TAMPA, Fla. — In a thrilling matchup on Tuesday night, the Tampa Bay Lightning secured a 4-3 victory against the Ottawa Senators, effectively ending Ottawa’s impressive five-game winning streak. Brandon Hagel made a significant impact, scoring just under two minutes into the third period, which propelled the Lightning to take the lead for the remainder of the game.
Alongside Hagel’s goal, Tampa Bay benefited from contributions by Luke Glendening, Nikita Kucherov, and Ryan McDonagh, while goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy came up big with 25 saves. For the Senators, Michael Amadio, Claude Giroux, and Drake Batherson managed to find the net, but Linus Ullmark, making his first start in net since December 22, recorded 34 saves.
Ottawa initially took the lead with a power-play goal from Amadio in the first period. However, the Lightning quickly responded in the second when Glendening tipped in a shot from Emil Lilleberg just 1:44 in. Kucherov then scored on the power play at the 7:38 mark, only to see Giroux equalize for Ottawa a little over a minute later.
The turning point came with Hagel’s goal early in the third period, which put the Lightning ahead 3-2 just 1:56 after the puck dropped for the final frame.
In terms of vital moments, the Senators faced an unfortunate setback when center Shane Pinto exited the game in the first period due to a lower-body injury and was unable to return. Meanwhile, defenseman Thomas Chabot recorded two assists, moving past Chris Phillips to hold the third spot in franchise history for assists by a defenseman, trailing Erik Karlsson and Wade Redden.
For the Lightning, center Nick Paul also left the game in the first due to a yet unspecified injury. Kucherov achieved a significant personal milestone, reaching the 25-goal threshold for his tenth consecutive season—excluding the season he missed due to injury in 2020-21.
A pivotal moment occurred late in the second period when Vasilevskiy successfully stopped Ridley Greig’s attempt with just 44 seconds remaining, followed by Batherson missing a breakaway opportunity just moments later.
It’s noteworthy that the Senators have only lost four times in their last 26 games when scoring first, underscoring the rarity of their defeat in such situations.
Looking ahead, the Lightning and Senators are scheduled to face off again on Thursday evening in Tampa.
