Vasilevskiy stops 35 as Lightning hang on to defeat Canucks

Ross Colton scored the game winner and the Tampa Bay Lightning snapped a three-game losing skid with a 2-1 victory over the Vancouver Canucks on Sunday.

Both of Tampa's goals came within the first six minutes of the game, with Victor Hedman finding the back of the net 3:26 into the opening period.

Vancouver rallied in the second and J.T. Miller got the Canucks (29-24-7) on the scoreboard in the third but the home team couldn't find the late equalizer.

Andrei Vasilevskiy was a force in net for the Lightning (38-15-6), making 35 saves.

Thatcher Demko stopped 29-of-31 shots for Vancouver.

Tampa was coming off a 4-1 loss to the Edmonton Oilers on Saturday night and is now 7-0-1 in the second game of back-to-backs this season.

Vancouver pulled Demko with 70 seconds left on the game clock but the Canucks couldn't tie the game with the extra attacker.

Miller put the home side on the board 5:54 into the third with a quick shot from the bottom of the slot that beat Vasilevskiy stick side.

The goal, his 24th of the season, extended Miller's point streak to 12 games, with eight goals and six assists across the stretch.

Minutes later, Vancouver's Conor Garland poked a lose puck in past Vasilevskiy, only to see the goal called off as it came after the referee's whistle.

A large scrum erupted along the end boards in response.

Vasilevskiy preserved the lead for the Lightning through a Canucks onslaught in the second.

The Russian netminder denied Miller on back-to-back chances early in the period, first turning away a shot from in tight then stretching out a leg to stop Vancouver's leading scorer when he attempted to tuck in the rebound.

Later in the frame, Vasilevskiy weathered five shots on a Canucks power play, including a glove stop