In each newsletter (every Monday), I write short, little recaps from each game. I’m not sure anyone reads them, but I enjoy the challenge of writing with concise clarity. Here’s the tidbit I wrote following the Lightning’s 2-6 loss in Ottawa:

The final score suggests a blowout, but the Lightning & Senators were in a hard-fought, tight, playoff-style contest for nearly 53 minutes.

As tight as the game was, according to the Lightning’s standards, this was a subpar performance. The Bolts were often caught flat-footed, and they were passive & slow in battles along the boards. Their poor play wasn’t overwhelming, though; the Lightning were able to keep stride with the Senators through most of the game, generating enough solid play to keep the game tied through 40 minutes (it was a 1-1 game at the 2nd intermission—Nick Paul scored his 1st goal since 2/1/2026 in the 2nd period).

When the 3rd period began, some unfortunate puck luck compounded the Lightning’s deficiencies, resulting in two goals for the Senators. At 2:45, a series of bad bounces allowed Fabian Zettlerland (OTT) to keep the zone before he fired a wrist shot off Ryan McDonagh’s (TBL) elbow & into the net. Moments later, a poke-checked puck rolled away from Jake Sanderson (OTT) & slid under the pad of Jonas Johansson (TBL) & into the net. 3-1.

The Lightning were able to reset & fight back, scoring 6 minutes later off a beautiful redirect goal from (S)Corey Perry (TBL). 2 minutes after bringing the game within reach, Yanni Gourde (TBL) was called for holding the stick when both of his hands were on his own stick. Seconds into the ensuing power play, a scrum in front of the Lightning’s net knocked the puck loose & Ottawa buried the rebound. Jon Cooper (TBL) challenged the play for goaltender inference, which he lost, and Ottawa added their 5th goal 12 seconds into the power play that resulted.

The Senators threw the knockout punch at 16:41 when they added an empty net goal to take a 4-goal lead.

Final score: 6-2 Senators.