TAMPA — Ville Husso made 44 saves, including 28 in the third period, and the Detroit Red Wings defeated the Tampa Bay Lightning 4-2 at Amalie Arena on Tuesday.
Michael Rasmussen, Jonatan Berggren, Adam Erne and David Perron scored for the Red Wings (13-7-5), who have won two games in a row.
“This is a team that has been to the [Stanley Cup] Final for the last three years,” Husso said. “So, we knew we had to play at their level. That’s when our structure and all that stuff helps us.”
Detroit has won four consecutive road games for the first time since Jan. 2-10, 2016.
“I told the guys we needed to find a way to win games and tonight we beat an elite team, so that’s good,” Red Wings coach Derek Lalonde said.
Video: DET@TBL: Rasmussen scores the first of the night
Steven Stamkos and Brayden Point scored, and Andrei Vasilevskiy made 22 saves for the Lightning (15-9-1).
“We weren’t ready to play, it was clear,” Tampa Bay coach Jon Cooper said. “It was really disappointing. I thought the boys were ready, but it was clearly a lot of bad habits that we’ve had as a team at times during the year that came flooding out.”
The Lightning had 11 giveaways in the first period and 16 overall, including five by forward Nikita Kucherov.
“The turnovers … the lack of urgency right down the lineup,” Point said. “I thought the[Anthony] Cirelli line (with Ross Colton and Vladislav Namestnikov) had a good first. Other than that, it was tough and they got one early in the second.”
Rasmussen gave Detroit a 1-0 lead at 1:54 of the second period. Dominik Kubalik fed him with a stretch pass behind two Lightning defenders, and he scored with a wrist shot from the slot.
“I think our plan tonight was not to give them anything and try to take something away from them,” Rasmussen said. “This is how we have to play if we want to beat elite teams.”
Berggren extended the lead to 2-0 at 5:59 of the third with a redirection in the slot off a point shot. Olli Maatta.
Stamkos cut it to 2-1 at 14:52 with a one-timer off a pass Victor Hedman with Vasilevskiy pulled for the extra attacker.
“It was pretty hectic at the end. We’ve got some things to work on at 6-on-5,” Rasmussen said. “But we did a good job of sealing it out, and all that matters is getting that win.”
Video: DET@TBL: Stamkos nets the first for the Lightning
Erne scored into an empty net from deep in the opposite end to make it 3-1 at 16:22.
“I just shot it down there,” Erne said. “I’d love to say that it was all skill, but there was maybe a little luck mixed in.”
Point brought Tampa Bay to within 3-2 at 17:34 with a backhand in front of the net with the Lightning again having the extra attacker, but Perron scored the Red Wings’ second empty-net goal with 25 seconds left for the 4- 2 final.
“I thought we were good in the third,” Point said. “We had a lot of chances, a lot of puck possession, we started shooting the puck more and creating those shot-scramble situations.”
NOTES: Defenseman Filip Hronek had two assists and set a Red Wings record with an 11-game season-opening road point streak. He has 14 points (four goals, 10 assists) during the streak. Sergei Fedorov had a 10-game streak (19 points; nine goals, 10 assists) to begin 1993-94. …Detroit center Andrew Copp had two assists, giving him five points (goal, four assists) in the past four games. … Stamkos has 17 points (seven goals, 10 assists) during an 11-game point streak. … Point had a game-high nine shots on goal.
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