NHL scores 2017: Lightning playoff hopes evaporate in an evening of injuries

We got a glimpse of what the Tampa Bay Lightning are truly capable of on Thursday.

For two whole periods, the Bolts were picking the Minnesota Wild apart like few teams had done all season. The Wild looked lost, but the Lightning’s lethal combination of speed and skill helped them lose their way. The show Tampa Bay was putting on had a lot of hockey commentators expressing disbelief on Twitter:

And then it all shattered.

Vladislav Namestnikov went down in a tangled mess of bodies and knees with Zach Parise:

Minutes later, Tyler Johnson took a knee-on-knee hit from Nino Niederreiter:

Neither returned. The Lightning also lost Cedric Paquette. Coach Jon Cooper said none of them sounds encouraging.

Tampa Bay won, 4-1.

How morbidly poetic that game was. It encapsulated everything the Lightning have been the last two seasons: a team full of elite skill and talent unable to stay on the ice together and out of injury rehab for a full season. Steve Yzerman has collected some truly special toys for Cooper to play with on any given night. But they always break.

And now the Lightning’s playoff hopes close early yet again.

Hurricanes 4, Rangers 3

Maple Leafs 4, Flyers 2

Avalanche 3, Devils 2

Flames 5, Canadiens 0

Sharks 4, Capitals 2

Lightning 4, Wild 1

Ducks 1, Blackhawks 0

Senators 3, Coyotes 2 (OT)

Islanders 4, Canucks 3 (OT)

Kings 3, Predators 2 (OT)

1. Jonathan Bernier’s best game ever?

Anaheim rolled into Chicago with a tall task: shut down the Blackhawks, winners of eight straight games, on their own turf.

Bernier did just that. Forty-three saves and a 1-0 win later, the Anaheim backup had ended Chicago’s run with his 14th career shutout and one of the better goaltending shows of the season.

2. Beer was the turning point for the Flames’ season

We knew Calgary head coach Glen Gulutzan was a “player’s coach,” but this anecdote shared by Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman last night takes that to a whole new level:

The Flames are 13-2-1 since then.

3. Erik Karlsson ain’t gonna pass that puck:

You make moves at the trade deadline hoping your new players directly impact the playoff race in your favor.

Congrats on your Jarome Iginla trade, Kings.