Lightning clinch playoff berth, giving Girgensons an additional boost in Buffalo homecoming

BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) — With a sheepish smile and wave to the crowd, Lightning forward Zemgus Girgensons was reminded of his past Saturday night when the Sabres aired a video tribute in honor of his first return since departing Buffalo last summer.

Memorable as his first 10 NHL seasons were with the Sabres, Girgensons has something more to look forward to in his first year in Tampa Bay — a chance to appear in his first career playoff game.

“Definitely just a lot of excitement,” the 31-year-old said following a 3-2 shootout loss, but with Tampa Bay clinching its eighth consecutive postseason berth with the New York Rangers’ 4-0 loss to New Jersey earlier in the day.

What might seem like old hat for a Lightning team heading to the postseason for the 11th time in 12 years, the experience is brand new for Girgensons. Selected in the first round of the 2012 draft, the player from Latvia spent 688 games on a Sabres team on the verge of extending its NHL-record postseason drought to a 14th season.

“Yeah, I mean, definitely that was the main reason why I came here with the players they have and the staff,” Girgensons said of the Lightning's rich playoff history and his decision to sign a three-year contract with Tampa Bay in free agency. “It was almost known, it’s possible to make it.”

And the work’s not done yet. The Lightning’s next objective is securing home-ice advantage in the first round by finishing second in the Atlantic Division, and with an outside shot of finishing first.

In earning a point against Buffalo, Tampa Bay opened a two-point lead on third-place Florida, but fell four points behind division-leading Toronto, with all three teams having six games remaining.

Home-ice advantage would provide a boost for a Lightning team that’s been eliminated in the first round in each of the past two years, and following a three-year run of reaching the Stanley Cup Final, winning in 2020 and ’21, and losing to Colorado in 2022.

Though 4-1-1 in its past six, Tampa Bay has dropped two straight, including a 2-1 loss at Ottawa on Thursday.

Against Buffalo, the Lightning squandered a 2-1 lead on Jason Zucker's power-play goal 5:07 into the third period, with Jack Quinn and Alex Tuch scoring shootout goals to secure the win.

It marked just the third time in 38 outings this season Tampa Bay lost when leading through two periods (35-1-2).

“We’ve clinched the playoff spot, which is all well and good, but we have to close those games out,” coach Jon Cooper said. “Hopefully you can somehow squeak out home ice. That’s why these points are valuable. So I commend the guys that got one (point). It’s too bad we didn’t get two.”

The Lightning might have lost in regulation if not for backup Jonas Johansson stopping 36 shots, including 12 in the third period. There was his glove save on JJ Peterka’s shot from the slot 8:35 into the third, and Johansson turned aside Tage Thompson’s attempt from in close with 63 seconds remaining in regulation.

“They make a lot of plays, so you’ve got to give them that,” Tampa Bay's Brayden Point said of Buffalo in a game in which he scored his 39th goal. “But I think Jo had to make far too many great saves just to keep us in it. And I think that’s something that we need to clean up, especially come playoff time.”

Girgensons said it took a couple of shifts to shake off the nerves in his homecoming. He then laughed when asked how he handled the video tribute in the first period.

“Not good. I don’t like attention, so I was hoping it’s not too long,” Girgensons said, before assessing the night overall. “It would have been a little bit nicer if we came out with the win.”

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This story has been corrected to show that the Lightning lost to the Avalanche in the Stanley Cup Final in 2022, not 2023.

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