National Hockey League
BOXSCORE | RECAP
Edmonton 5, Tampa Bay 3
When: 8:00 PM ET, Sunday, January 5, 2014
Where: Rexall Place, Edmonton, Alberta
Referees: Kyle Rehman, Brad Watson
Linesmen: Mike Cvik, Vaughan Rody
Attendance: 16839

Oilers 5, Lightning 3: Jordan Eberle returned from a knee injury to record two goals while Boyd Gordon and Taylor Hall scored 2:10 apart midway through the third period as Edmonton ended Tampa Bay’s five-game road winning streak.

Gordon swept in a rebound 8:20 into the third session for a 4-3 lead and Hall, who also had an assist, redirected captain Andrew Ference's shot into the net for a two-goal advantage. Luke Gazdic also scored and Ilya Bryzgalov turned aside 24 shots for his third victory as Edmonton snapped its four-game winless streak.

Anders Lindback made 21 saves for the Lightning after coming on 4:18 into the game for starter Ben Bishop, who appeared to injure his right hand and exited after Eberle's first goal. Bishop will be re-evaluated on Monday. Defenseman Victor Hedman, Nikita Kucherov and Valtteri Filppula tallied while blue-liner Matt Carle recorded two assists for Tampa Bay.

Kucherov’s one-timer from the right faceoff circle during a power play 2:43 into the contest gave the Lightning a lead, but Eberle tied it on a rebound shot from in front 1:35 later. Eberle, who missed one game with his knee injury, fired a shot that went off a defender's stick and over Lindback during a man advantage less than two minutes later and Gazdic’s deflection with 4:18 left in the first made it 3-1.

Hedman whipped a shot over Bryzgalov’s left shoulder from the top of the right circle 8:47 into the middle session. Filppula tied it with 5:35 remaining in the second, beating Bryzgalov through a screen with a wrist shot from the right circle.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Oilers C Sam Gagner and LW Ryan Smyth each notched a pair of assists. ... Hall has collected 13 points in his last nine games. …Tampa Bay rookie LW Ondrej Palat assisted on Hedman’s goal to extend his career-high point streak to six games and RW Kucherov scored for the third straight contest. … Gazdic’s goal was his first since the season opener on Oct. 1 and the second of his career.
Top Game Performances
 
Tampa Bay   Edmonton
Matt Carle 2 Points Jordan Eberle 2
Valtteri Filppula 1 Goals Jordan Eberle 2
Matt Carle 2 Assists Sam Gagner 2
Nikita Kucherov 1 Power Play Goals Jordan Eberle 1
N/A Short Handed Goals N/A
Anders Lindback .840 Save Percentage Ilya Bryzgalov .889
Anders Lindback 21 Saves Ilya Bryzgalov 24
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Shots Goals Power Play Penalty Kill Penalty Mins Face Offs Won
Tampa Bay 27 3 1-1 2-3 8 24
Edmonton 26 5 1-3 0-1 4 27
Upcoming Games
  • Edmonton will play their next game at home against St. Louis. The Oilers have a W/L % of .308 after a win and .312 after a loss.
  • Tampa Bay will play their next game on the road against Winnipeg. The Lightning have a W/L % of .600 after a win and .588 after a loss.