Lightning/NHL

At last, Lightning is clicking

Tampa Bay plays solid in all facets, but Craig's knee injury tempers the cheer.

By DAMIAN CRISTODERO
Published October 20, 2006

TAMPA - The Lightning locker room was quiet before Thursday night's game with the Flyers.

As center Brad Richards described it, "There were no motivational speeches, no movies, no nothing.

Just a sense, he said, "that we knew it was a big game. We needed a win."

And they got it.

Facing questions about work ethic and head scratches as to why its top players have not contributed more offensively, Tampa Bay earned a solid 4-1 victory over the struggling Flyers at the St. Pete Times Forum with contributions from all sectors.

Start with Ryan Craig's team-high fifth goal and Ruslan Fedotenko's third in the second period that built a 2-0 lead. Add Vinny Prospal's first goal and Nikita Alexeev's insurance tally in the third.

Mix in Marc Denis' 34 saves, two assists each by Vinny Lecavalier and Brad Richards, and a scrappy effort by defenseman Nolan Pratt, who played a season-high 14:55 and threw rugged checks.

It didn't matter it happened against the Flyers, statistically the league's worst team, which has lost four straight and a staggering nine straight to Tampa Bay.

"For a few minutes," coach John Tortorella said, "we can feel good about ourselves."

Not completely, because Craig could be out with a right knee injury that forced him from the game midway in the second period.

But that concern will be addressed today when Craig is evaluated.

Of more immediacy was how Lightning players handled the pressure and perhaps grew up a little bit.

After Monday's 5-1 loss to the Hurricanes, the talk was of a team that did not work hard enough and of top players who are paid much but were contributing little.

Then there was Tortorella, who put the onus squarely on the players to self-motivate from the locker room.

"There was a sense of urgency," Denis said, "a sense of setting the record straight and of trying to find our identity."

Craig got that ball rolling 7:38 into the second period. The left wing, in front of the net, whacked a floating puck as if it were a baseball past goaltender Antero Niittymaki after Flyers defenseman R.J. Umberger blocked Richards' pass.

The goal gave Tampa Bay a 1-0 lead and relieved some of the tension that Richards said had made the team hesitant.

"We got back to playing our game," Craig said.

A game of skating, forechecking and bit of hitting.

Defenseman Doug Janik even took on tough guy Ben Eager, caught a brutal uppercut and got six stitches in his chin. Still, it is the kind of pushback Tampa Bay needs.

"The most important thing they can learn from this game is being accountable as a player and accountable to your teammates," Tortorella said. "It has to start in the locker room, and I sensed that.

"They were pushing one another. Now we have to grab hold of ourselves and be even more accountable in some things we need to do."

As Richards said of Saturday's game with the Capitals, "We have to back it up. It's no good if we go out and lay an egg."

Damian Cristodero can be reached at cristodero@sptimes.com or 727 893-8622. View his blog at lightning.tampabay.com.

Philadelphia 0 0 1 - 1

Tampa Bay 0 2 2 - 4

First Period-None. Penalties-Gauthier, Phi (interference), 6:53; Prospal, TB (tripping), 8:40; Richards, Phi (hooking), 17:04.

Second Period-1, Tampa Bay, Craig 5 (Richards, St. Louis), 7:38. 2, Tampa Bay, Fedotenko 3 (Lecavalier, Prospal), 13:48. Penalties-Craig, TB (tripping), 5:05; Janik TB (hooking), 16:06.

Third Period-3, Tampa Bay, Prospal 1 (Lecavalier), 7:48. 4, Philadelphia, Kapanen 1 (Sanderson), 15:48 (sh). 5, Tampa Bay, Alexeev 2 (Sarich, Richards), 17:43. Penalties-Janik, TB, major (fighting), 8:31; Eager, Phi minor-major-misconduct (instigator, fighting), 8:31; Prospal, TB (hooking), 13:07; Hatcher, Phi (hooking), 15:41. Shots on Goal-Philadelphia 13-14-8-35. Tampa Bay 11-16-9-36. Power-play opportunities-Philadelphia 0 of 4; Tampa Bay 0 of 4. Goalies-Philadelphia, Niittymaki 1-3-1 (36 shots-32 saves). Tampa Bay, Denis 3-3-0 (35-34). A-19,920 (19,758). T-2:25. Referees-Bill McCreary, Tim Peel. Linesmen-Steve Barton, Brian Murphy.

[Last modified October 20, 2006, 01:57:01]