Tampa Bay Lightning

The Lightning are looking to open the 2014-2015 regular season with a victory over their intrastate rival, the Florida Panthers. Puck drops at 7:30 p.m. at Amalie Arena.

#RaysUp for the Captain!

Tonight we lead-off the season with Tampa Bay Rays pitcher Alex Cobb as Social Captain presented by TradeWinds Island Resorts. One of Cobb’s special guests will be another Rays stud you may have heard of, pitcher Matt Moore. Follow along as Cobb live-tweets his way around the rink at @ACobb53.

PRE-GAME: Pre-game through the end of the 2nd period, stop by the photo booth at Section 112 to take a photo of you and your friends and post directly to your social channels.

Posting on your own Instagram? The first 100 fans to post and tag using #BoltsOpeningNight will have their photos printed on the spot at section 112! 

SECOND INTERMISSION: At the start of the second intermission, Alex Cobb will be available to meet and greet with fans at Section 112 through the end of the intermission.

Tweet to Win

#LightningStrikes

As always, get your picks in for a chance to win a limited edition Lightning Strikes winner T-shirt provided by Old Time Hockey. Submit your prediction for who will score the first Tampa Bay goal tonight on Twitter using the hash-tag #LightningStrikes. One lucky winner who picks the first goal scorer correctly will win the T-shirt.

#BoltsAnd47Brand

If you’re headed to the game tonight, tweet your seat location with hash-tag #BoltsAnd47Brand for your chance to win a gift certificate for a 47 Brand Lightning cap of choice.

Yesterday, I previewed the Boston-Montreal series.  Today, it’s a look at the three other second round matchups.

Metropolitan #1 Pittsburgh Penguins vs. Metropolitan #2 New York Rangers: Putting objective analysis aside, I’m pulling for the Rangers to win this series.  So should every Lightning fan.  If the Rangers beat the Pens, the Lightning, as part of the Marty St. Louis trade, will receive New York’s first round pick.  That selection will be between the 26th and 29th in the first round, depending on where the Rangers ultimately finish.  (Normally, it would be between 27th and 30th, but the New Jersey Devils forfeited their first round spot and will pick 30th).  If the Penguins take the series, the Lightning get the Rangers’ second round pick, which would be middle/late second round selection, somewhere in the 50s.

Rooting interest aside, which team do I think is going to win?  The Penguins were not especially impressive in their first round series against Columbus.  Give full credit to the Columbus Blue Jackets, who play a hard, physical, tenacious game.  But still, the Penguins were not at their best.  Questions about the play of goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury continue to persist, especially after he allowed some soft goals during the series.  It’s true that the Pens had a couple of victories after falling behind 3-1 in Games One and Three.  But they also squandered leads in their Game Two and Four losses.  And they almost blew a 4-0 third period advantage in the Game Six clincher.  Given what transpired in the first round, then, it’s reasonable to conclude that the Pens must raise their level as the playoffs progress.

The Rangers needed seven games to dispose of the Flyers.  At points in the series, the Rangers dominated Philadelphia.  At other times, New York struggled and the Flyers had the run of play.  I’m curious to see if the Rangers continue to produce uneven performances or if they can right the ship.

I think if the Rangers can reach a level of consistency, they’ve got a good chance to capture the series.  Scoring goals has been an issue for this team this year, but Pittsburgh’s defensive play in the first round, as I mentioned earlier, did not inspire confidence.  The Rangers, given their skill set, should score enough to win.

The Pens, of course, have plenty of offensive weapons themselves.  And while their overall performance against Columbus was inconsistent, they did play well in five of the final six periods of the series.  But Henrik Lundqvist is one of the world’s best goalies and is capable of stealing a series himself.  I don’t think he’ll need to here, though.  I believe his club will sharpen their game enough to reach the Conference Final.  And give the Bolts that first round pick. Prediction: New York in Six.

Central #3 Chicago Blackhawks vs. WC #1 Minnesota Wild: In my preview of the Colorado-Minnesota series, I wrote that the Wild, who had more playoff experience than the Avs, would give Colorado a tough series.  A tougher series than Minnesota gave to Chicago in their 2013 first round defeat.  I believe that’s also true in this series.  The Wild are in a much better position to beat the ‘Hawks this year than they were last season.  They’re healthier than they were last year and they enter this series brimming with confidence.  The Wild showed great resiliency in their victory over the Avs.  They never led the series until they won it.  They trailed by a goal on four different occasions in Game Seven.  And they fought off a couple of gut-wrenching defeats, games in which they blew a late lead and lost in overtime. 

But, the ‘Hawks are not the Avalanche.  Unlike Colorado, they have a wealth of playoff experience – and two Stanley Cups in the past four years.  Winning so many playoff games has given Chicago an intangible quality of fortitude.  It was on display in their hard-fought series victory over the Blues.  They dropped the first two games in overtime and, similar to the Wild, blew late leads in both of them.  But they rebounded to win the next four in a row. 

The Chicago-St. Louis series was similar to the Los Angeles-San Jose series.  All four of those teams are legitimate Stanley Cup contenders, yet two were destined to lose in the first round.  My point is that, for Chicago, beating St. Louis was no small feat.

So, for what it’s worth, I believe the Blues posed a more formidable challenge to the Blackhawks than the Wild will.  It’s true that the Wild are better than they were last year.  I just don’t see them winning four games from the defending champs. Prediction: Chicago in Six. 

Pacific #1 Anaheim Ducks vs. Pacific #3 Los Angeles Kings: At long last, these two teams will meet in a postseason series.  Despite the fact that they’ve both won Stanley Cups in the last decade and have been regular postseason participants, they’ve never before played in a playoff series.  An already fierce rivalry should become even more intense. 

Even though they won their first round series in six games, the Ducks had their hands full with the Dallas Stars.  In a couple of their wins, they nearly squandered leads.  In their Game Six clincher, they needed two late goals to force overtime.  Give them credit for winning the series, but the Stars exposed some potential holes.  Dallas was extremely physical with Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry, which seemed to get those dynamic players off their games.  If the Ducks thought the treatment they got from the Stars was rough, just wait until they square off against the physical, bruising Kings.  In this series, Getzlaf and Perry will have to avoid getting involved in post-whistle scrums and must stay out of the penalty box.  Also, goaltending questions popped up in the Dallas series.  Rookie Frederik Andersen was pulled from two games; he posted a pedestrian 3.40 GAA and .892 save percentage against the Stars.

That was some kind of first round, wasn’t it?  There were 10 comeback wins in which the victor rallied from at least a two-goal deficit.  Two teams – Chicago and Minnesota - won series in which it dropped the first two games and the Kings became the fourth club in NHL history to erase a 3-0 series deficit.  Six times a team netted the game-tying goal in the final two minutes of regulation.  With such a topsy-turvy opening round, it was hard to figure how each series might unfold – and so accurate predictions included more than a little bit of luck.  So many of this series could have turned out differently than how they did.  

