I have had Steven Stamkos on my mind for the past month.
I can't help myself.
I cover the Buffalo Sabres on a daily basis. When the opening faceoff puck hits the ice tonight in the city on the Gulf Of Mexico, the Sabres will have played the Lightning four times in their first fifteen games of the season.
Steven Stamkos and his Lightning are limping along at a 7-7-2 clip in their first 16 games. Per usual, Stamkos, a pending UFA, has been terrific for the Bolts this season. The rest of his teammates? Not so much.
Say what you will about Stanley Cup Finals hangovers. I do think buy it. I think that Jon Cooper was able to catch Lightning in a bottle last season and he found personnel groupings that created impressive secondary and teriary scoring that carried the Bolts to the Cup Finals.
This season?
Not so much.
Stamkos lead the Bolts in scoring last season with 43 goals and 29 assists. He has 7 goals and 3 assists today.
Expectations have been sky high, and appropriately so, for The Triplets to duplicate their offensive onslaught and production from last season. As a line, The Triplets scored 73 goals in the 2014-15 regular season.
Sixteen games into this season, The Triplets have scored only 9 goals as a line.
Tyler Johnson's struggles continue as he has scored only 2 goals in 16 games this season after he popped in 29 goals in the 2014-15 regular season.
Nikita Kucherov scored 29 goals last season and has scored five goals this season.
Ondrej Palat scored 16 goals last season and has only 2 goals for this season. It was announced yesterday that Palat will miss the next 3-5 weeks with an ankle injury.
The Bolts are living off their reputations as being the NHL's highest scoring team in the league. Frankly, this season they are a very average offensive squad.
Ryan Callahan has 4 goals after scoring 24 times last season.
Val Filppula scored 12 goals last season and has only one goal this season.
Alex Killorn scored 15 goals last season and has only 2 goals this season.
Brian Boyle scored 15 goals last season and has scored only 2 goals this season.
The Bolts aren't lighting the lamp at the same frenetic pace they did so at last season.
It's no wonder why the Bolts are a middling team right now.
They better giddy up and go or they will spend the rest of this season chasing the eighth and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.
****
Steven Stamkos trade rumors, will continue to percolate until such time that Steve Yzerman signs his captain to a multi-year, monster contract extension.
For the past six month, Yzerman and the agents for Stamkos have been radio silent regarding updates on the negotiations. The two sides have seemingly transpired in total silence between both parties. No chatter. No negotiating in the media.
That all changed on Monday afternnoon when Stamkos' agent Don Meehan spoke about the Stamkos matter on TSN Drive in Toronto.
Meehan's client is the hottest player in the NHL right now because he is young and about to enter his prime.
Inquiring minds want to know:
Why hasn't Stamkos signed a new 8 year, $80 million contract extension yet?
Are the Bolts trying to trade Stamkos?
Meehan said that the patient nature of the Stamkos contract negotiations are not uncommon.
“Well, I think although it may not be the norm, it’s not unprecedented. We had a client, Corey Perry, who ended up signing in his last year as well and Ryan Getzlaf, one of this teammates, did the same thing. Very, very substantial players. Very important to their team.“We have a great rapport and an excellent professional relationship with Steve Yzerman and these are some issues that Steven and I dealt with at the end of the year. That we’ve talked about. All that we’re really doing at this point in time is taking a little bit more time.
“But we’re engaged with Steve Yzerman. And as I say, we have a great relationship with him. And when you get to a point in a career where you have professional decisions to make like this – as you know, the Collective Bargaining Agreement doesn’t really afford you this kind of opportunity that often. And the Collective Bargaining Agreement is a give and take process, and it’s something that you – for this kind of a decision and this kind of player, I really think that you have to practice due diligence to the nth degree.…
Transcript: Nichols
**
Apart, they create solo performances that cause jaws to drop. Together, they make hockey magic.
Jack Eichel and Tyler Ennis both crave the puck.
They love to create and use their hockey imaginations when they have the puck on their sticks. Both have high octane speed, moves like Jagger and hands like neurosurgeons.
On Tuesday night in Tampa, they will be given the opportunity to free wheel and to create offensive chances. Together. Again.
Heavy hammer Jamie McGinn will fly alongside Eichel and Ennis to protect and body guard for the power duo while they are free styling and getting their groove on. For a big man, McGinn can scoot and support his new sickly skilled, speedy wingers. McGinn will fetch loose pucks and feed it to his gifted side kicks in scoring areas and let them do their thing.
Eichel and Ennis last played together during the exhibition season because of their ability to vibe off of one another while flying through all three zones at break neck speed.
“They played a little bit together here and there,… Bylsma said after Monday's practice.
Bylsma's curiosity is piqued by the advent of numbers 15 and 63 playing together, however, he said that he would like to see Eichel and Ennis share the puck with one another.
The water buggy Ennis is a perfect role model for Eichel. Both players prefer to color outside the lines. They both play north hockey. They both freak out enemy D-men and goalies because of the unpredictability and their innate powers to create spontaneous scoring chances.
Bylsma is playing a hunch by playing Ennis in Tampa on Tuesday night.
“I’d like to see that creativity together. I know Jack likes to have the puck, Tyler likes to have the puck. If Jack has the puck in the last minute of the last game, maybe we don’t see Tyler dance up the ice with it (to create the winner).“So there’s been a concern there’s only one puck for the two of them. I think two skilled players having the chance to play together and create off each other is what we’re hoping for".
Ennis, 26, is Buffalo's resident grey beard. He is a seven year Sabres veteran and was the team's top scorer with season with 20 goals and 26 assists. In terms of improvisation, Ennis speaks Eichel's language like no other player. Save Evander Kane.
Ennis has found his groove and is now tied with Eichel and Rasmus Ristolainen (7 points) for second place on Buffalo's scoring list. He is on fire right now.
Ennis recently missed two games due to an undisclosed injury. However, on Saturday he returned with a vengeance to set up Ristolainen's game winning goal with 17 seconds remaining in regulation against Ryan Miller and the Vancouver Canucks.
Eichel, 19, is looking to record his first point of the season on the road. He has scored all five of his goals--- all of NHL Network "On The Fly" highlight package vintage--- and both of his assists on home ice in Buffalo.
For now, Jack is oh for the road. For now, that is.
Eichel is stupid good and his head coach is looking to pair him with Ennis to create a scary offensive weapon of mass destruction.
Eichel and Ennis make the sublime look ridiculous and the ridiculous look sublime.
Eichel is on board with having Ennis and McGinn riding shotgun with him.
Thanks, Sabres.com
Bylsma ran these trios and D groups on Monday:
Moulson – O'Reilly – Gionta McGinn – Eichel – Ennis Larsson – Girgensons – Reinhart Deslauriers – Legwand / Schaller – Foligno