The Tampa Bay Lightning returned to home ice Tuesday night after two days off, hoping to put an end to a two-game losing streak when they took on the Columbus Blue Jackets. It was an interesting test for a Lightning team that has struggled against teams below .500 this year. It was a test the Lightning would pass, as they beat the Blue Jackets 3-2 in a shootout.
The Blue Jackets had the early jump in this game and were all over the Lightning in the early going. They cashed in on the early pressure on a seemingly innocent looking play. Anton Vermette chipped a puck off the glass in his own defensive zone, and Brett Clark took a bad route in pursuit and it allowed R.J. Umberger to come in alone on a breakaway. Umberger beat Lightning goaltender Dwayne Roloson to give the Blue Jackets a 1-0 lead. For Umberger, the goal at 7:34 was his 16th of the year. The Lightning would answer back before the end of the period when Victor Hedman went end to end on the rush, and fed Steven Stamkos, who beat Mathieu Garon with a wrist shot to tie the game at one a piece. For Stamkos, it was his league leading 34th goal of the year at the 17:52 mark.