Personally, I went 5-2 in the seven series I previewed (I abstained from the Lightning-Canadiens series).  I whiffed on my upset special of the Ducks-Stars (though the Stars gave Anaheim a heck of a series) and picked the Avalanche in seven over the Wild.  On the flip side, lady luck helped me in the others.  I correctly predicted not only the victor but the number of games in the following: Kings in Seven (though I never imagined they’d win the series they way they did), Rangers in Seven, Blackhawks in Six and Penguins in Six.  I also chose the Bruins over the Red Wings, but I thought it would take Boston six games, not five.

Now it’s onto the Second Round.  Today, I’ll look at the Boston-Montreal series.  Tomorrow, I’ll have a preview of the other three matchups.  

Atlantic Division #1 Boston Bruins vs. Atlantic Division #3 Montreal Canadiens: There are reasons to pick the Habs in this series. 

First, as the Lightning found out in their first round matchup with Montreal, the Canadiens are playing their best hockey of the year right now.  Versus the Lightning, they were solid defensively and played with air-tight structure.  They forced lots of turnovers, which helped them use their speed on counterattack rushes.  They presented a balanced attack, getting goals from a variety of different players.  (The four game-winning goal scorers – Dale Weise, Rene Bourque, Tomas Plekanec and Max Pacioretty – each play on a different one of the four forward lines).  In short, they look poised to make a deep run. 

Second, the Bruins, when they faced the Habs during the regular season, dropped three of four games.  During the Lightning’s first round series against the Canadiens, I asked the Montreal press and broadcasters about the success over Boston.  The response was universally consistent – the Bruins seemed to become unhinged when they played the Habs.  The emotion of facing their fierce rival got the Bruins off their game.  Usually, the Bruins handle the opposition with a crisp, surgeon-like efficiency (if a surgeon’s repertoire includes physically pounding the opposition).  Every player is in the right place at the right time.  They roll four effective forward lines.  They have bruising defensemen like Zdeno Chara and Johnny Boychuk, but also mobile blueliners like Torey Krug and Dougie Hamilton.  They don’t make many mistakes and, when they do, their goalie Tuukka Rask usually prevents any damage from being done.  But unlike the rest of the NHL, the Canadiens, apparently, did not see that Boston team.  Instead, they faced a slightly less structured, less surgeon-like club.

And third, the Habs don’t play the same Rask.  When the Bolts saw the Bruins this year, for example, Rask was virtually unbeatable, as is usually is.  He shut out the Lightning twice and yielded only one goal in a third game.  While the Lightning did put three pucks past him in the final regular season matchup, he still stopped all seven Lightning shootout attempts.  According to the Montreal press, however, Rask is shaky when he faces the Canadiens. (Which prompted an expected response from many in the Lightning media party – a shaky Tuukka Rask? How come the Lightning don’t see THAT guy?) 

So, as I wrote above, there are reasons to pick Montreal.  But I’m not going to do it.  There’s a reason why the Bruins are the Eastern Conference’s elite club.  They’ve reached the Stanley Cup Final in two of the last three years.  They are playoff-tested and know how to win.  If they become unhinged in this playoff series, shame on them.  My hunch is that Boston will play the way it needs to in order to advance.

Then there’s the Montreal side of the ledger.  The Habs looked great against the Lightning.  But they’ve now had a long layoff.  Can they pick up right where they left off against the Bolts?  Also, head coach Michel Therrien kept big defensemen Douglas Murray and Jarrod Tinordi in the press box against the Lightning, but he may insert them in this round.  What effect will those lineup changes have on the team’s chemistry?  If Montreal does not play as well as it did in the first round, the task of upsetting the Bruins will be even more difficult.

Ultimately, though, I don’t think it’ll matter how the Canadiens will play.  They can be at their absolute best, the Bruins will still win the series. 

  Back in the spring of 2010, during his opening press conference as General Manager, Steve Yzerman talked about his vision for the Lightning.  Like owner Jeff Vinik, Yzerman used the phrase “World Class Organization”.  He stated that the best way to construct a World Class Organization on the ice, one that consistently qualifies for the playoffs and is in the running for the Stanley Cup every year, is to build through the draft. 

The Lightning’s plan was to draft and develop home-grown talent, so that a continuous pipeline of good, young players would be regularly refilling the Lightning’s cupboard.  The need for this pipeline is obvious – as current roster players eventually graduate to Unrestricted Free Agency status, it becomes impossible to keep them all.  By replacing those departing players with homegrown talent, it removes the need to chase (and potentially overpay for) high-priced free agents.

It sounds like a great approach, so why don’t all teams follow that model?  First of all, you have to draft well.  Not all teams do.  Also, clubs need to allow those draft picks to develop at their own pace and not rush them to the NHL before they’re ready.  That takes organizational discipline, which can be an elusive characteristic.  Many clubs are inclined to put their talented youngsters right on the NHL squad, especially if that team is struggling to win games.  As well, organizations must resist the urge to trade away draft picks and prospects for short-term “rentals” at the trade deadline.  Sometimes those late-season acquisitions help a team win the Stanley Cup, but dealing away young talent (and not receiving prospects in return) is not the best way to keep the proverbial cupboard filled.

Since he took over as General Manager four years ago, Yzerman has been steadfast in adhering to these principles. The vast majority of trades have involved adding either picks or prospects. When he has traded a pick or prospect, he’s often gotten a pick or prospect in return, as in the Cory Conacher-Ben Bishop deal. 

During that initial press conference, however, Yzerman was upfront about the draft/develop philosophy.  There can be a short-term cost, especially when an organization doesn’t have many viable prospects to begin with.  It takes time to see results and the big club might endure some tough seasons in the interim.  Most future NHL players are drafted at age 18.  Perhaps with the exception of a first overall pick like Steven Stamkos, most of those draftees will remain amateurs until at least age 20 (or longer if they’re attending a U.S. University).  Then they’ll spend some time in the minors, often another season or two, before matriculating to the NHL.

It’s true that during the first year of the Yzerman regime, the Lightning made the playoffs and reached the Eastern Conference Final.  But that team wasn’t really homegrown.  Instead, Yzerman made some savvy free agent signings and trades, moves that helped the Bolts get to within a game of the Stanley Cup Final.  But, as if a reminder that such an approach doesn’t guarantee long-term success, the Lightning couldn’t follow it up in subsequent years.  After the 2011 run, the Bolts lost a few players to free agency and others couldn’t replicate their 2010-11 performances.  Tampa Bay missed the playoffs in 2011-12 and again in the shortened 2013 season. 

