Douglas Jones-USA TODAY Sports
Martin St. Louis was a man on a mission Wednesday night. His hat trick propelled the Tampa Bay Lightning to a 5-2 victory over the Toronto Maple Leafs and, in the process, he took over sole possession of first place in the Art Ross trophy race.
St. Louis’ two late goals–one into an empty net– broke open what had been a close game. This marked the Lightning’s first win in a very long time, and gave fans something to hold their hat on. It has been a season full of adversity, from a coaching change to the loss of beloved assistant coach Wayne Fleming who passed away in March after battling cancer.
Tonight was meant for Tampa Bay fans. With little to play for, St. Louis and linemate Steven Stamkos put on quite a show. St. Louis’ three goals gave him 58 points, while Stamkos scored his 29th goal and added an assist for 56 points. Given these totals, St. Louis sits atop the NHL‘s point scoring race but both Stamkos and Pittsburgh’s Sidney Crosby are only two points back, making for an interesting final week.
The team outshot Toronto to start things off, yet still trailed 1-0 after one period of play. That was mainly because a lot of pucks either missed the net or players got too fancy.
Lightning fans can savor this victory for now, though I’m sure they’re wondering where this kind of performance has been all season long. Of course, St. Louis didn’t really catch fire until this month and Stamkos’ production was down for a little while.
Either way, the Lightning hope to build off this big win when they visit the Boston Bruins tonight at 7:30 p.m. With two teammates closing in on individual honors, Tampa Bay’s playing for more than just pride.
Lauren Burg is a Tampa Bay Lightning and NHL writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow her on Twitter, like her on Facebook and join her Google network.
