Lightning vs. Jets: Pontus Holmberg's Four-Point Night Keeps Tampa Bay Perfect at Home in a 6-4 Win

Tampa Bay has Nikita Kucherov, Brayden Point and Andrei Vasilevskiy. On Thursday night, the guy who stole the show was Pontus Holmberg, a forward who had never put up four points in an NHL game. Until now.

Holmberg had a goal and three assists, Brandon Hagel and Anthony Cirelli each added a goal and two helpers, and the Tampa Bay Lightning beat the Winnipeg Jets 6-4 at Benchmark International Arena. The Lightning are now 6-0-0 at home, which ties the franchise record for the longest home winning streak to open a season, according to the team. It got a little too interesting late, but the record stays clean.

A Fast Start, a Second-Period Flood, a Shaky Finish

Tampa Bay was out of the blocks quickly. Just 2:20 in, Kucherov won a puck in the left corner and found Point alone in the high slot, and Point picked the top corner on Stuart Skinner. Per the Lightning, it was their fastest start of the season. Winnipeg answered late in the first when Neal Pionk, playing his 600th game per the AP, hammered a slap shot from the point at 17:45 to make it 1-1.

Then the second period happened, and it was not close. Dominic James created the go-ahead goal with a steal on the left wall, then raced in and set up Conor Geekie at the right post at 9:43. At 15:56, on the power play, Holmberg worked his way to the net from below the goal line and found Cirelli at the left post, where Cirelli fought off a defender to finish. Holmberg teed up John Carlson for a one-timer from the left dot at 18:07, and with 57 seconds left in the period, Cirelli fed Hagel at the back post for a tap-in. Three goals in the final 4:04, and Tampa Bay led 5-1.

That was the end of Skinner's night after five goals on 21 shots. Nico Daws started the third in his Winnipeg debut, and the Jets suddenly found some life. Dylan Samberg redirected a Cole Perfetti pass one-handed at 7:00, and Pionk struck again from the right hashmark at 8:50, with Dawson Mercer picking up his first point as a Jet on the play. When Kyle Connor scored from the right circle at 17:12, a 5-1 laugher had become a 5-4 sweat. Holmberg finally put it away with an empty-netter at 18:29.

Holmberg's Night, and Everybody Noticed

Holmberg finished with four points in 17:54, the first four-point game of his NHL career. He assisted on the Cirelli, Carlson and Hagel goals in that second period alone, then scored the dagger. His own review was delightfully understated. "Good finishing, so that was good," Holmberg said. "It was a good night."

His teammates were a lot more effusive. "It's showing he's always had it," Hagel said. "That just doesn't pop out of nowhere. He's getting more confident."

Coach Jon Cooper credited the whole unit. "In the second period things kind of rolled our way. Guys made plays when they had to, and I think the Cirelli line had a big matchup, and they came through," he said, before adding: "Pontus had a heck of a game and I think he earned all his points tonight."

Hagel's goal was his eighth of the season, and he played 21:47. Cirelli had three points in 19:00 and went 12-13 on draws. Kucherov added an assist, Point scored his third goal, and Vasilevskiy made 17 saves on 21 shots.

For Winnipeg, Pionk turned his milestone night into a two-goal game and added four hits in 22:03. Mark Scheifele had three assists, one each on Pionk's first goal, the Samberg tip and the Connor goal, and won eight of 10 faceoffs, Perfetti had two assists, and Samberg and Connor each had a goal and an assist. Connor's goal was his 10th of the season. Daws stopped all nine shots he faced.

Four Minutes and Four Seconds of Chaos

The Jets were within one goal at 2-1 when Cirelli's power-play goal kicked off a stretch that decided the night. Tampa Bay scored three times in the last 4:04 of the second period, and Holmberg had a hand in all three. Per the Lightning, it also extended their streak of games with a power-play goal to five. Hagel explained the new approach simply: "Just trying different things, I think shooting the puck." He also credited assistant coach Jeff Halpern for dissecting the unit.

Cooper admitted the third period was not ideal. "Maybe we took some things for granted in the third period against a team that was pushing hard and not giving up," he said. "That was awesome by Winnipeg and probably taught us a lesson."

The Numbers Behind the Win

• 4: Tampa Bay goals in the second period, three of them in the final 4:04.
• 43-27: Faceoffs, Winnipeg's way, a 61.4 percent clip that did not stop the bleeding.
• 31-21: Shots, Tampa Bay's way.
• 28-17: Hits, Winnipeg's way, as the Jets threw their weight around.
• 0-5-2: Winnipeg's record over its last seven games, per the AP.

Where It Leaves Them

The Lightning are 8-3-1 with 17 points and snapped a two-game skid that included losses in Colorado and Utah. They carry a perfect home record into a Saturday matinee in Nashville.

Winnipeg falls to 4-6-3 with 11 points and 2-2-2 on the road. The Jets have not won since Oct. 13, and the AP noted this was their third straight regulation loss since trading goaltender Connor Hellebuyck to New Jersey. The schedule offers no breather, with a game in Florida on Friday.

The Swiss Army Knife

Every great team needs a player who can do a little bit of everything without asking for the spotlight. Hagel put it best when describing Holmberg: "He's a Swiss Army knife. If you ask him to do whatever, he's gonna do it." On Thursday, Tampa Bay asked for a lot, and Holmberg delivered the whole toolkit.

Stats from the official box score via ESPN. Postgame quotes and notes from the Tampa Bay Lightning on nhl.com; additional details as reported by the Associated Press.