But while the NHL team was experiencing the high of the 2011 playoffs and the lows of the next two seasons, something special was happening at the minor league level.  Lightning draft picks were turning pro and helping the AHL’s Norfolk Admirals improve.  In 2010-11, for the first time in several seasons, the Admirals qualified for the playoffs.  The next year, other prospects joined Norfolk, including 2011 seventh round pick Ondrej Palat and undrafted free agent Tyler Johnson.  The 2011-12 Admirals finished up the regular season with 27 consecutive victories and added one more in Game One of their first round playoff series.  The 28 straight wins set a record in professional sports.  That team also won its final 10 playoff games to capture the Calder Cup.

What’s interesting about the 2011-12 season was the Lightning’s approach regarding call-ups.  For most of the year, the Bolts were in a dogfight to make the playoffs.  But at no point did Yzerman summon any of the youngsters as reinforcements.  Instead, when the Lightning needed a player from the minors, they recalled AHL veterans like Trevor Smith or J.T. Wyman.  Johnson, Palat, Radko Gudas, Mark Barberio, Richard Panik, Conacher (who won the AHL’s MVP award that year) and Alex Killorn, who arrived after finishing his senior season at Harvard, stayed put in Norfolk.  There they played lots of minutes, continued to develop and won lots of games.

It wasn’t until the 2013 campaign that those aforementioned prospects got to the NHL.  Even so, it was just a cup of coffee for most of them, although Gudas and Killorn, once called up, stayed up.  (And, of course, Jon Cooper, the head coach of the Lightning’s minor league affiliate since 2010, also was promoted to the big club.) 

Finally, this year, the organization felt the kids were ready.  That conviction was reflected in how quiet the Bolts were in the 2013 offseason.  After buying out Vinny Lecavalier’s contract, they signed Valtteri Filppula.  But, in terms of adding other established NHL players, the Bolts did nothing.  It was time to put the plan to work and let their prospects play. 

The results this year speak for themselves.  The Lightning went from 28th in the NHL to 101 points, the third-most points in the Eastern Conference.  Bishop is a Vezina Trophy Finalist.  Johnson and Palat are Calder Trophy Finalists.  Other contributors this year were Gudas, Killorn, Barberio, Andrej Sustr, J.T. Brown, Nikita Kucherov and Panik. There is no more short-term pain.  Those strong organizational roots, growing in the AHL over the past few seasons, have sprouted out of the ground. 

As I wrote in my “Extra Shift” column after the Lightning’s Game Four loss to Montreal last week, even the playoff defeat will be beneficial to the club.  Twelve Lightning players made their NHL postseason debut in the series – and they’ll be better for having gone through that experience, short as it was.

Perhaps the best – and most exciting – part of the Lightning’s approach is that, now that the water is running out of the spigot, it’ll keep flowing.  More good prospects are already in the organization – such as Cedric Paquette, whose play at the end of the year earned him more postseason appearances (four) than regular season contests (two).  Others, mostly from the draft class of 2012, will be turning pro next year.

But a note of caution, too.  On more than one occasion, I’ve heard Yzerman talk about his time in Detroit – and that the Wings’ organizational goal at the start of every year was to make the playoffs.  Not win the Stanley Cup.  Just make the playoffs.  Why?  Because, as Yzerman notes, it’s hard to make the playoffs.  Even the Red Wings, who have now qualified for the postseason in 23 consecutive years, view making the playoffs as a challenge.

Extra Shift: Montreal Canadiens 4, Lightning 3 – Game Four

Pushing back against adversity.  That was, more than anything else, the overriding theme to this Lightning season.  And again that’s what we saw in the third period of Game Four.  Down 3-1 entering the third, the Lightning didn’t go quietly into the night.  They netted a couple of goals to tie the score and then, in the final 13 minutes of the frame, went toe-to-toe with the Canadiens.  There’s no sugarcoating the fact that losing stinks – and it’s tough pill to swallow when you allow a power play goal in the final minute, a power play goal that ends your season – but the Lightning, true to form, showed tremendous heart in their final period of the season.

It’s possible that this game might have unfolded differently.  But during the first two periods, every time the Canadiens needed a big play, they got one.  At the very beginning of the game, I thought the Habs looked somewhat tentative and the Bolts had a couple of good shifts, including a chance off the rush for Steven Stamkos.  But just over two minutes into the game, the Lightning committed a defensive zone error and Danny Briere was left alone in front.  For the second straight game, the Habs had an early lead.  As they did throughout the series, the Habs feasted on neutral zone turnovers – another Lightning miscue led to Lars Eller’s two-on-one goal late in the frame.

Brendan Gallagher provided the Canadiens with another big goal when he answered Ondrej Palat’s second period shorthanded tally.  It came 70 seconds after the Lightning had cut the deficit to 2-1 and reestablished a two-goal Montreal lead.

On the Lightning side, the Bolts were generating some decent looks in the offensive zone in the first two periods, but they were just couldn’t finish those opportunities.  Pucks bobbled off sticks. Open players didn’t cleanly handle passes.  Sometimes, it was just due to bad luck.  Late in the second period, Steven Stamkos was wide open in front and accepted a pass from Palat.  But his stick broke on the shot and the puck slid harmlessly wide.  Through 40 minutes, the Bolts had only 13 shots on goal, but 32 others were either blocked or missed the net.

Then, down to their final period and trailing by two, the Lightning rallied.  They pushed the pace from the onset and Ryan Callahan nearly scored on the opening shift.  They followed that play with several good scoring chances and finally received some puck luck when Victor Hedman banked a shot off Carey Price into the net at 3:29.  They tied it with 13:29 left.  Moments after Price robbed Tyler Johnson from point blank range, Johnson buried a cross-ice feed from J.T. Brown. 

The final 13 minutes were frenetic and intense, as both teams had chances to score.  Goalie Kristers Gudlevskis, who entered the game in relief of Anders Lindback after Gallagher’s goal, made a breakaway save on Gallagher halfway through the period.  The Lightning did well to get pucks to the net and nearly finished off some rebound chances, but couldn’t quite bury them.  Then, with just over two minutes left, at the end of a strong offensive zone shift, Cedric Paquette tripped Michael Bournival and the Canadiens received a power play.  Gudlevskis couldn’t quite squeeze his pads on Max Pacioretty’s redirction and the puck slid into the Lightning net with just 43 seconds left. 

On the one hand, it was a very disheartening way to lose a game – and a series.  I’m guessing many Lightning fans were upset that a penalty was called so late in regulation.  But Paquette did trip Bournival.  What’s a bit frustrating is that the officials let nearly everything else go in the game, including a clear goalie interference penalty not called on Rene Bourque earlier in the third period.  In fact, they let a lot go on both sides.  Just not that late trip.  

On the other hand, that goal wouldn’t have mattered if the Lightning hadn’t showed such mettle in the third.  They battled back from a two-goal deficit on the road in a hostile environment.  Rather than folding their tent, they gave themselves a chance to win the game.  Fans who have followed the team this year should not be surprised about the third period rally.  Their final period of the season was their best in the series.

