With two straight wins in their back pocket, the Tampa Bay Lightning (30-16-5) will take to the ice at the Tampa Bay Times Forum tonight for what should be a very entertaining tilt with the Colorado Avalanche (32-13-5). This is the first of two meetings between the out-of-conference rivals this season.
Both the Lightning and Avalanche head into tonight’s game looking to build on previous wins. The Lightning, as you’ll remember, defeated the Ottawa Senators in a shootout on Thursday night to snap a five (!) game home losing streak. The Avalanche, for their part, were in Sunrise last night and defeated the Panthers by a score of 3-2.
One of the big storylines to follow this evening is the matchup between Tyler Johnson of the Lightning and Nathan MacKinnon of the Avalanche. While, Tyler Johnson, an undrafted free agent pickup, may not have a whole lot in common with MacKinnon, who was drafted 1st overall pick in the 2013 draft, the fact is that he is right there with the Avalanche rookie in the Calder Trophy race. Both first year players have been fantastic for their respective clubs.
While no official lineup announcements have been made as of writing time, it should be expected that the Lightning will dress a lineup similar to the one that beat Ottawa on Thursday. The fact that Tampa’s coaching staff has been able to ice the same lines and allow players to develop chemistry with each other in the absence of Steven Stamkos cannot be discounted as a reason for the team’s success. I would expect Ben Bishop to get the start in goal.
Further to that, it should be noted that Richard Panik won’t be in the Bolts lineup tonight. He was assigned to the Syracuse Crunch midday yesterday. In 39 games with Tampa this season, Panik compiled 2 goals and 11 points. The Slovak forward struggled to find his game in the NHL’s regular season after a strong showing last year in the AHL and this year in the Lightning’s preseason. Sending him back to Syracuse so that he can get consistent playing time is the best move for both the organization and player.
Immediately following the Panik demotion, Riley suggested that a Brett Connolly call-up might be on the way. As I’ve mentioned on more than one occasion, Connolly has been playing some very (read: incredibly) good hockey down in the American league. It’s my belief that he’ll get another shot with the Lightning this season, but I don’t think that shot will come today. In my view, the Panik demotion came as a result of a couple factors:
1) Steven Stamkos is set to take part in light contact drills with the team, indicating that he is nearing a return to the lineup. His 10-week x-ray was met with a positive response, and it still sounds like he plans to be in the Lightning lineup prior to the Olympic break. With 91 set to come back soon, the Lightning were going to have to make a roster move at some point anyway.
2) As mentioned, Panik needs to play. While many have been frustrated with him this season, there’s no denying the fact that he can, and likely will, be an impact player at the NHL level. Just as the organization has done with Connolly, it has sent Panik down to get some seasoning and confidence. Panik’s day as an NHL regular will come. I’d take that prediction to the bank.
It’s almost fitting that the Lightning are playing the Avalanche tonight. I can use that fact as a perfect segue to discuss the Lightning rumors that Eklund posted in his blog last night. The HockeyBuzz big boss indicated that the Bolts have interest in both Blake Wheeler of the Winnipeg Jets and Ryan O’Reilly of the (you guessed it) Colorado Avalanche. Both gentlemen are big players with offensive instincts.
At first glance, it’s easy to see why any team would have interest in O’Reilly and Wheeler. But, as much as I like both players, I’ll say that the Lightning really don’t have much of a need for expensive depth (the cost to acquire either player would be massive) on the wing or at center. The team would probably like to unload some of its more expensive forward pieces, in fact.
Heading towards the trade deadline, defense is most likely Steve Yzerman’s number one concern. The general consensus among commentators is that the Lightning GM would probably like to add a young, but experienced, right-handed defender. Names that have popped up on these boards over the course of the season include Dan Girardi and Cody Franson. If Tampa is going to start dealing young, promising assets for current pieces, I’d wager that management will be targeting defensemen. Still, I’m not holding my breath for a big Lightning trade.
Lightning head coach Jon Cooper mentioned yesterday that his Bolts and Patrick Roy’s Avalanche mirror each other in a lot of ways. It’s hard to argue with that. Both teams boast a bevy of youthful exuberance and offensive flair, and both teams have won a lot of hockey games this year. Just as Cooper has totally transformed the Lightning's team culture, Roy (and Joe Sakic) have done the same in Colorado. Credit to all three gentlemen. For fans in both Denver and Tampa, the 2013-14 National Hockey League season has been a fun one to follow.
Here’s hoping that excitement carries over into tonight’s game.
As always, thanks for reading.