Wanna blog? Start your own hockey blog with My HockeyBuzz. Register for free today!
 

Lightning/Jets Preview + Drouin/Erne Hit

December 7, 2013, 7:23 AM ET [38 Comments]
Michael Stuart
Ottawa Senators Blogger • RSSArchiveCONTACT
Fresh off a less-than-perfect 3-1 victory over the Ottawa Senators, the Tampa Bay Lightning are set to take on the Winnipeg Jets tonight at the Tampa Bay Times Forum. Former Southeast Division foes, the Jets and Lightning have not yet met in this 2013-14 campaign; tonight marks the first of two meetings this season.

Tampa heads into tonight’s contest looking to keep the offense flowing. After being shutout in two straight games, the Bolts broke out on Thursday against the Senators. Buoyed by a two goal performance from Marty St. Louis and good goaltending from Ben Bishop, the Lightning cruised to victory in front of the hometown fans. The win was an important one, as it vaulted the team back into a top three spot in the Atlantic Division.

While the Lightning did grab a victory on Thursday, it came with a big price. Both Keith Aulie and Victor Hedman were injured in the contest, which pushed the number of ailing Lightning bodies up to nine. It might be a bit of a stretch to imply that this season’s Bolts have been cursed by the Hockey Gods, but the injury troubles plaguing the team right now are pretty incredible. Battling through a Stamkos injury would be tough enough, but the Lightning’s depth has been absolutely destroyed. Give credit to so many of the ‘Tampacuse’ guys who have come in and looked like every day NHL veterans. Without them, who knows where the Lightning would be sitting right now.

The good news for Bolts Nation is that both Radko Gudas and Eric Brewer are expected to be back in the lineup tonight. As well as the inexperienced guys have played, it will be nice to see those two back out on the ice. Victor Hedman, unfortunately, is out for at least a week.

In addition, while nothing has been confirmed yet, expect to see a forward lineup similar to the one that beat the Senators on Thursday.

For their part, the Jets head into this evening’s matchup looking to gain some ground in the very competitive Western Conference. Gone are their days in the South-least Division. Today, Winnipeg finds itself competing with the likes of Chicago, Colorado, and St. Louis, among others, for positioning. For the Jets, games against teams in the much-weaker Eastern Conference are of the utmost importance. Performances like their 5-2 loss in Florida on Thursday don’t help the cause. Don’t be surprised if the Lightning see a very fired up Jets team tonight.

As much as the Jets have struggled this year, it would be unbelievably foolish for the Bolts to take them lightly. When you consider the competition that Winnipeg has faced night in and night out in the West, the fact that the Jets sit outside the playoff picture shouldn’t come as much of a surprise. Place that team in the Metropolitan Division, for example, and we might be talking about a group destined for its first post-season berth. Sometimes the world just isn’t fair.

For the Lightning to grab a ‘W’ tonight, they’ll need to play a 60 minute game. Western Conference teams have a knack for grinding games out; combating that won’t be easy. The two points at stake tonight are certainly within the Lightning’s grasp, but they’ll have to work for them. A great Saturday crowd will undoubtedly be at the Forum to cheer the guys on.

--

In case you missed it…

Lightning prospect Adam Erne hit Lightning prospect Jonathan Drouin right in the numbers during their QMJHL game on Friday evening. The hit, a blatant board, forced Drouin out of the game with what the Halifax Mooseheads are calling concussion-like symptoms. While the action and result are certainly of consequence and concern for the Lightning organization, Erne’s attempted justification might just be worse.

From Metro News:

“He wasn’t far from the boards and I pushed him pretty hard,” said Erne, who also received a game misconduct for the hit. “I thought it was a dive and I thought everybody else did, too. I wouldn’t have even gotten a penalty if he didn’t dive into the boards.”

He also said that Drouin could have absorbed the hit standing up, and avoided injury.

“If he dives and goes head first he’s going to hurt himself,” added Erne, who also knocked Murphy out of the game with a shoulder on shoulder check before stealing the puck and scoring the game’s first goal.


--

As always, thanks for reading.
Join the Discussion: » 38 Comments » Post New Comment
More from Michael Stuart
» Brown, Paul Combine for Canada's Golden Goal at World Championship
» Senators to Select 10th Overall; What Should They Do with the Pick?
» Finding the Right Centerpiece
» Senators Team Awards Ballot
» Melnyk Speaks