Lightning’s Anthony Cirelli picks up scoring load in win over Wild - Tampa Bay Times

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TAMPA — The Lightning were looking forward to getting back on the ice Sunday so they could exorcise the bad vibes from the clunker they played the day before, allowing four third-period goals to blow a two-goal lead in a loss to New Jersey.

But for the second straight day, the Lightning saw a two-goal lead slip away in the third period, this time within the final four minutes of regulation.

Still, the Lightning came up victorious, winning 5-4 in a shootout, with Steven Stamkos scoring and backup goaltender Brian Elliott stopping all three of the Wild’s attempts.

The Lightning have accumulated points in 10 of their last 11 games.

With Sunday’s news that Brayden Point will be out indefinitely with an upper-body injury — Nikita Kucherov is also sidelined until at least late December — the Lightning are without two of their top scorers for the foreseeable future.

The Wild cut the lead to one on Kevin Fiala’s 6-on-5 goal with 2:48 remaining. Fiala’s shot from the right point deflected off Pierre-Edouard Bellemare’s stick, changed trajectory and skipped past Eillott. Moments after Ondrej Palat hit the post shooting on an empty net, Joel Eriksson Ek scored the tying goal with 38.7 seconds left.

With Point out, Anthony Cirelli returned to his second-line center post and scored two goals. He isn’t the dynamic scorer that Point or Kucherov are, but he has a nose for the net and is dogged near it, as his go-ahead goal showed.

He also did it wearing a full face shield for the second straight game to protect the broken nose he suffered from a puck to the face Monday against the Islanders.

Lightning center Anthony Cirelli (71) celebrates after his first-period goal. [ LUIS SANTANA | Times ]

After the Wild rallied from two goals down to tie the game, Cirelli’s lunging second effort in the paint gave the Lightning the lead.

Alex Killorn circled behind the back of the net and passed to defenseman Cal Foote in front. The puck landed on Cirelli’s stick by the left post, and he made a back-handed shot.

Though his shot went into goalie Kaapo Kahkonen’s pad, Cirelli got his own rebound and flicked the puck into the net while diving across the crease.

The Lightning took a quick 2-0 lead in the first 12 minutes.

Tampa Bay was awarded its first power play just 12 seconds into the game and took advantage. Cirell’s goal at 1:06 gave the Lightning five straight games with power-play goals. Cirelli, positioned in the bumper spot in front of the net sometimes occupied by Point on the power play, deflected Victor Hedman’s shot past Kahkonen.

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Pat Maroon then scored his third goal in five games on a nifty backhanded shot that beat Kahkonen top shelf. The officials first ruled Maroon’s score no goal but changed the call after video review.

Marcus Foligno’s power-play goal with 5:20 left in the first cut the Lightning lead to one, and the Wild tied it on Brandon Duhaime’s score from the slot 3:56 into the second.

Elliott, making his third start of the season and first at home, stopped 28 of 32 shots during regulation and overtime.

Alex Barre-Boulet, who returned from AHL Syracuse and was inserted into the first line in Point’s absence, made a game-saving play in the third. Wild forward Jordan Greenway beat Elliott five hole, but Barre-Boulet swept the puck away before it trickled to the goal line.

Barre-Boulet gave Tampa Bay a 4-2 lead midway through the third, flicking Steven Stamkos’ deflected shot from the point into the net with 10:41 left in regulation.

Lightning defenseman Zach Bogosian dropped his gloves with Wild forward Ryan Hartman late in the first period, challenging Hartman after he exited the box for a tripping penalty on Ross Colton. Bogosian threw two wild right hands before landing on a third that knocked Hartman’s helmet off and brought the hometown crowd to its feet.

• • •

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