PHILADELPHIA -- Heading into the 2013 season, Tampa Bay Lightning head coach Guy Boucher wanted his team to be more physically imposing when playing away from Tampa Bay Times Forum.
Lightning vs. Flyers final: Philadelphia tops Tampa Bay in physical affair, 2-1
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Against the New York Islanders in the team's first road game of the season, he loaded the starting lineup with forwards B.J. Crombeen and Pierre-Cedric Labrie to flank center Vincent Lecavalier. Following opening puck drop, Combreen and Labrie dropped their gloves and engaged in two separate fights, effectively sending a message that Tampa was willing to get physical.
“I just felt it was right to put our bigger guys out there to set the tone for the season since we weren’t physical enough on the road last year,” Boucher said to The TampaTribune. “And I think the message was sent and it was the right message.”
Having registered a blistering 6-2-0 record to open the season and boasting one of the most potent offenses in the league, the team wanted to improve their 13-22-6 road record from last season. They hoped to do so beginning with a difficult four-game road-trip that started in Philadelphia on Tuesday night.
It didn't begin as planned, however, as the Lightning fell to the Philadelphia Flyers by a final score of 2-1.
At the start of the game, it was clear Tampa Bay was interested in engaging in the physical components of the game. Crombeen once again found himself dropping the gloves early as he squared off with Zac Rinaldo. Unfortunately, Rinaldo pummeled Crombeen and he appeared to be in bad shape afterwards.
Requiring the aide of an official and a teammate to get off the ice surface, Crombeen left the game and was unable to return due to precautionary reasons. While no prognosis has officially been released, Crombeen looked dazed while getting up from the ice, leading one to believe that he suffered some kind of head injury.
Later in the contest, Lecavalier continued the Lightning’s mean-streak when he engaged Max Talbot in a fight after the Flyers pulled ahead 2-1. This marked Lecavalier’s second fight in nine days (both of which came against the Flyers) after he had gone almost four years without one (Feb. 3, 2009).
While Lecavalier’s decision to fight might have been an initiative to display team toughness or rally his teammates, it was a poor play on the his part. Losing a key forward in the Lightning’s top-six for five minutes was far more detrimental than the Flyers losing Talbot for five minutes.
Especially with his team down by a single goal with nine minutes remaining in the third.
In keeping with the theme of the night, the Flyers two goals were generated by a tough guy.
Tom Sestito scored his first and second goals of the season (and as a Flyer), giving his team the lead both times.
This development is extremely odd given the circumstances; Lecavalier, who is largely considered a skill player was engaging in fights, while Sestito, who is largely criticized as a one dimensional bruiser, is powering the Flyers to victory via goalscoring.
The lone Tampa Bay goal came from Benoit Pouliot (3) at the mid-way mark of the third period.
While physicality was a presence throughout the majority of the affair, a great deal of skill was displayed, as well. Both team’s moved the puck well and sustained quality attacks in the offensive zone.
The most impressive performances likely came from the two goaltenders, as Anders Lindback and Ilya Bryzgalov both made stunning saves that kept the game a low-scoring affair. Given the amount of criticism Bryzgalov has received during his tenure in Philadelphia, the goaltender has performed at the level the organization likely hoped he would when they acquired him prior to last season.
Following Tuesday night’s win, Philadelphia has won the first two games of a four-game homestand that many thought was a key portion of the early season given their slow start.
Both teams will return to action on Thursday, as Tampa Bay will travel to New Jersey to face the Devils and Philadelphia will host the Florida Panthers.
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