Blackhawks squander strong 40-minute effort against Lightning, lose in overtime

Before the puck skittered across the goal line with 0.1 seconds left, before an early third-period burst tied the game, before the Lightning adjusted to the game plan devised to stop them, the Blackhawks played one of their best 40-minute stretches in years Thursday.

They hounded the defending Stanley Cup champions at every turn. They looked one step ahead strategically. They scored twice in the second period while hardly conceding even two grade-A chances at the other end.

But the last 25 minutes told a far different story than the first 40. And in it, the Hawks revealed their flaws, and the Lightning took advantage, rallying for a 3-2 overtime win.

“We’ve got to figure out how to win those games,” Alex DeBrincat said. “We can’t give up points like that. . . . When you’re up 2-0 going into the third in your own building, you want to shut that down.”

A thrilling OT period ended with a shot by Victor Hedman getting tipped by Alex Killorn and squeaking through Kevin Lankinen, dealing the Hawks a heartbreaking lesson in their late-game struggles.

After two consecutive practice days leading in, the Hawks followed a specialized system catered specifically for the Lightning. They retreated quickly after changes of possession, pursued the puck diligently and controlled the territorial war.

For a while, it all worked brilliantly. After the second period, the Hawks held a 2-0 lead thanks to goals by Ryan Carpenter — set up by a tenacious Brandon Hagel short-handed forecheck — and DeBrincat, who tipped in a wrister by Patrick Kane.

“We’re a good, fast team, and we can handle the puck in their end and make it tough for their defensive guys,” Lankinen said. “That’s our recipe for success, and we were doing that for two periods. If we do that, we can beat any team.”

But before the Hawks could breathe in the third period, the Lightning struck twice in a two-minute span — first it was Anthony Cirelli tipping in a short-handed shot by Jan Rutta, then Steven Stamkos scoring off a faceoff — to tie the score.

“They came out with desperation,” coach Jeremy Colliton said. “They were all over us. We were playing at 70%.”

Through the first two periods, the Hawks held decisive edges in shots on goal (26-17) and scoring chances (32-17). In the third period and overtime, Tampa Bay flipped both stats: Shots on goal were 17-10 and scoring chances 14-12.

The Hawks appreciate their chances Friday and Sunday to produce 60-minute efforts against the Lightning. But while Thursday showed what they’re capable of, it also showed what still separates them.

“I’m more focused on: How are we going to compete with top teams?’’ Colliton said. “How are we going to join that group? And we were right there for most of the night. I loved how our team was playing. But you’ve got to finish the job. There are a lot of positives, and we’ll take those. [But] we weren’t quite ready to do what it takes, the whole night.”

Strome skating

Dylan Strome skated on his own before the morning skate, his first on-ice appearance since practicing Feb. 21.

Strome started experiencing concussion symptoms the next day and has been out since. Colliton implied later that Strome isn’t close to returning to game action, though.

“He got out there, so that’s a positive,” Colliton said. “It means he’s progressing. Certainly [it’s] early in the game here, but a good step that he skated.”