When the Tampa Bay Lightning organization elected to buy out the remainder of Vincent Lecavalier’s mammoth contract and sign Valtteri Filppula to a five year, $25-million deal, many people around the hockey world questioned the move. Those people felt that Filppula, who was coming off a dreadful 2013 campaign with the Red Wings, came with a lot of question marks. Only 28 games into this season, the Finnish forward has put nearly every single one of those questions to rest. A stellar performer in all three zones, the new fan favorite has truly been Mr. Everything for the Lightning this year.

It was easy for the naysayers to question Steve Yzerman’s choice to sign Filppula back on July 5th; after all, Filppula had only tallied more than 40 points once in his career with the Red Wings. Would he be able to effectively replace Vincent Lecavalier, a perennial 50-plus point player? Was the Lightning going to turn into a one-line team? Those questions got asked, and they’ve since been answered.

Through 28 games this year, Filppula has tallied 10 goals and 10 assists for 20 points. To compare, consider that he only scored 9 goals and 8 assists in 41 games last season with the Wings. He’s played important minutes for the Lightning since night one, and he’s been fantastic. Extrapolating his current production rate over a full-season, Filppula is on pace for a 29 goal year; that would be a career high.

While the production is certainly a nice aspect of Filppula’s game, it doesn’t begin to describe the contributions he’s made to the Lightning. In addition to being a solid offensive anchor on the second line, Filppula has simply excelled in a defensive role for a team that has struggled mightily in that area over the last couple of years. A faceoff guru, Filppula only starts 46.3 percent of his shifts in the offensive zone at even strength. In contrast, note that Marty St. Louis starts 53.1 percent of his five-on-five shifts in the attacking zone. The fact that Filppula has been an offensive threat while acting as a defensive stalwart is nothing less than spectacular.

Even further, Filppula has established himself as a very good possession player despite the fact that he’s playing incredibly tough minutes for Jon Cooper’s club. Of all Lightning centermen, Filppula has the highest Corsi Relative QoC rating, indicating that he goes up against top players on a very regular basis. Playing against the league’s best possession players isn’t an easy task for anyone, but Filppula has made it look like a walk in the park. Moreover, he has turned the tables on his competition and established himself as a solid possession player. Simply put, he’s thriving in a Lightning jersey.

When Steve Yzerman sat down in late June and started imaging the perfect complement for Steven Stamkos and his high-flying offensive game, he probably dreamed of a defensively responsible player who could also bring consistent offense. Through 28 games this season, Valtteri Filppula has been exactly that. From this blogger’s perspective, he has been everything the Bolts organization could have ever hoped for. Here’s hoping that continues.

As always, thanks for reading.

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