Good Gourde, Lightning find another way to win despite depleted lineup

by Erik Erlendsson | @Erik_Erlendsson | Like us on Facebook
March 11, 2017

TAMPA, Fla. – Good Gourde, the kids are all right.

A depleted lineup for the Lightning – which is absent six centers due to injury or trade – continues to plug holes which open. And every time a hole opens, it’s generally filled by another young and fresh face to the locker room.

Yanni Gourde became the latest to make a big impact, notching his first career NHL goal while shorthanded at a key moment in the game with an extra-level effort to help lift Tampa Bay to a 3-2 victory against Florida on Saturday at Amalie Arena.

Ondrej Palat scored the winner with 2:23 left in regulation to cap off a rally from down to goals and improve the Lightning to 10-2-3 in the past 15 games and move to within three points of Toronto for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. Tampa Bay is also five points behind Boston for the third spot in the Atlantic Division.

Andrei Vasilevskiy stopped 32 shots, including all 15 in the third period, to improve to 5-0-1 in his six starts since the trade of Ben Bishop on Feb. 26. Vasilevskiy has allowed two or fewer goals in five of those six games.

But it’s been efforts like the one from Gourde, playing just his seventh career NHL game, that has provided a lift for the Lightning.

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After Tampa Bay traded Brian Boyle, Valtteri Filppula and Bishop ahead of the trade deadline, the Lightning became the third youngest team in the league in terms of average age on the active roster. That average age has dropped slightly since then after the loss due to injury of Tyler Johnson, Vladislav Namestnikov and Cedric Paquette on Thursday’s game.

Saturday’s lineup featured five rookies, including three with 10-or-fewer games of NHL experience entering the game. Six players started the season with Syracuse

Yet, Tampa Bay continues to find ways to win games at a desperate time of the season.

”Sometimes a little youthful exuberance injected in there and guys don’t really care,’’ head coach Jon Cooper said. “They just want to go and try their hardest and try and win. Everybody knows where we are right now and it is desperation mode. The guys are playing with it.”

That was the epitome of how Gourde scored his first career goal.

After Tampa Bay fell behind 2-0 in the first period on goals by Jaromir Jagr and Mark Pysyk two minutes, 41 seconds apart – the second coming with 47 seconds left in the first period – Nikita Kucherov pulled the Lightning to within one with a power play goal, his career-high 31st of the season, at 3:43 of the second period.

Then halfway through the second period, with Tampa Bay on the penalty kill, Gourde forced a turnover at the Lightning blue line, stripping Vincent Trocheck of the puck to set up a breakaway chance. But Trocheck was able to recover just enough to harass Gourde. Despite having Trocheck draped on his back – a penalty call was coming – Gourde was able to fend off the Florida forward and get a shot off that beat James Reimer to tie the game at 10:11.

” It’s just a surreal moment, something you dream of all your childhood and just a surreal moment, it was unbelievable,’’ Gourde said. “I was just worried about Trocheck taking the puck away from me, that was it and when I had the inside position, I just tried to shoot it right away.’’

Gourde circled the net without showing much emotion at first before letting out a bit of a burst as he approached the glass after the goal went in the net.

”I finally realized that it was my first goal, so it was pretty nice, so I’ll take that,’’ Gourde said.

It was uplifting on the bench to watch it unfold.

”It’s awesome,’’ center Jonathan Drouin said. “Yanni’s still older than me. You could see it in his eyes, how proud. It was a lot of work done, from him, his parents, everyone. I’m sure they’re all proud of him. It’s definitely a huge moment to score your first NHL goal.’’

The Lightning got a big boost out of the play.

”For him to take the puck from a really good player on their team and be able to fight him off and score that goal, it was uplifting for all of us,’’ Cooper said. “The way he capped off a period in which we really gutted one out. Big goal and a big moment for him.’’

In a big game for the Lightning, which not only rallied from down two goals, had to kill off a 56-second 5-on-3 Florida power play 17 seconds after Gourde’s tying goal.

”Killing off a 5-on-3, I know being on the other side when you don’t score 5-on-3, it’s disappointing,’’ forward Jonathan Drouin said. “You come back to the bench, you’re frustrated and it carries on your game for a good two, three shifts. So, to kill that, we definitely grabbed momentum from that as a team.’’

While Vasilevskiy held the fort in net during the third, it allowed Tampa Bay to get the break it was looking for when Andrej Sustr sent a puck toward the net that Palat got a piece of to deflect it past Reimer to pick up the regulation victory.

”I’m just playing hard, playing my game and just waiting for one to go in and today I get that lucky bounce on a tip so I’m happy,’’ Palat said “I think we deserved points, even the first period, I think we played well even being behind after the first period by two goals, we stuck with it and played a great 60-minute game again.’’

Thanks to an extra jolt provided by another new kid on the block.

Postgame notes: According to Elias Sports Bureau, Yanni Gourde became the fourth player in franchise history to record their first career NHL goal as a shorthanded goal, joining Eric Perrin (Nov. 2, 2006), Sami Helenius (Jan. 30, 1999) and Aaron Gavey (Oct. 21, 1995). … C Vladislav Namestnikov skated before Saturday’s morning skate along with Steven Stamkos who stayed on the ice for the optional skate. … Tampa Bay called up C Matthew Peca from Syracuse in the morning. He played 10:39 of ice time with three shot attempts while going 0-for-7 on faceoffs. Peca, who was called up on an emergency basis which means he has to be returned if Tampa Bay gets a player back from injury, was seen talking to general manager Steve Yzerman along with the team’s travel coordinator after the game, indicating he is likely heading back. That would also indicate that Namestnikov is likely ready to return to the lineup on Monday at New York. … C Greg McKegg faced his former team, logging 7:38 of ice time, winning 5-of-8 faceoffs..

My three stars:
1.Lightning LW Ondrej Palat – Game winning goal, seven shots, 11 shot attempts

2.Lightning G Andrei Vasilevskiy – Stopped 32 shots, including all 15 in the third period

3.Lightning RW Yanni Gourde – First career goal, four takeaways, 17:09 of ice time

Postgame reaction from Yanni Gourde, Jonathan Drouin and Ondrej Palat

Jon Cooper postgame reaction

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