Lightning deal the Senators a blow in the playoff race by beating them 4-2

Tampa Bay Lightning celebrate a goal by left wing Brandon Hagel (38) during the second period of an NHL hockey game against the Ottawa Senators Saturday, March 28, 2026, in Tampa, Fla. (AP Photo/Jason Behnken)

Defenseman Emil Lilleberg scored the go-ahead goal and had a career-high three points, and the Tampa Bay Lightning rallied to defeat the Ottawa Senators 4-2 on Saturday.

Brandon Hagel and Charle-Edouard D’Astous each had a goal and an assist, while Jake Guentzel scored for a third consecutive game. Andrei Vasilevskiy made 26 saves for Tampa Bay, which played without leading scorer Nikita Kucherov and others.

Nick Paul and Kucherov, who entered the weekend tied with Connor McDavid for the most points in the NHL, were both out because of illness. Despite not having them and captain Victor Hedman, who is on a leave of absence for personal reasons, the Lightning improved to 5-0-2 in the past seven games.

Dylan Cozens and Jordan Spence scored for Ottawa, and James Reimer allowed four goals on 27 shots. The Senators, in the middle of a fierce playoff race in the Eastern Conference, lost in regulation for the first time since March 18 and are on the outside looking in with nine games remaining.

With the score tied at 2, Lilleberg took a pass from Hagel and chipped a backhand shot past Reimer with a little more than 11 minutes left in regulation. Guentzel scored on a breakaway later to provide some breathing room.

Ottawa had taken a 2-0 lead on goals by Cozens and Spence. This was the fourth game in a row the Lightning fell behind by multiple goals, and just like in the previous three, they got back into it in the second period.

Up next

Senators: Visit the Florida Panthers on Tuesday night.

Lightning: Host the Nashville Predators on Sunday.

Erik Erlendsson, The Associated Press