Minnesota Wild at Tampa Bay Lightning
· National Hockey LeagueCernak scores on crazy carom late in 3rd period as the Lightning beat the Wild 6-3
Cernak scored his second of the season after Charle-EdouardD'Astous' pass traveled the length of the ice and bounced off the end boards toward Gustavsson, who failed to control the puck with his glove. The puck went between Gustavsson's legs into the crease and Cernak pounced, sending it into the open net.
Tampa Bay rallied from a two-goal deficit, scoring three goals in the second period and five unanswered overall over the second and the third to win for the fourth time in five games and fifth time in seven.
Darren Raddysh had a goal and two assists, Brayden Point and Jake Guentzel also scored, while Brandon Hagel and Pontus Holmberg added an empty-netter goals in the final minutes. Andrei Vasilevskiy had an assist and made 20 saves to win his fourth straight start. Guentzel's goal was his 32nd of the season and the 300th for his career.
Vladimir Tarasenko had a goal and an assist, and Mats Zuccarello and Brock Faber also scored for the Wild, who have lost five of their last seven games. Gustavsson stopped 19 of the 23 shots that he faced.
Minnesota jumped to a 2-0 lead in the first and a 3-1 lead in the second before Tampa Bay bounced back. Raddysh and Guentzel scored in approximately a three-minute span of the second to tie the game at 3. Cernak, Hagel and Holmberg completed the scoring in the third for Tampa Bay.
The Wild had a potential go-ahead goal disallowed with 1:18 left in the second period after Tampa Bay challenged. After a review, it was decided that Raddysh was knocked to the ice and into the crease, prohibiting Vasilevskiy from a possible save.
For Minnesota, Joel Eriksson Ek was back in the lineup after missing three games with lower-body injury and Kirill Kaprizov returned after missing two games, also with a lower-body injury.
Lightning: Host the Seattle Kraken on Thursday.
Regular Season SeriesSeries tied 1-1
Scoring Summary
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Goal | 1st Period 2:28 | Mats Zuccarello Goal (14) Wrist Shot, assists: Quinn Hughes (64), Matt Boldy (38) |
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Goal | 1st Period 18:49 | Brock Faber Goal (15) Wrist Shot, assists: Vladimir Tarasenko (21), Bobby Brink (15) |
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Goal | 2nd Period 5:45 | Brayden Point Goal (17) Snap Shot, assists: Brandon Hagel (36), Darren Raddysh (43) |
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Goal | 2nd Period 9:51 | Vladimir Tarasenko Goal (21) Wrist Shot, assists: Marcus Johansson (30), Ryan Hartman (16) |
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Goal | 2nd Period 12:27 | Jake Guentzel Goal (32) Snap Shot, assists: Darren Raddysh (44), Gage Goncalves (17) |
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Goal | 2nd Period 15:19 | Darren Raddysh Goal (20) Slap Shot, assists: Nikita Kucherov (80), Jake Guentzel (42) |
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Goal | 3rd Period 17:07 | Erik Cernak Goal (2) Snap Shot, assists: Charle-Edouard D'Astous (18), Andrei Vasilevskiy (2) |
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Goal | 3rd Period 18:42 | Brandon Hagel Goal (33) Wrist Shot, assists: Nick Paul (7) |
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Goal | 3rd Period 19:36 | Pontus Holmberg Goal (11) , assists: Ryan McDonagh (9) |
Statistics
MIN |
TB |
|
|---|---|---|
| 19 | Blocked Shots | 10 |
| 20 | Hits | 20 |
| 7 | Takeaways | 2 |
| 24 | Shots | 25 |
| 2 | Power Play Goals | 3 |
| 4 | Power Play Opportunities | 4 |
| 50.0 | Power Play Percentage | 75.0 |
| 0 | Short Handed Goals | 0 |
| 0 | Shootout Goals | 0 |
| 32 | Faceoffs Won | 29 |
| 52.5 | Faceoff Win Percent | 47.5 |
| 17 | Giveaways | 10 |
| 7 | Total Penalties | 7 |
| 20 | Penalty Minutes | 20 |
Tampa Bay Lightning Injuries
| NAME, POS | STATUS | DATE |
|---|---|---|
| Brandon Hagel, LW | Day-To-Day | Apr 14 |
| Darren Raddysh, D | Day-To-Day | Apr 14 |
| Jonas Johansson, G | Day-To-Day | Apr 14 |
| Pontus Holmberg, RW | Out | Apr 8 |
Minnesota Wild Injuries
| NAME, POS | STATUS | DATE |
|---|---|---|
| Zach Bogosian, D | Out | Apr 14 |
| Brock Faber, D | Out | Apr 14 |
| Jared Spurgeon, D | Out | Apr 14 |
| Marcus Foligno, LW | Out | Apr 14 |
| Quinn Hughes, D | Out | Apr 14 |
Game Information
Benchmark International Arena
Location: Tampa, FL
Attendance: 19,092 | Capacity:
Location: Tampa, FL
Attendance: 19,092 | Capacity:
2025-26 Central Division Standings
| TEAM | W | L | PTS | OTL |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Colorado |
54 | 16 | 119 | 11 |
Dallas |
49 | 20 | 110 | 12 |
Minnesota |
46 | 24 | 104 | 12 |
Utah |
43 | 32 | 92 | 6 |
Nashville |
38 | 33 | 86 | 10 |
St. Louis |
36 | 33 | 84 | 12 |
Winnipeg |
35 | 34 | 82 | 12 |
Chicago |
28 | 39 | 70 | 14 |
2025-26 Atlantic Division Standings
| TEAM | W | L | PTS | OTL |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Buffalo |
50 | 23 | 108 | 8 |
Tampa Bay |
50 | 25 | 106 | 6 |
Montreal |
48 | 24 | 106 | 10 |
Boston |
45 | 27 | 100 | 10 |
Ottawa |
43 | 27 | 97 | 11 |
Detroit |
41 | 30 | 92 | 10 |
Florida |
39 | 38 | 82 | 4 |
Toronto |
32 | 35 | 78 | 14 |




MIN
TB
Colorado
Dallas
Minnesota
Utah
Nashville
St. Louis
Winnipeg
Chicago
Buffalo
Tampa Bay
Montreal
Boston
Ottawa
Detroit
Florida
Toronto