Back in January, the Tampa Bay Lightning was one of the top teams in the NHL. However, February was a month to forget as the team suffered an extended losing streak and never really established a strong presence. The team will look to improve in March when it takes on the hot Pittsburgh Penguins.
Tampa got March off to a tough start when it lost 3-2 to the streaking Boston Bruins. Tampa Bay blew a 2-0 first period lead but held a 2-2 tie until the waning moments when Brad Marchand power play decided the match in Boston's favor.
"We played 58 minutes of hard, intelligent, paying-the-price work against a top team in the conference," Lightning coach Guy Boucher said after the defeat. "We wasted it with a gamble at the end."
"It was 58 minutes of smart, hard work of paying the price," Boucher reiterated, "and that's why I'm so disappointed we wasted it."
The Penguins are coming off an exciting 7-6 win against the Montreal Canadiens. The team blew a 4-2 lead in the second and a 6-5 advantage in the third, but still managed to win in overtime.
"It's not a game you like to play," said Penguins defenseman Kris Letang. "Sometimes these things happen, and if you don't play well defensively you have to bring something else, some energy."
The two teams met on Feb. 24 when Sidney Crosby and Steven Stamkos each recorded three point nights. Pittsburgh won 5-3.
Prediction: Pittsburgh wins 5-3.
TV: TSN2, RDS2, NBCSN, ROOT
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