Tampa Bay Lightning hosted the Detroit Red Wings in the final game of the NHL regular season, a match that ended in a decisive 5-0 win for the home team. The night belonged to Tampa Bay from puck drop to final horn as they capped the session with a flawless performance on home ice.
The scoring began in the eighth minute when Alex Killorn found the back of the net, opening the scoring and setting the tone for the night. For long stretches after that early strike, both teams battled to gain the upper hand, trading chances but failing to test the goalies with any reward until late in the game. As the clock wound down, Tampa Bay finally broke through with a flurry that turned a tight contest into a blowout. In the 13 minutes remaining, Brandon Hagel elevated the Lightning’s advantage, seizing control and injecting momentum into the home side. Moments later, Braden Point extended the cushion to 3-0, with assists from Mikhail Sergachev and Nikita Kucherov giving the team a two-goal lead that looked increasingly insurmountable.
In the closing stretch, Braden Point added two more goals into an empty net, with Sergachev delivering a second assist to help seal the victory. With only ten seconds left in regulation, Mikey Eissimont capped the scoring for Tampa Bay, stamping the final 5-0 result on the scoreboard.
During the season, Nikita Kucherov was highlighted as the most prolific Russian on the roster, with a remarkable stat line recorded as 1112 points, composed of 30 goals and 82 assists. This performance underscored his role as a key driver for the team throughout the campaign.
In other sports-related chatter, it was noted that Vyacheslav Fetisov and Alexander Ovechkin had spoken about their support for Vladimir Putin, a detail that drew attention beyond the rink and into broader conversations about athletes and public figures engaging with political topics.