TAMPA, Fla. — In an exciting night at the Amalie Arena, Nick Paul clinched the game for the Tampa Bay Lightning with a goal just 3:22 into overtime, leading the Lightning to a narrow 3-2 victory against the Nashville Predators. The match marked a significant moment as it was the highly anticipated return of former Lightning captain Steven Stamkos.

The Lightning began strongly, with Brayden Point contributing a goal and an assist, while Mitchell Chaffee also found the net, giving Tampa Bay a 2-0 advantage early in the first period. Goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy was vital to their success, making a total of 35 saves throughout the game.

In a moving moment, Stamkos, who spent the first 16 seasons of his NHL career with Tampa Bay before signing with Nashville in July, received a heartfelt standing ovation from the crowd. During the second period, he notched his first point for the Predators by assisting Ryan O’Reilly’s power-play goal. He later helped Gustav Nyquist equalize the game with another assist in the closing moments of the second period.

Despite a strong effort from Nashville in overtime, led by goalie Juuse Saros, it was Paul who ultimately sealed the victory with a decisive goal, allowing Tampa Bay to escape with the win. Saros managed to stop 24 shots in what was a hard-fought game.

Takeaway highlights from the match include Nashville’s recurring challenge of conceding the initial two goals for the third consecutive game, although they had triumphed in the prior two matches. Conversely, Tampa Bay, which boasted the NHL’s best power play performance last season, struggled once again, going 0 for 3 in power-play opportunities and falling to just 5 for 31 (16.1 percent) overall this season.

A pivotal moment occurred when Tampa Bay thought they had increased their lead to 3-0 early in the second period with a goal from Nikita Kucherov. However, the goal was disallowed due to an offside call, changing the momentum and enabling Nashville to rally and tie the game.

An important statistic to note is that the Predators successfully killed off all three Lightning power plays and have now allowed only two goals on 29 power-play opportunities against them this season—demonstrating their strong defensive prowess.

Looking ahead, the Predators will be back on home ice to face the Edmonton Oilers on Thursday night, while the Lightning are set to embark on a four-game road trip starting with a visit to the Colorado Avalanche on Wednesday.