Lecavalier's 50th caps big win

The Lightning rallies twice to give it some breathing room in the Eastern Conference.

By DAMIAN CRISTODERO
Published March 31, 2007

RALEIGH, N.C. - Really, Vinny Lecavalier said, all he was trying to do was get the puck to the net.

The Lightning center said he figured Hurricanes goaltender Cam Ward would push his backhander from the top of a faceoff circle into a corner and Tampa Bay would start the pursuit.

Instead, Carolina defenseman David Tanabe accidentally tipped the puck through Ward's legs, and, just like that, Lecavalier had his 50th goal.

Said Tampa Bay coach John Tortorella: "It was probably the lousiest goal I've seen him score in his whole career."

Lecavalier's goal was an exclamation point on an outstanding 4-2 win Friday at the RBC Center.

It gave Tampa Bay a two-goal edge with 4:33 left, and Lecavalier became just the 87th player to reach the milestone. But it was just one part of an intense effort by the Lightning (42-32-4), which snapped a two-game losing streak and gained some playoff-position breathing room.

Tampa Bay's 88 points pushed it to sixth in the East, gave it a two-point cushion on the Canadiens, who have the eighth and final playoff spot, and kept Carolina two points behind Montreal.

Tampa Bay also trimmed the gap to the Southeast-leading Thrashers to three points.

"It was definitely a playoff atmosphere," said Lecavalier, who also had two assists. "Both teams played great. It was very high tempo. So for us to come out like we did and play three great periods was huge."

"Humongous," defenseman Dan Boyle said, "a major victory."

With major moments.

Defenseman Filip Kuba's goal with 9:25 left snapped a 2-2 tie forged with Marty St. Louis' 42nd goal in the first period and Vinny Prospal's 13th in the second as Tampa Bay overcame deficits of 1-0 and 2-1.

Goaltender Johan Holmqvist, in his first game as the unnamed No. 1, made 26 saves, including dazzlers in the third on Eric Staal, Josef Vasicek and Tanabe.

There was Shane O'Brien's first-period beatdown of Tanabe, who was trying to get at Lecavalier after Lecavalier leveled Frantisek Kaberle with a clean hit against the corner glass.

Tampa Bay blocked 24 shots including Boyle, Kuba and Cory Sarich with four each.

And whether it was luck or skill, Boyle probably preserved the 3-2 lead when he batted out of the air a puck that popped straight up off Holmqvist's shoulder and seemed ready to fall into the net.

Boyle reached over Holmqvist and took a desperate inside-out swing and knocked the puck away with 5:27 remaining.

"It hit me pretty hard," Holmqvist said of the shot from Trevor Letowski. "I knew it was somewhere pretty close. Then I heard a solid sound hit the puck, so I knew it was really close."

"It definitely was going in," Boyle said. "I couldn't believe what I did. It was a split-second reaction."

St. Louis called it "the play of the game."

"As a team, I thought we played hard," Tortorella said. "We won a lot of battles and almost willed ourselves to a win."

Lecavalier got the insurance goal on the last of his 11 shots, which tied a career high. Without a goal since the second period of the March 20 victory over the Devils, he needed 26 shots to get to 50.

"It is a relief," Lecavalier said. "I wasn't trying to hide it. It was in the back of my mind."

Even more so after Ward robbed him 30 seconds into the game with a stunning glove save.

That made how Lecavalier scored even more improbable.

"I couldn't get hold of the puck," he said. "I just wanted to get it to the net, but that guy deflected it, a fluky goal. It was probably my worst shot."

"I'm happy for him. I'm proud of him," Tortorella said. "He's had a hell of a year."

It was a hell of a game.

First Period-1, Carolina, Cole 28 (Stillman), 6:25. 2, Tampa Bay, St. Louis 42 (Prospal, Lecavalier), 17:34. Penalties-Staal, Car (hooking), 1:38; Tanabe, Car, major (fighting), 9:49; O'Brien, TB, major (fighting), 9:49; Kaberle, Car (hooking), 18:07; St. Louis, TB (high-sticking), 18:46.

Second Period-3, Carolina, Commodore 7 (Letowski, Wallin), 3:53. 4, Tampa Bay, Prospal 13 (Lecavalier, O'Brien), 15:59. Penalties-Tampa Bay bench (too many men), 1:00; Gleason, Car (roughing), 6:21; Sarich, TB (cross-checking), 6:21; Ladd, Car (charging), 6:21; Williams, Car (hooking), 13:56; O'Brien, TB (interference), 17:22.

Third Period-5, Tampa Bay, Kuba 14, 10:35. 6, Tampa Bay, Lecavalier 50 (Ranger), 15:27. Penalties-Staal, Car (hooking), 3:54; Commodore, Car (holding), 8:29; Prospal, TB (interference), 11:48; Tanabe, Car (cross-checking), 17:51. Shots on Goal-Tampa Bay 12-8-9-29. Carolina 11-7-10-28. Power-play opportunities-Tampa Bay 0 of 7; Carolina 0 of 4. Goalies-Tampa Bay, Holmqvist 25-14-2 (28 shots-26 saves). Carolina, Ward 29-19-6 (29-25). A-18,639 (18,730). T-2:28. Referees-Don Koharski, Mike Leggo. Linesmen-Michel Cormier, Tim Nowak.

Fast Facts:

East playoff chase

Pts Wins GL

1. Sabres* 107 50 5

2. Devils* 100 46 4

3. Thrashers* 91 40 4

4. Senators 100 46 4

5. Penguins 100 45 4

6. Lightning 88 42 4

7. Rangers 87 39 5

8. Canadiens 86 40 4

9. Maple Leafs 85 37 5

10. Hurricanes 84 38 4

11. Islanders 84 36 5

Lightning vs. Capitals

7:30 tonight, St. Pete Times Forum, Tampa TV/radio: Sun Sports; 620-AM

. tonight

Lightning vs. Capitals

When/where: 7:30; St. Pete Times Forum, Tampa

TV/radio: Sun Sports; 620-AM

What to watch for: Both are playing the second of back-to-back games. The Lightning is 3-5 in such games, the Capitals 7-7-3. ... Washington lost its fifth straight at Florida and is on a 3-13-6 streak. Alex Ovechkin leads it with 43 goals, 46 assists and 89 points. He also is a team-worst minus-17. Left wing Alexander Semin has nine goals and 13 points this season in seven games against Tampa Bay. ... Lightning center Vinny Lecavalier has eight goals and 13 points against Washington this season. ... The last of eight games, Tampa Bay leads the season series 5-2 and is 9-4 against Washington at home since 2002-03.

Lightning 4

Hurricanes 2

[Last modified March 31, 2007, 07:10:31]