The Lightning came home from the road in a strong spot, and they did it the hard way.
Tampa Bay went 3-1 on a four-game trip that featured a pair of back-to-backs, collected six of a possible eight points and returned to first place in the Atlantic Division. They nearly made it a clean sweep, too, but even without that last step, head coach Jon Cooper liked what his team banked.
"We've had our last two back-to-backs, and we've won three of them. We were a second away from sneaking a point out of another one," Cooper explained.
"So, if we can do that, that's… that'll obviously really help us. Especially in a division where it seems like everybody wins every night."
The trip also gave the Lightning a look at one of their most anticipated young players. Sam O'Reilly made his NHL debut in Buffalo and got the solo "rookie skate" during pregame warm-ups. The moment hit him, even if only for a second.
"Kind of went blank there, for a second," O'Reilly said Wednesday night. "It was a super-cool moment and something I won't forget."
The 20-year-old also picked up his first career assist, doing it in front of about 40 friends and family. For a player described as mild-mannered, he looked plenty composed through it all.
"Pretty crazy. Just taking it all in today.
Trying to be where my feet are," he added. "Super-thankful for all the boys being super-welcoming."
Cooper had nothing but praise for the rookie after the debut.
"He did everything, and it was great. You only get one chance to play in your first game.
He gets a point in it… Awesome for him. He did a great job."
The road trip also delivered a milestone for John Carlson, who reached 800 career points at age 36. Carlson said those kinds of numbers will mean even more later on.
"You never take anything for granted. I think those accolades and all that will be cooler one day in my life, but certainly at the same time it's a hard league," Carlson said. "So you never take that for granted."
Now the challenge shifts back home, where the margin in the Atlantic remains razor thin. Brandon Hagel said the message is simple: keep stacking points.
"We know what our division's like. It's not going to get any easier," Hagel said matter-of-factly.
"So, the more points we can get, the better. It's pretty crazy how it's going.
I feel like everyone wins every night. We just have to continue to do our job."
The Lightning host Detroit on Saturday night. Puck drop is set for 7 p.m.
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For a Tampa Bay organization that wants its affiliate building good habits, the issue is less about effort than execution when games tighten up late. Syracuse has been in enough one-goal battles already to know the pattern, and this one followed the same script until Vinni Lettieri ended it in overtime for Toronto, leaving the Crunch at 5-6-3-0 and still searching for a way to turn close games into wins. [Read more 🡒]