I’ll have a column in the next few days with an overview of the season.  But here’s my take on the series.  The Canadiens deserved to win.  They played a sound, structured, defensively-tight series.  They repeatedly forced turnovers and counterattacked with speed.  They received big plays at key points in the series and those plays came from a variety of different skaters.  Congratulations to Montreal. 

For the Lightning, this series will be a learning experience.  13 different roster players made their NHL playoff debuts.  Game One, close as the score might have been, wasn’t evenly played.  The Habs looked like a playoff club – and the Lightning were not at that same level.  Slowly but surely, however, the Lightning got better as the series progressed.  It’s true that the Canadiens had the run of play for parts of Games Three and Four – their energetic crowd and early leads helped in that regard.  Hockey is a game of momentum and the Habs rode it for stretches in these last two games.  But it’s also true the Lightning played their best postseason hockey in Games Three and Four – they found ways to withstand and then push back against Montreal surges.  To a man, the Lightning players will be better for having gone through this series, short as it was.  I’m sure they are already thinking about getting back to the postseason next year, knowing they’ll use this experience to their advantage.

Lightning Radio Big Moment of the Game (as selected by Phil Esposito): Pacioretty’s GWG.

Lightning Radio Three Stars of the Game (as selected by Phil Esposito):

Brendan Gallagher – Canadiens. Goal. 

Josh Gorges – Canadiens. Assist.

Greetings from a wet and rainy Montreal as the Lightning prepare for Game 4 of their first round series against the Montreal Canadiens tonight.  For the first time this year Tampa Bay faces an actual “must win” game as they trail the best-of-seven series three games to none and must win tonight to force a Game 5 in Tampa on Thursday. 

This morning the Lightning to a man said they must focus on this game only and not look ahead.  The good news is after the first 10 minutes of the first period in Game 3 the Bolts played probably their best hockey of the series.  Tonight they will try and carry that momentum over from the drop of the puck.  

It appears the line-up will not change from last game. That means Sami Salo, who missed Game 3 with an upper body injury, will once again be out.  Anders Lindback came off the ice first and it look as though he’ll get the start.  No surprise there. Lindback played very well last game and gave the Lightning the chance to come back. 

Other big news from this morning was that Ben Bishop skated with the team for the first time since suffering the upper body injury.  Jon Cooper did confirm that there is no chance of him playing tonight, although he didn’t rule him out if Tampa Bay is able to extend the series.  Bishop said he felt good and that it was a big boost for him to be back on the ice with his teammates. 

The Lightning will stay in Montreal tonight and fly back to Tampa tomorrow.  The thought there is to let the players get a good night’s sleep instead of flying home after the game and not getting in until the early hours of the morning.   

TV: Sun Sports

Radio: AM 970 WFLA

For the Fans – Cooper told the media today that the players want to win tonight to make sure the home fans get another game at the Tampa Bay Times Forum.  If the Lightning were to win tonight Game 5 would be Thursday. 

Extra Shift: Montreal Canadiens 3 Lightning 2 – Game Three

Because of the controversial disallowed Lightning goal, this one left a sour taste in the mouth of anyone associated with – or cheering for – the Lightning.  I’ll get to my take on that call and the officiating as a whole in a bit.  But first, a look at what was the Lightning’s best game so far in the series.

It may have been the Bolts’ best game so far in the series, but they only began to look like themselves in the final two periods.  The Canadiens dominated the opening frame.  Montreal scored 11 seconds in, benefitting from a fluky bouncing puck that skipped over Matt Carle’s stick and landed right on the tape of Rene Bourque.  He finished his shot, delighting the raucous Bell Centre crowd.  That early goal sparked the Habs, who controlled play for nearly all of the first.  After yielding that early goal, Anders Lindback made 12 saves in the frame, many of them spectacular.  He kept the deficit at 1-0.  As was the case in the second half of Game Two, the Bolts had trouble sustaining any pressure in the Montreal zone.

But in the second period, the Lightning finally started pushing back.  They were able to attack the Montreal zone with speed.  The Bolts had more offensive zone time, which kept the puck out of the Lightning’s end.  They tied the score with an Ondrej Palat power play goal.  The Bolts dictated play for a majority of the period, despite having to kill two penalties, and generated several dangerous scoring looks.  One of those, from Alex Killorn, immediately preceded the Ryan Callahan disallowed goal.  Credit P.K. Subban with a great play following Killorn’s shot, as he batted the puck out of the air as it was heading towards the net.  (Of course, moments later, Callahan put the puck in the net and the goal was disallowed).  Shortly thereafter, more adversity – and some bad luck.  The Lightning lost Stamkos when he was accidentally kneed in the head – fortunately, he was able to return for the third.  But a scrum after the Stamkos injury put the teams in a four-on-four – and late in the four-on-four, Subban darted behind the net with Palat defending.  Palat’s stick got stuck in the net and he toppled over.  That unlucky break left Brendan Gallagher open and he finished Subban’s pass to give the Habs a 2-1 lead.

The Lightning yielded a third goal early in the final period and trailed by two.  But unlike in Game Two, when they couldn’t penetrate Montreal’s trap after falling behind by two, they were able to keep applying pressure.  They sliced the deficit to one with under nine minutes left, as Matt Carle scored at the end of a good puck possession shift in the offensive zone.  They didn’t get another, however, although they had a good look to tie the game during a sixth-attacker situation.  With the puck loose in the low slot, no Lightning player could cleanly gain control for a shot.  The spirited comeback effort fell short.

Now to the disallowed goal.  Incredibly, it was the third goal the Lightning have scored against the Habs that has been disallowed this year.  All have been debatable.  The first happened on November 12, when Price skated outside his crease into Tyler Johnson as Radko Gudas fired a shot into the net.  The second was on April 1, when J.T. Brown was in the crease, but made no contact with Price as Teddy Purcell scored.  Then there was the call in Game Three.  After taking his shot from close range, Killorn went into the net.  As he tried to get out, Subban blocked his path.  When Subban finally moved out of the way, Killorn buttonhooked around the post.  Price, on his way back in the crease, initiated contact with Killorn.  With Killorn out of the crease and heading towards the corner, Price stumbled, tried to straighten, stumbled again, slid over to the middle of the crease, slipped on his side, stopped the Callahan shot, then knocked it in his own net.

Reaction from nearly everyone in the hockey world, (excluding those associated with the Canadiens, referee Francis Charron and former ref Kerry Fraser), seems to be universal: it was a bad call.  That’s because, in the spirit of play, Killorn had nothing to do with the puck going in.  He tried to get out of the net as quickly and unobtrusively as he could.  Price seemed to go out of his way to initiate contact.  And the goal was scored several seconds after contact was made (Killorn was standing in the corner when the puck went in).  Fraser, however, who gives his opinion on calls for TSN, backed Charron.  He cited the rule book, which states that, even if the goalie initiates contact in the crease, the goal can be disallowed.  I’m willing to concede that, according to that clause, the goal could have been disallowed in this circumstance – but only if Callahan’s shot had occurred right after the contact.  My problem with the call is that Price had time to recover and reset himself.  Is it Killorn’s fault that Price stumbled and bumbled his way across the crease after trying to get up?  Fraser himself tweeted that Price “knows this rule and works it to his advantage better than any goalie in the league”.  It certainly worked to his advantage in this game.

