National Hockey League
Tampa Bay 6, Detroit 2
When: 7:30 PM ET, Tuesday, March 22, 2016
Where: Amalie Arena, Tampa, Florida
Referees: Francis Charron, Justin St. Pierre
Linesmen: Brad Kovachik, Pierre Racicot
Attendance: 19092

TAMPA, Fla. -- Erik Condra had scored one goal in the Lightning's previous 65 games, but the right winger was an unexpected spark Tuesday night, scoring the first and last goals as Tampa Bay pulled away to a 6-2 win over the Detroit Red Wings, moving into a tie for first place in the Atlantic Division.

"He had two tonight, but I thought he could have had five," Lightning coach Jon Cooper said of Condra's breakout night. "He was all over the place and it was great to see. If we're going to go anywhere, you need depth, and he's helped with that."

Tampa Bay (42-26-5) posted its highest goal total in more than a month, collecting a goal in the first two minutes of each period.

Detroit (36-26-11) is fighting for its postseason life, as the Philadelphia Flyers tied them for the Eastern Conference's second wild-card position by earning a point in an overtime loss Tuesday.

The Lightning jumped out to an early 3-0 lead, saw Detroit get back within a goal, and the game pivoted on a pair of Red Wings' penalties in a span of 12 seconds late in the second, setting up a 5-on-3 power play that Tampa Bay converted for a 4-2 lead that wouldn't be challenged.

"Two 5-on-3s back-to-back doesn't help with that," said Detroit's Henrik Zetterberg. "I thought we were in the game when we scored those two goals and we were humming, then we got four penalties in a row."

Condra, who hadn't scored a point in his last 17 games, had a beautiful goal to the top right corner to open the scoring, then knocked a rebound out of mid-air for the last goal, his fifth of the season.

"I think the whole team played a good game -- being from around Detroit, it's always fun to get a couple against your hometown team," said Condra, who had about 35 friends and family in the stands.

Tampa Bay goalie Ben Bishop picked up his 31st win of the year but needed only 23 saves to do so.

The Lightning hadn't scored more than four goals in a span of 16 games, going back to a 6-5 shootout win over Winnipeg on Feb. 18.

Steven Stamkos, Ondrej Palat and Nikita Kucherov collected a goal and an assist apiece for Tampa Bay. Johnson, Brian Boyle and Victor Hedman each finished with two assists for the Lightning.

Ahead by two goals entering the third period, the Lightning added to their lead 63 seconds into the period as Palat scored his 14th goal. Palat converted a rebound off a miss from Tyler Johnson.

The Lightning led 4-2 after two periods, converting a 5-on-3 power play late in the second period after the Red Wings were called for two minor penalties in a span of 12 seconds. Mike Green's tripping penalty was quickly followed by a cross-checking call on Justin Abdelkader, and the Lightning made the most of the two-man advantage, scoring with 2:18 left in the period. Tyler Johnson fired a crossing pass across the goal that Kucherov fired past Petr Mrazek, who had come in for Detroit after starter Jimmy Howard gave up three goals of 16 shots in the first 21 minutes.

"It's tough playing from behind in this league, digging yourself out of holes," Howard said. "They're a good team. You've got to give them credit. They were flying from the start, and if you give them opportunities, they're going to bury them."

Tampa Bay had jumped out early to a 3-0 lead.

The Lightning got a goal from Condra on an assist from Palat just 1:47 into the game. Center Vladislav Namestnikov made it 2-0 when he poked a rebound through Howard's legs with 10:05 left in the first. The Lightning made it 3-0 just 33 seconds into the second period when Stamkos got his 34th goal of the season, firing a shot off that caromed off the skate of Red Wings defenseman Jonathan Ericsson and past Howard.

Detroit pulled within one goal in the second, first getting a power-play goal from Abdelkader after a roughing penalty on Tampa Bay's Alex Killorn. Abdelkader's 18th goal came on a rebound from the side of the goal, and with 4:35 left in the period, Detroit made it 3-2 on center Darren Helm's 12th goal of the season, as he broke loose and beat Tampa Bay's defense before firing a shot past Bishop.

Mrazek stopped 15 of the 18 shots he faced.

NOTES: The Lightning were again without two of their most experienced forwards, with RW Ryan Callahan missing his second consecutive game due to a lower-body injury and C Valtteri Filppula sitting out his fourth straight with an upper-body injury. Recent call-up RW Mike Blunden was a healthy scratch. ... Detroit had three healthy scratches: RW Tomas Jurco, D Alexey Marchenko and LW Teemu Pulkkinen. ... The Lightning held a moment of silence before the game in memory of those killed in Tuesday's attack in Belgium. ... Tuesday's game opened a six-game homestand for the Lightning, their last home games of the season before finishing up on a four-game road swing. The New York Islanders visit Tampa Bay on Friday. ... Detroit returns home for three in a row, starting with Thursday's game against the Montreal Canadiens.
Top Game Performances
 
Detroit   Tampa Bay
Justin Abdelkader 1 Points Erik Condra 2
Justin Abdelkader 1 Goals Erik Condra 2
Pavel Datsyuk 1 Assists Brian Boyle 2
Justin Abdelkader 1 Power Play Goals Nikita Kucherov 1
N/A Short Handed Goals N/A
Petr Mrazek .833 Save Percentage Ben Bishop .920
Petr Mrazek 15 Saves Ben Bishop 23
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Shots Goals Power Play Penalty Kill Penalty Mins Face Offs Won
Detroit 25 2 1-1 3-4 17 32
Tampa Bay 34 6 1-4 0-1 11 24
Upcoming Games
  • Tampa Bay will play their next game at home against NY Islanders. The Lightning have a W/L % of .571 after a win and .581 after a loss.
  • Detroit will play their next game at home against Montreal. The Red Wings have a W/L % of .459 after a win and .528 after a loss.