic bout that left fans screaming “MAULIE!” at their televisions or computers.
Now, the Lightning hope to get back on track when they host the Florida Panthers in both team’s last game Saturday night at 7 p.m. Since this is goodbye, maybe Tampa Bay could leave fans with one last fond memory in an otherwise bittersweet 20th anniversary season.
Lauren Burg is a Tampa Bay Lightning and NHL writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow her on Twitter, like her on Facebook and join her Google network.