It was a significant call.  The Bolts could have been playing with the lead – and momentum.  They’ve only had two leads in the series and both were short-lived.  This one felt different – the Lightning were dictating play and should have been rewarded for it.  Instead, the goal was taken away and a few minutes later the Palat unlucky stumble led to Gallagher’s goal.

It was a tough night for the Bolts vis-à-vis the officials.  An apparent Stamkos breakaway was negated due to a questionable offside call.  They only received two power plays all game while the Habs got five.  And Jon Cooper noted that Price, twice after his team iced the puck and couldn’t change lines, suddenly had a skate issue that needed attention on the bench.  Both times, the officials allowed this delay.  The fact that the Lightning didn’t let the officiating affect their drive in the final two periods is commendable.

But now, there is no more margin for error.  And the tough circumstances in this game do not change the fact that the Canadiens again played very well in Game Three.  They’ve been excellent in this series and their standard didn’t drop in this one.  In fact, the Habs could have scored four or five goals in the first period alone.  They continued to throw a solid, structured defensive game at the Lightning. 

Here’s the silver lining, though.  The biggest difference in this contest and the first two games in the series was how the Lightning improved their play, at least in the last 40 minutes.  It’s taken some time, but the Bolts finally matched the Canadiens’ intensity level.  The Lightning showed quite a bit of pushback, too, undeterred by the events that didn’t go their way. 

On Tuesday, the Bolts will have to play this way for the full 60.  If they can do it, they’ll give themselves an excellent chance to extend the series and bring it back to Tampa on Thursday for a Game Five.

Lightning Radio Big Moment of the Game (as selected by Phil Esposito): Callahan’s disallowed goal.

Lightning Radio Three Stars of the Game (as selected by Phil Esposito):

1.     Brendan Gallagher – Canadiens. Goal and assist.

2.     Tomas Plekanec – Canadiens. Goal.

The Lightning’s first round series against the Montreal Canadiens shifts to the heart of Quebec tonight as the Bolts and Canadiens meet for Game 3 at the Bell Centre in downtown Montreal.  Tampa Bay trails the series two games to none and are still looking to find the game that propelled them to second place in the Atlantic Division during the regular season.  Steven Stamkos said this morning that the most disappointing thing so far in the series is that the Lightning have not played their game.  Hopefully they will be able to find it tonight to avoid going down 3-0.   Jon Cooper left a lot to the imagination this morning in regard to tonight’s line-up, not revealing any changes.  Anders Lindback came off first after the morning skate, but Cooper said the goaltender would be a game time decision as well.  Ondrej Palat, who missed Game 2 with an upper body injury, skated both yesterday and today and will also be a game time decision.  He said he feels good.  Palat has been a huge part of Tampa Bay’s success this season so hopefully he is ready to go.   Something struck me on the team charter yesterday from Tampa to Montreal.  There were a lot of career NHL goals on that plane, 2,992 to be exact. Here’s a breakdown:

Radio Color Commentator, Phil Esposito - 717

Vice President and General Manager, Steve Yzerman - 692

Vice President, Dave Andreychuk - 640

Assistant General Manager, Pat Verbeek - 522

Assistant Coach, Steve Thomas - 421

Extra Shift: Montreal Canadiens 4, Lightning 1 – Game Two

Hockey can be a funny game sometimes.  The Game Two score was more lopsided than the final in Game One, but the Lightning actually played a better game than they did on Wednesday.  But unlike in Game One, when both teams twice surrendered one-goal leads, the first two goals scored in this game were very significant.

The Lightning vowed to play more with the puck and limit their turnovers in Game Two.  For much of the first period, they did just that.  The Bolts had very good jump in the opening 15 minutes – it’s true that they did allow some dangerous chances (in particular, a Brian Gionta breakaway) – but they controlled the puck for the majority of that time.  Their momentum was slowed after Steven Stamkos was assessed a four-minute double minor for high-sticking, but they killed off both penalties (and were aided by Montreal’s too-many-men infraction during the four-minute kill) and entered the first intermission scoreless.

With their failed chance on the double-minor, Montreal was in an 0-27 rut on the power play, but the Habs broke the tie on an early second period power play chance.  The Lightning didn’t stop buzzing, though.  Shortly after falling behind, they had separate wide-open looks from Alex Killorn and Steven Stamkos.  Both players didn’t record a shot, though, as they tried to unsuccessfully outwait Carey Price.  Each time, the player stickhandled behind the net and no shot was recorded.  Later in that sequence, Killorn took a shot from the left circle and Tyler Johnson narrowly missed tucking in the rebound.  Having dodged those bullets, the Canadiens netted an important second goal when Rene Bourque split the Lightning defense and slid the puck past Anders Lindback, who missed on a poke-check attempt.  That goal, which came just past the halfway point of the second period, completely changed the dynamic of the game.  

From that point on, the Habs went into a tight, defensive lock-down mode.  The Lightning struggled to get pucks through the neutral zone and maintain possession in the offensive end.  Scoring chances were limited, although Price made a terrific save on Cedric Paquette late in the second to preserve the two-goal lead.  Credit Montreal for playing very well defensively in the second half of the game.  The Bolts, down by two goals entering the third, had to press.  The Habs were content to sit back and wait for turnovers. Two of those turnovers led to Montreal counterattack goals.  A late six-on-four power play goal from Teddy Purcell broke up Price’s shutout bid.

The second half of this game looked ugly for the Lightning.  But that’s how it can look when you fall behind by a couple of goals in the playoffs against a good, structured opponent.  When the game was scoreless – and even when it was only 1-0 – the Lightning had more time and space to make plays.  It’ll behoove them to play with the lead Sunday in Game Three.

The Habs came to Tampa talking about how starting on the road can involve less pressure than beginning at home.  They played two very good games to gain control of the series.  But now the pressure is on Montreal to keep it going.  Twice in the last eight years, Montreal has blown a first round series in which it won the first two on the road, most recently in 2011 against Boston.  The Montreal press will undoubtedly remind the players of those previous collapses – and it’ll be interesting to see how the Canadiens handle a 2-0 lead in front of their raucous fans.

Lightning Radio Big Moment of the Game (as selected by Phil Esposito): Rene Bourque’s second period goal, giving Montreal a 2-0 lead.

Lightning Radio Three Stars of the Game (as selected by Phil Esposito): 

Rene Bourque – Canadiens. Two goals. 

