With the 2024-2025 season more than half over, the Tampa Bay Lightning are in a precarious position. They are clinging to a playoff spot, but it’s far from secure, with seven teams fighting for the final two Eastern Conference Wild Card spots.
Of those seven teams, three are in the Atlantic Division. The Ottawa Senators, Montreal Canadiens and Detroit Red Wings are within four points of the Lightning with one more game played. That makes it imperative for Tampa Bay to turn around their divisional record going forward.
As of January 26, the Lightning are 3-9 against the Atlantic Division. Of their three wins, only one has come versus a team chasing them in the standings. More concerning, they are winless so far when playing Montreal, Ottawa and Toronto. That’s a disturbing trend, considering these are four-point games.
Beginning in February, the Lightning have 14 games remaining against division opponents. They must improve their record against those teams to make the postseason for an eighth straight season.
It’s important to note that seven of those games were part of a back-to-back. Three were on the recently completed four-game road trip, which featured four games in six days. While not an excuse, it has to be brutal for players to have little rest between games.
Going forward, the Lightning only faces a divisional foe three times in a back-to-back situation. Two of those, on the road at Detroit and then Montreal, come prior to an extended break for the Four Nations Tournament. That should help a team that faced a brutal January schedule, with four sets of back-to-backs and six games against the Atlantic Division.
Can the Lightning improve their record against fellow Atlantic teams? Only time will tell, but failure to do so might prove costly in their quest for another playoff berth.
ITR 43: It's Winning Time – Inside The Rink
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