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White nets OT goal, lifts Thrashers past Lightning

Nov 20, 2007 - 4:48 AM ATLANTA (Ticker) -- After starting the season with six losses, the Atlanta Thrashers have clawed back to .500.

Todd White scored 2:49 into overtime as the Thrashers rallied from a two-goal, third period deficit to defeat the Tampa Bay Lightning, 4-3, on Monday in a battle of Southeast Division rivals.

Playing with a man advantage, White skated down the left wing with the dangerous Ilya Kovalchuk also streaking down the ice. But White elected to keep the puck and blasted a shot from the left faceoff circle which beat goaltender Johan Holmqvist between the legs for the game winner.

"I went to the net and (Holmqvist) opened up," said White, also tallied the game-winner in overtime against Washington on November 6. "I don't know what it is about overtime. I told the team that I was good for one a year. This makes two."

"Todd looks like a 60-goal scorer out there," said Kovalchuk, who leads the league with 17 goals. "His first overtime goal was top shelf and now this one was low."

Brad Richards drew a crucial holding penalty 27 seconds before White's tally, putting the Lightning down a man in the overtime - a call which angered Tampa Bay coach John Tortorella.

"The frustrating part to me is that these organizations pay players millions upon millions of dollars, and they are the ones who should decide the outcome of games," Tortorella said. "They are the show. I'm trying to stay away from criticizing calls, but (expletive) that, (expletive) that. I don't get it.

"It makes the coach's job just that much harder. How do you prepare players when you get that (stuff) out there? There's a disconnect somewhere. There's something obviously wrong with this game."

After starting the season 0-6 and dismissing coach Bob Hartley, the Thrashers have a had bit of a resurgence under interim coach and general manager Don Waddell. They have won 10 of their last 14 games to even their record for the first time this season.

"To be 10-10-0 after 20 games, we are very pleased with that," Waddell said. "This was a divisional game. I know we gave them a point, but we came back and are 6-1 (against Southeast Division opponents) in this run of eight games. That's how you make up ground in your own division."

Down two goals within the game's final minutes, Bryan Little and Kovalchuk scored under three minutes apart to level the game at 3-3.

With Tampa Bay leading, 3-1, with 5:18 remaining in the third period, Marian Hossa fired a cross-ice pass to Little, who tipped the puck over Holmqvist's left pad with the two-man advantage.

Kovalchuk tied the contest with 2:23 remaining with a shot that beat Holmqvist in front of the net.

This one was almost a carbon copy of Atlanta's last home game on November 13, with the Thrashers rallying from a late deficit to dispatch another Southeast Division foe.

In that one, the Thrashers trailed the Florida Panthers, 2-1, before Hossa tied the game with three seconds remaining in regulation and Kovalchuk tallied the game-winner in the extra session.

"Our big guys game through again in the clutch," Waddell said. "This team does not quit."

Prior to Atlanta's late-game heroics, it looked like Vincent Lecavalier and the Lightning would continue to steamroll through their competition.

The Maurice Richard Trophy winner had a goal and an assist to increase his consecutive multi-point games streak to eight the longest in the NHL since superstar Jaromir Jagr had a 10-game streak from February 18-March 9, 1996.

Lecavalier gave the Lightning a 2-1 lead at 15:33 of the second period when he redirected the puck 11 feet in front of the net, past the stick side of goaltender Johan Hedberg for his 14th goal of the season.

The 27-year old Canadian superstar assisted on Martin St. Louis' tally with 9:30 remaining in the final period to give the Lightning what appeared to be an insurmountable a 3-1 lead.

Brad Larsen gave Atlanta an early 1-0 lead 3:13 into the contest. Pascual Dupuis won the battle behind the net, muscling the puck to Larsen, who laced a one-timer from his knees past Holmqvist from inside the left faceoff circle.

Tampa Bay tied it at 13:55 of the second, thanks to Atlanta's inability to clear the puck in front of Hedberg. Michel Ouellet dug the puck out from behind the net twice, before finding Jan Hlavac in front of the net, who tipped in the puck past Hedberg.

Hedberg finished with 17 saves, while Holmqvist stopped 20 shots for the Lightning.