Coming off of a good week, earning points in five straight games, the Tampa Bay Lightning were riding high and in a playoff spot heading into this past week. Unfortunately, four straight regulation losses undid any of the good they had done and left many scratching their heads.
The beginning of the week saw back-to-back games against the Colorado Avalanche and Arizona Coyotes. The team looked fairly good in both but made a few defensive mistakes that ended up in the back of their net. The offense, after putting up an eight spot on 15 shots against the Carolina Hurricanes, went so cold they couldn’t get anything to go in. Put the two together, and it’s a recipe for losing, something the Lightning did in both games.
Once they arrived back in Tampa to host the Pittsburgh Penguins, there was hope they could turn things around. A two-goal first period provided a glimpse of good things, but the defensive breakdowns in the final 40 minutes killed any early momentum in a 4-2 loss. That led to coach Jon Cooper stating that his team ‘needs to treat every game as a playoff game now or they won’t be there’ in his postgame comments.
Following that statement, one would think the Lightning would respond in a big way when they traveled to take on the Dallas Stars Saturday afternoon. That didn’t happen, as a goal one minute in gave the Stars a 1-0 lead. Two goals off of breakaways then made it 3-0 quickly before Victor Hedman scored on the power play for the Bolts lone goal in an 8-1 defeat. Andrei Vasilevskiy had the rare tough game, pulled after 40 minutes in favor of Jonas Johansson.
After that game, Cooper was asked about the offenses current woes. With five goals in four games, it’s a legitimate question. The coaches response was spot on, as he made it clear that his team has too much talent to go forever without scoring much. The biggest thing for him is the team preventing grade A scoring chances against breakaways and odd-man rushes.
With the offense struggling this past week, Nikita Kucherov still got recognized by the NHL for a superb month of November. He was named the first star of the month after putting up 28 points in 14 games. That was highlighted by a six-point game against the Hurricanes on November 24.
For the Lightning, learning how to play a full 60-minute game has to be paramount. That means the breakdowns defensively need to be limited. They have done it in the past, so it’s possible. The team must commit to playing the right way, which means no freebies are allowed. Right now, opponents are easily finding ways to beat our defense, and that’s leading to disastrous results.
Secondary scoring is something the Lightning need to get also. The team can’t constantly rely on Steven Stamkos, Kucherov, Brayden Point, and Hedman to produce all of their offense. Brandon Hagel’s 23 points is solid, but then there’s a drop off, as Mikhail Sergachev (16 points) and Nick Paul (11 points) are the only others with double-digit points. Tanner Jeannot, Anthony Cirelli, and Michael Eyssimont all play hard but need to get better when it comes to burying their chances.
Can the Lightning turn their season around? While there’s no way to predict how things will turn out, playing a solid defensive game that limits mistakes for a full 60 minutes gives them the best chance at being a playoff team.
ITR 37: Round Two – Inside The Rink
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