Tampa Bay’s Surprising Start

Many considered the Tampa Bay Lightning to be potential Stanley Cup contenders, before the 2015-16 season kicked off. Now, however, the Lightning have some doubters after a mediocre start to the season. Through 17 games, the Lightning are 7-8-2. This record isn’t horrible, in fact, it is good enough to place them 4th in the atlantic division out of 8. Tampa Bay isn’t playing up to expectations, and this article will examine the potential reasons for their slow start.

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The 2015 Stanley Cup finalists were extremely impressive last season, and as a fairly young team, with few roster changes over the summer, many fans expected Tampa Bay to be back, better than last year. So far this season, Tampa hasn’t been living up to their potential. The main reason for Tampa Bay’s slow start, is under-performing players.

Every team has leaders, and those leaders have roles to play. The fact is, Tampa Bay is a team with lots of offensive firepower, and their leaders are known to score goals and put up lots of points. However, the beginning of the season has been disappointing for a couple of Tampa’s key players.

Nov 1, 2015; Raleigh, NC, USA; Tampa Bay Lightning forward Tyler Johnson (9) bounces the puck off his stick before the game against the Carolina Hurricanes at PNC Arena. The Tampa Bay Lightning defeated the Carolina Hurricanes 4-3. Mandatory Credit: James Guillory-USA TODAY Sports

Steven Stamkos had 72 points last season in 82 games, Tyler Johnson had 72 points in 77 games, Nikita Kucherov had 65 points in 82 games and Ondrej Palat had 63 points in 75 games. Judging by the beginning of this season, Steven Stamkos is on pace for just over 53 points, Tyler Johnson and Nikita Kucherov are on pace for just over 38 points, and Ondrej Palat was on pace for 34 points before an injury sidelined him for 3-5 weeks.

These players were Tampa’s four main contributors last season. As shown, their production this season has fallen compared to last season, and as of now, they are all on pace to have weaker seasons statistically than last season. The Lightning hockey culture is to score goals. Last season, Tampa had the most goals-for in the league (262), proving that they are a team with lots of firepower. Tampa isn’t considered a defensively minded team, which means that in order to win games, they need to score goals.

As of now, the Lightning are ranked 19th in the league in goals for, with 39 goals through 17 games. That is an average of 2.3 goals per game, while last year their average goals per game was 3.2. This year’s production is almost one entire goal lower than last year’s.

Nov 5, 2015; Buffalo, NY, USA; Tampa Bay Lightning right-wing Nikita Kucherov (86) skates with the puck during the third period against the Buffalo Sabres at First Niagara Center. The Lightning won 4-1. Mandatory Credit: Timothy T. Ludwig-USA TODAY Sports

So how does Tampa turn their season around and get back to being the dominant team that they were last year?

The answer is simple, the Lightning have to open up the ice. Tampa Bay is one of the fastest, most skilled teams in the league. They must use their strengths to succeed, which sounds obvious, but isn’t always easy. Tampa Bay is effective when they’re breaking out of their zone quickly, using their speed to beat opposing teams through the neutral zone, and scoring off the rush.

The Lightning are a highly skilled team, though their skill may be what is hurting them. Tampa has to simplify their game, make 2-3 passes from the defensive zone to the offensive zone, and use their puck possession skills and speed to ward off opposing defenders. Rather than getting frustrated, and over complicating the game, the Lightning need to break their games down to the basics. They need to take advantage of the aspects of their game that made them successful in past seasons.

Ultimately, with the talent in Tampa’s lineup, they are still a team that can do a fair amount of damage in the league. With 65 games left to play, the Lightning have plenty of time to turn up their goal scoring and turn around their season. The pressure falls on their forwards to perform and help bring their team out of the slow start that they are currently experiencing.

It’s up to Lightning coach, Jon Cooper, to make the necessary adjustments that will help his star players produce. The bright side, though, is that other players have been stepping up to try to help out the aforementioned struggling top scorers. Players like Victor Hedman and Valtteri Filppula are pitching in offensively, which helps take some weight off of the top scorer’s shoulders. 

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All things considered, if the Lightning are able to start producing like they have been able to in the past, the NHL community will quickly forget about their early season struggles, and will once again consider them as one of the league’s top teams.