 P.K. Subban – Canadiens. Two assists

The Bolts are in the hunt for a W tonight as the Montreal Canadiens lead the Lightning 1-0 in the First Round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

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Extra Shift: Montreal Canadiens 5, Lightning 4 – OT Game One

If the Lightning are going to defeat the Montreal Canadiens in this series, they’ll have to play a lot better than they did in Game One.

It’s not only that the Lightning were outshot, 44-25.  They struggled with many of the little details of the game – little details they had executed well during the regular season.  The Lightning didn’t manage the puck well enough, lost too many puck battles, struggled to cleanly clear their defensive zone and generally gave the Montreal players too much time and space to make plays.  As a result, it was the Canadiens who had the puck most of the night – and the Bolts were left defending.

As I’ve written before, both teams contribute to write a game’s narrative – and both clubs had their fingerprints on this one.  For Montreal, Game One was, by a country mile, its best performance of the season against the Lightning.  For most of the night, the Canadiens broke out of their own zone effectively, were hungry and hard on pucks, repeatedly forced turnovers and gave the Lightning little time and space.

So, now, looking ahead to Game Two on Friday, what do we make of what transpired? 

Was it that the Lightning, who dressed eight players making their NHL playoff debut (and two others, Mike Kostka and Anders Lindback, who had one game of NHL playoff experience), had trouble adjusting to the heightened intensity?  Steven Stamkos has stated that it took him some time to get acclimated to NHL playoff hockey when he first experienced it in 2011.  If that’s the case, the Lightning, now with a game under their belt, should look more like themselves in Game Two. 

And what about Montreal?  The Canadiens did make a few mistakes in the game - and the Bolts were able to exploit some of those errors for goals – but overall, the Habs played a terrific game.  Is this going to be Montreal’s standard for the rest of the series?  Or is it going to dip?

From Tampa Bay’s perspective, though, it can’t matter how well or poorly the Canadiens play.  The Bolts will need to be better in handling the details of the game, whether Montreal is bringing its “A” game or not. 

And there are things the Lightning can build upon.  Twice they rallied from third period deficits.  They did put four goals past Carey Price and generated several great scoring chances in overtime.  And there’s the knowledge that, while not playing nearly their best, they did take the game into overtime.

Lightning Radio Big Moment of the Game (as selected by Phil Esposito): Dale Weise’s overtime winner.

Lightning Radio Three Stars of the Game (as selected by Phil Esposito): 

Thomas Vanek – Canadiens. Goal. Team-leading seven shots.

Steven Stamkos – Lightning. Two goals. 

The First Round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs gets underway tonight at the Tampa Bay Times Forum. The Bolts will battle the Habs in the first of the best-of-seven series.

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  Pacific #1 Anaheim Ducks vs. WC #2 Dallas Stars: I’m likely in the minority here, but I think the Stars will upset the Ducks.  Much of my opinion is based on what I saw from the Stars in two late-season games against the Lightning.  Dallas was very impressive in both the Lightning’s 4-2 win on March 1 and the 5-2 Stars triumph on April 5.

I may not be giving the Ducks their due – I haven’t seen them live since the Bolts and Ducks played two games in November.  In a 5-1 Anaheim loss at the Tampa Bay Times Forum on November 14, the Ducks, who were at the end of a long stretch of road games, didn’t have their “A” game.  The other game between the clubs took place eight nights later – it was a wildly entertaining Anaheim 1-0 overtime win.  The teams traded glorious scoring chances throughout the game.

So as is the case in all four Western series, I’m basing my opinions on a very limited sample size.  It’d be easy to look at Anaheim’s successful season and just pick them.  But there’s something about the Dallas team that won’t let me. The Stars are a speedy, tenacious bunch.  According to broadcaster Ralph Strangis, with whom I spoke before the April 5 game in Tampa, the Stars’ problem has been inconsistency this year.  But when they’ve been on their game, their team speed has given opponents problems. 

The Ducks have star power in Corey Perry and Ryan Getzlaf – those two had another terrific season.  But the Stars have their own dynamic duo in Tyler Seguin and Jamie Benn.  Anaheim has some goaltending questions, too.  Who will start the series?  Jonas Hiller, who allowed 11 goals in his final three regular season starts?  Or one of the rookies – Frederik Andersen or John Gibson?  I may be dead wrong on this one, but I’m taking the Stars. Prediction: Dallas in Six.

Pacific #2 San Jose Sharks vs. Pacific #3 Los Angeles Kings: It seems incredible that one of these clubs will be eliminated in the first round.  If the NHL’s playoff format hadn’t changed, it would not have been a surprise to see these clubs in the Conference Final.  But the playoffs are now division-based, so they meet in the first round.

The Sharks are explosive, skilled, big and strong.  The Kings are structured, defensively air-tight and tough as nails.  The teams have plenty of postseason experience between them.  They met last year in the second round and the Kings edged the Sharks in a tight, hard-fought seven-game series.  Expect a similar type of series this year, although unlike last season, the Sharks have home-ice advantage.

The Sharks are going to have to break down Los Angeles’ structure.  As I wrote about the Penguins and Kris Letang yesterday, having a dynamic puck-moving defenseman will help attack a structured opponent.  San Jose’s Dan Boyle will be an important key to the Sharks’ attack.

The Kings will need to score some goals – getting Marian Gaborik at the trade deadline likely will help.  The talented Gaborik, who posted 16 points in 19 games with the Kings, has fit in nicely with his new club, clicking on a line with Anze Kopitar.

Ultimately, I think the Kings, who have won a number of close, white-knuckle series over the past two seasons, will again prevail.  But they may need to beat the Sharks on the road in the seventh game to do it. Prediction: Kings in Seven.

Central #1 Colorado Avalanche vs. WC #1 Minnesota Wild: The Avalanche have had an incredible season.  They went from 29th in the NHL last year to 112 points, third-most in the league.  They’ve got a group of exciting, young forwards.  Semyon Varlamov was a stellar between the pipes, winning a league-leading 41 games.  And head coach Patrick Roy is going to get a lot of votes for Coach of the Year.

But many of these Avs have never before been to the NHL playoffs – and unlike, say, the Lightning youngsters – they have had little to no pro playoff experience.  Of course, their head coach has had plenty – and it’ll be interesting to see how Roy prepares his squad for what’s ahead.

The Wild had a short-lived postseason run last year, losing to the Blackhawks in five games, but, man-for-man, Minnesota has much more postseason experience than Colorado.  Zach Parise, Jason Pominville, Ryan Suter alone have a taken part in a combined 165 postseason games.  Enigmatic netminder Ilya Bryzgalov seems to have found his game since being traded to Minnesota.

So the experience edge goes to Minnesota – and I expect that the Wild will give the Avs a difficult series.  I’d be very surprised if Minnesota goes out as quietly as it did last year.  They’ll be some bumps along the way for Colorado, but I think the talented Avs will survive. Prediction: Avalanche in Seven.

