Published on January 28 2016 6:26 am
Last Updated on January 28 2016 6:31 am
Andrei Vasilevskiy had an outstanding performance with his parents watching him live for the first time in an NHL game.
Vasilevskiy made 30 saves, Steven Stamkos scored his 21st goal and the Tampa Bay Lightning beat the Toronto Maple Leafs 1-0 on Wednesday night.
"I showed them I can play in the NHL," Vasilevskiy said with a smile. "That's an amazing feeling."
Tampa Bay entered the All-Star break by winning eight of its last nine.
"We're getting back on track," Stamkos said.
Jonathan Bernier stopped 28 shots for the Maple Leafs, who have lost nine of 10 (1-7-2). Toronto has been outscored 31-11 during that stretch.
"We worked hard, we competed hard," Toronto coach Mike Babcock said. "In the end, you like to leave the building feeling good because you finished. There's no sense feeling sorry for ourselves, no one else will. We have to find a way to get up."
Stamkos put the Lightning up 1-0 at 4:38 of the first with a shot from the left circle during a power play. The Tampa Bay captain can become a free agent July 1 and there has been ongoing speculation about the possibility of the Toronto area native joining the Maple Leafs next season.
"I don't think we can sit here and necessarily say we deserved the two points," Stamkos said. "I don't think we played very well. Vasie stepped up and had a fantastic game, and gave us a chance to win."
Wednesday, January 27 Scoreboard
Tampa Bay 1, Toronto 0
Philadelphia 4, Washington 3 (OT)
Nashville 2, Calgary 1
Colorado 4, Los Angeles 3
Thursday, January 28
No Games Scheduled
Friday, January 29
No Games Scheduled
Saturday, January 30
No Games Scheduled
Sunday, January 31 Schedule (All Times Central)
2016 Honda NHL All-Star Game (Nashville)
Team Metropolitan Team Metropolitan vs. Team Atlantic Team Atlantic, 4 p.m.
Team Pacific Team Pacific vs. Team Central Team Central, 5 p.m.
All-Stars East vs. All-Stars West, 6 p.m.