TAMPA, Fla. — After another big offensive night, Steven Stamkos gave the credit for the Tampa Bay Lightning’s latest win to goalie Ben Bishop.
Stamkos had two goals and Bishop made 38 saves, helping the Lightning beat the Edmonton Oilers 4-2 on Thursday night for their sixth win in seven games.
“He’s the reason why we won,” Stamkos said of Bishop. “I’m not very happy with the way we played. If it wasn’t for Bish, it’s not a win for us. We didn’t deserve the win.”
Bishop (10-2-0) made saves on first-period breakaway shots by Mark Arcobello and Taylor Hall.
“Best player on the ice. ... hands down,” Tampa Bay coach Jon Cooper said. “Don’t need to comment on it anymore.”
Stamkos, who extended his goal-scoring streak to five games, has 13 goals this season.
Tampa Bay was outshot 40-26.
“Absolutely. Boy, it’s a crazy game,” Oilers coach Dallas Eakins said. “There’s been games this season where you’ve won the game and maybe you didn’t think you deserved it, and you’re upset with your play. And there’s been games that we’ve lost where we’ve been disgusted with ourselves as a group. And then tonight, it’s one of those nights where ... I loved the way we played. And I thought we played with passion and we competed hard.”
Taylor Fedun and Hall scored for the Oilers, who have lost six of seven. Fedun, playing in his second game, also scored in his NHL debut Tuesday night at Florida.
Hall, the first overall pick in the 2010 draft, returned after missing seven games due to a knee injury. His in-close power-play goal got Edmonton within 3-2 midway through the third.
“As far as my game goes, it’s just tough when you lose the game,” Hall said. “That’s the main thing. We’re searching for wins right now, and whatever anyone can do is huge.”
Stamkos put the Lightning up 1-0 when he beat Devan Dubnyk from the high slot 7:37 into the game. The centre has eight goals and 12 points during a seven-game point streak.
After Fedun scored at 10:11, Stamkos gave Tampa Bay a 2-1 advantage on a wraparound goal with 52.7 seconds left in the first.
Bishop turned aside all 15 shots he faced in the second. Tampa Bay got the lone goal during the period to go up 3-1 when Tyler Johnson scored from the low shot at 18:33.
“You’re not always going to be pretty,” Bishop said. “You’ve got find ways to win when you’re not at your best.”
Valtteri Filppula added an empty-net goal for Tampa Bay with 1:05 to play.
The Lightning are 6-0-0 against Western Conference teams this season.
“You can never be disappointed after a win,” Cooper said. “I’m glad for the two points. Just a little rattled about the way we ended up coming out with them.”
NOTES: Tampa Bay starts a three-game road trip against Atlantic Division foes Saturday at Detroit. The Lightning will also play at Boston and Montreal. “I think it will be a big test,” Stamkos said. ... Edmonton LW Jesse Joensuu (back), D Anton Belov (lower back) and D Justin Schultz (groin) are all practicing. LW David Perron (neck) could soon resume practicing with the team. ... Oilers LW Linus Omark played after being recalled from Oklahoma City of the AHL on Wednesday. ... As part of Military Appreciation Night, the Lightning wore camouflage jerseys during the pregame skate. .... Tampa Bay D Matt Carle was plus-4 for the game. ... Edmonton RW Nail Yakupov played just 11:08 and is minus-14 this season, including minus-1 Thursday.