Central #2 St. Louis Blues vs. Central #3 Chicago Blackhawks: What an interesting series this will be.  Both teams enter the playoffs on losing skids.  The St. Louis slump seems more problematic, though.  Chicago was without stars Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews for the last stretch of the regular season, but the ‘Hawks were essentially locked into third place.  The Blues also had a their share of injuries down the stretch.  They, however, had much more at stake than the ‘Hawks.  The Blues finished the season on a six-game losing streak, which cost them a chance at the President’s Trophy and first place in the division.

It sounds as though all of the top players – on both sides – should be ready to go when the series begins.  But can the Blues snap out of their slump, which featured uncharacteristically leaky defensive play?  The Blues, similar to the Los Angeles Kings, play a very structured game.  That’s been their trademark since Ken Hitchcock took over early in the 2011-12 season.  Through their first 68 games, the Blues lost only 14 in regulation, but then dropped nine of their last 14 contests.  They’ll need to rediscover their game in a hurry against the defending Stanley Cup Champs.

Today, I throw in my predictions for the three Eastern Conference series not involving the Lightning.  Tomorrow, I’ll look at the West.

Metropolitan #1 Pittsburgh Penguins vs. WC #1 Columbus Blue Jackets: The Blue Jackets earned their way into the postseason with an excellent finish – 6-2-1 in their last nine (and they got help from Toronto’s precipitous late-season fall).  They’re well-equipped to have success in the playoffs.  Sergei Bobrovsky gives them excellent goaltending.  They play a solid, structured game.  And while they don’t necessarily have a ton of offensive firepower, they’ve got enough.  Ryan Johansen is a budding star and their power play was really humming at the end of the season.  (Their PP put on an impressive display last Friday at the Tampa Bay Times Forum).  So even though Pittsburgh swept the season series from the Blue Jackets, this series will be a tough one for the Metropolitan Division winners. 

As long as Columbus can play its usual tight, structured game, the Blue Jackets will give themselves a chance to pull off the upset.  On the Pittsburgh side, I believe there are two crucial variables that might swing the series one way or the other. 

The first is the play of (sometimes) maligned goalie Marc-Andre Fleury.  Fleury won a Stanley Cup with the Penguins in 2009 and was brilliant in helping his team defeat the Red Wings in Game Seven on the road.  But since that game, postseason highlights have been few and far between for Fleury.  He struggled during Pittsburgh’s playoff losses in 2010 (second round), 2011 (first round – to the Lightning) and 2012 (first round).  Last year, in the first round against the Islanders, he lost his starting job to Tomas Vokoun, who carried the Pens into the Conference Final.  Vokoun is trying to return from a blood clot issue, so he’s likely unavailable this year (although he’s in the minors working on a rehab stint).  The other option is Jeff Zatkoff, who has never before played in an NHL playoff game.  Just like in the past four years, Fleury has produced another solid regular season.  The Pens will need him to keep the softies to a minimum in this series.

The second is the Kris Letang element.  The Penguins have a cavalcade of supremely skilled forwards.  But Letang is the straw that stirs Pittsburgh’s drink.  All teams covet a puck-moving defenseman who can skate.  Letang is that player for the Pens.  While Matt Niskanen and Paul Martin are also capable, Letang is one of the league’s elite puck-movers.  He’s also tenacious defensively, which makes him hard to play against.  From the Pittsburgh zone, Letang can skate pucks out of trouble.  He can get pucks to those skilled forwards in areas where they can do damage.  He’s a wildcard in the offensive zone, because he’ll roam all over the ice (he just scored a sixth-attacker goal on Saturday against Philadelphia from the top of the crease).  And he adds another element to Pittsburgh’s already-lethal power play.  So the variable is this: I have no doubt Letang, who suffered a stroke earlier this year, is healthy enough to play.  But sitting out three months and returning just before the playoffs is a challenge.  If Letang’s game is where it normally is, then the Penguins will have a huge weapon to help them counter Columbus’ structure.  If Letang’s timing is a bit off, though, it’ll change the dynamic.

My hunch is that Letang will be a factor and Fleury will be fine. Prediction: Penguins in Six.

Metropolitan #2 New York Rangers vs. Metropolitan #3 Philadelphia Flyers:

The series will come down to two questions.  Can the defensively-solid Rangers produce enough offense?  The Flyers, whose team defense improved substantially throughout the season, have high-skill players.  Can they solve New York netminder Henrik Lundqvist?

Both teams are playing good hockey entering the postseason.  The Rangers have been terrific defensively since the Olympic Break and they got even stingier in the regular season’s final weeks.  In six of their last seven games, the Rangers held the opposition to two or fewer goals and yielded a total of nine goals in those games.  Much of solid team ‘D’ has to do with Lundqvist, who shook off an uncharacteristically tough start.  He allowed just 17 goals in his final 10 starts.  But scoring goals continues to be an issue for the Rangers, even after adding Marty St. Louis.  They have, on paper, enough talented offensive players, but the floodgates just haven’t opened.

For the Flyers, Claude Giroux enjoyed another terrific season, averaging more than a point per game.  His line, with Scott Hartnell and Jake Voracek, is one of the NHL’s most dangerous.  And the Flyers have depth beyond that top line.  Vinny Lecavalier is centering their fourth line and he has posted another 20-goal season.    Mark Streit gives them a dynamic element on the blue line and Andrew MacDonald, a shot-blocking machine, was an excellent trade-deadline acquisition.

When the Flyers visited the Lightning on Thursday, the Flyers’ broadcasters told me they felt goaltender Steve Mason, who has had a nice regular season, would be the number one for the postseason.  But Mason got hurt in Saturday’s OT win over Pittsburgh.  If he’s unable to play, Ray Emery will be in net.  Either goalie is capable of winning this series, especially if the Flyers provide goal support.

That’s the big “if”.  I think it’ll be a very close, long series.  But the Rangers get the extra contest at home.  And Lundqvist is one of the game’s best for a reason.  He’ll help get his team to the second round. Prediction: Rangers in Seven.

Atlantic Division #1 Boston Bruins vs. WC #2 Detroit Red Wings: The Red Wings have now qualified for the playoffs for 23 consecutive seasons.  That streak was in jeopardy for much of the year, as Detroit battled injuries to key players – and an early-season inability to win shootouts.  (They lost their first six shootouts, leaving a number of points on the table).  But the Red Wings persevered, in large part because of their youngsters.  Like the Lightning, the Wings have relied on players who excelled in the AHL.  Grand Rapids beat Syracuse in the Calder Cup Final last year – and the Red Wings cupboard is full of excellent prospects.  Like the Lightning, many of those prospects became full-time NHL regulars this year.  And a number of those players had a taste of the NHL postseason last year, when Detroit advanced to the second round.  Gustav Nyquist, in particular, seems poised to become an NHL star.  Also, a few games before the regular season ended, the Red Wings welcomed back Pavel Datsyuk, who has been dealing with knee troubles most of the season.  There aren’t many players in the world that can create magic with the puck like Datsyuk.

