Solidify the defense?
Check.
Find a veteran backup goaltender?
Check.
Add some gritty forward depth?
Check.
Bring in a top-six forward, possibly to play alongside Vincent Lecavalier?
Not just yet.
Aside from that last box on the off-season to-do list for the Tampa Bay Lightning, all of the shopping duties seem to have been completed. Granted, there is still some housekeeping to do - such as re-up a few more restricted free agents, hire an assistant coach and maybe deal away an extra defenseman or two - but, for the most part, Lightning brass can be pleased with what they’ve been able to accomplish in their efforts to quickly turn their team from last year’s 29th place mess into a playoff contender. If no further additions are made, it’s still easy to see improvement already, if only on paper.
That top-six forward just might turn out to be a real wild card here. It’s conceivable that the right acquisition in this target area could very well take the Bolts from having a nice little off-season to immediately becoming a contender in the Southeast Division next year. GM Brian Lawton’s word of the summer has been value all along and, thus, he won’t (can’t) just throw a blank check at the best free agent scorer available but, with a little luck, it’s one last tweak to the top-six that could make the biggest impact of all.
The luck the Lightning might be looking for is probably more like hope, as in hope for an impact forward to take less than what they might receive elsewhere for a chance to fill out a top-six alongside the likes of Lecavalier, Martin St. Louis, Steven Stamkos, Ryan Malone and Vinny Prospal. If they can’t fill this need with a value signing via free agency, it appears as though they’ll have to make due with what they have, as the tradable assets they possess aren’t likely to yield top-six talent. In that case, someone like Steve Downie, who is probably better served with a full season’s worth in somewhat of a lesser role, might be elevated to one of the top two lines. More of a youth infusion, should someone like Dana Tyrell really stand out in training camp - entirely possible, mind you, after an impressive showing during the recent Young Guns Camp - is also an option.
But that impact free agent forward - the one who would have to sacrifice some salary for a shot to really throw the Lightning turnaround into fast-forward - is probably the ideal scenario.
That player, head and shoulders above any other still without a contract, is Alex Tanguay.
Whispers that he might be in the Lightning crosshairs began a few weeks back but the salary concerns, particularly when it had been reported that multiple teams were bidding for Tanguay’s services, always put the conversation to rest before it ever really built any momentum.
But now, as the summer wears on, as long as Tanguay remains available, the Lightning should be leaning on the five-time 20-goal scorer and his agent heavily to bask in the Florida sunshine and reap the benefits of playing with the top-line talent here in Tampa. Adding a player of his ilk to the rest of the Bolts core would put an exclamation point on an off-season that has made the hockey world notice them - and for the right reasons this time.
Despite lingering issues between the franchise’s primary owners, suddenly, the incessant jabs at the Lightning, the sarcastic quips and chiding chuckles have subsided. Clearly, this year’s free agent quality trumps last off-season’s quantity. Beginning the summer with the likes of Mattias Ohlund and Matt Walker was a great first step. Adding Tanguay would seal the deal on an off-season where pinpoint precision was executed as the Lightning landed strategic targets one after another and didn’t just fill holes in their roster but improved nearly every aspect of their organizational depth. Defense, goaltending, character forwards and secondary scoring. Four-for-four. An impressive feat, no doubt about it.
Of course, if Tanguay becomes a non-option, for whatever reason, there are potential plans B, C and D.
But Maxim Afinogenov hardly boasts the “compete factor” Lawton and staff are so often talking about.
Miroslav Satan spent part of the stretch run in the American Hockey League last season.
And Petr Sykora has been mentioned as yet another possibility for KHL defection.
Recently, Lightning owner Oren Koules admitted to having
“No real plan B”, when it came to the Ohlund and Walker signings that kicked off free agency.
At this stage of the off-season, clear winners already, the Tampa Bay Lightning have no need for any sort of safety net when it comes to what should be their final free agent addition either.
Tampa Bay needs to make their pitch to Alex Tanguay.
Hopefully, he’s willing to listen.
JJ
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