Because of all these reasons, there are pundits that think Detroit is the most dangerous opponent the Bruins, who won the President’s Trophy this year, could have gotten in the first round.  Also, some might point to the fact that the Wings took three of four games from Boston during the regular season. 

It may be true that Detroit will give Boston some trouble.  It’s even possible the Red Wings will win the series.  After all, a similarly-strong Boston team lost a first round matchup in 2012 to Washington.  It’s also true that the first round hasn’t been easy for Boston in recent years. In addition to the Game Seven OT loss to the Caps in 2012, the Bruins needed Game Seven OT wins to get out of the first round in both their Stanley Cup 2011 season and also last year, when they reached the Stanley Cup Final.

Extra Shift: Lightning 1, Washington Capitals 0 – SO

Obviously, the significance of this outcome is that the Lightning get the home-ice advantage against the Canadiens in their first round playoff series, which begins Wednesday at 7:00 PM at the Tampa Bay Times Forum.

How the Lightning earned the two points they needed is also relevant.  It’s true that they were facing a team not advancing to the playoffs.  The Capitals did not play with the same intensity as, say, the playoff-bound Columbus Blue Jackets did on Friday.  But the Caps are still a dangerous offensive team, so the Lightning had to play a solid, structured game to ensure that the Caps’ scoring chances were kept to a minimum.  They accomplished it with eight rookies (not including backup goalie Kristers Gudlevskis) in the lineup – and Cedric Paquette was playing only his second NHL contest while Cody Kunyk was making his NHL debut. 

For most of the game, the Lightning controlled play.  Especially in the first period, a frame in which they outshot the Caps, 11-3, and generated several dangerous looks.  Washington goalie Braden Holtby kept the Bolts off the board, though, with a series of terrific first period stops.  Tyler Johnson, Steven Stamkos (twice) and Ryan Callahan all had tremendous scoring chances.

For the Lightning, the second period featured a Paquette near breakaway and a good redirection from Kunyk.  At the other end, Anders Lindback didn’t have much action, but one of the Caps four second period shots was a good look for Mikhail Grabovski in the slot. 

The Caps came to life early in the third when they received their first power play.  Thirty percent of their offense this year came from their power play, which had netted five goals in the first two games between the clubs this year.  The Caps applied pressure throughout the two-minute advantage – and that was when Lindback was at his best.  He made four saves, including two on Troy Brouwer from the slot and a backdoor right skate stop on Nicklas Backstrom.  The Caps gained momentum from that power play and, as a result, they had the puck more than they did in either the first or second.  But the Bolts defended well, and despite allowing 11 third period shots, they didn’t give the Caps any more dangerous looks.  The Lightning weren’t exactly back on their heels, though.  They had a couple of other unsuccessful scoring chances: a point-blank shot for Nikita Kucherov and a cross-ice one-timer from Callahan.  But the game remained scoreless through regulation and overtime.

On March 27, the Lightning and Islanders engaged in a 13-round shootout.  The Lightning won, 5-4.  The five shootout goals came after the Bolts hadn’t scored one goal in their previous three shootouts combined.  In the 5-4 shootout win, Tampa Bay received goals from three defensemen: Mike Kostka, Matt Carle and Sami Salo.  In this shootout, Jon Cooper picked Carle and Kostka as his first two shooters.  Carle attacked the net with speed and tucked a forehand shot through Holtby’s pads.  It was the difference in the shootout, because the Caps failed on all of their three attempts.  Home-ice was finally secured. 

Now the playoffs begin.  It’s a whole new ballgame, so to speak.  Intensity will be ratcheted up and, compared to what they saw in Washington on Sunday, the Bolts must be ready for a totally different type of game on Wednesday night. 

Lightning Radio Big Moment of the Game: Carle’s shootout goal.  It was the only shot in the game that went in the net.

Lightning Radio Three Stars of the Game: 

Anders Lindback – Lightning. 18-save shutout.  Did not allow a goal in the shootout.

Braden Holtby – Capitals.  32-save shutout.  Allowed only one goal in the shootout.

Extra Shift: Lightning 3, Columbus Blue Jackets 2

Columbus outshot the Lightning, 38-22.  They attempted 68 shots while the Bolts put 45 shots towards the net.  But these stats don’t tell the complete story of this game, which was an entertaining affair between two playoff-bound clubs. 

Rather, the theme of this game was the drastic nature of momentum swings.  At different points in the game, each team was riding the wave of a momentum surge and dominating play.  The difference in the shot totals comes down to one simple fact: when the Blue Jackets were enjoying their surges, they produced more shots than the Bolts did during their surges.

These momentum swings are going to happen in the playoffs, so it wasn’t a bad thing that the Lightning had a “playoff preview” game like this one.  It was also a game in which Kristers Gudlevskis and Cedric Paquette made their NHL debuts.  Gudlevskis was excellent in making 36 saves.  Several were terrific stops, including the very first shot he faced – a point-blank attempt from Mark Letestu.  Paquette won 64% of his faceoffs – and one of those faceoff wins led to the first of Eric Brewer’s two second period goals.  The assist was Paquette’s first NHL point.  More importantly, he was very reliable, which earned him more ice time as the game progressed.  In his postgame press conference, Jon Cooper was asked what he thought of Paquette. Cooper noted that he played Paquette more in the third period than in the first and second combined and then stated: “That’s what I thought of Paquette.”

Unfortunately, the injury bug continues to bite the Lightning.  Ben Bishop and Sami Salo were hurt in the Toronto game on Tuesday.  Valtteri Filppula didn’t play in this one due to a lower body injury.  Teddy Purcell missed the contest because of the flu.  Early in the game, Victor Hedman left due to a lower body injury.  And Ondrej Palat was forced out after absorbing a big open-ice hit from Columbus defenseman Jack Johnson.  

Even with the absences of those players, though, the Lightning persevered, thanks in part to the performances from Gudlevskis and Paquette, who took five straight defensive zone faceoffs late in the game after Columbus had pulled the goalie. 

Having leapfrogged the Canadiens into second place, the Lightning now control their own fate vis-à-vis gaining home-ice advantage in the first round.

Lightning Radio Big Moment of the Game (as selected by Phil Esposito): Eric Brewer’s first goal, breaking a 1-1 tie and giving the Lightning the lead back for good.  It came just over a minute after Columbus had tied the score. 

Lightning Radio Three Stars of the Game (as selected by Phil Esposito): 

Eric Brewer – Lightning.  Two goals.  24:57 TOI.

Kristers Gudlevskis – Lightning.  Earned first NHL win in first NHL start.  36 saves.