It goes without saying that the Tampa Bay Lightning had to be listed as a Top 3 defense in the NHL. Led by names such as Victor Hedman – you know, the best defenseman in the league – Mikhail Sergechev, and Ryan McDonagh, they are an elite unit.
Even after losing a top 4 defenseman in Kevin Shattenkirk this offseason to the Anaheim Ducks, this is still an elite group of players.
This defense completes this Stanley Cup-winning roster and they make Vezina Trophy-winner Andrei Vasilevsky look that much better as they ranked third in Corsi against in regulation (50.63). The Tampa Bay Lightning also finished second in the NHL when it comes to goal differential during the 2019-20 season, scoring 50 goals more than allowed on the year.
What’s most impressive about this defense, however, is their turnover differential, as they were one of only four teams last year who registered more takeaways than turnovers, as they were +14 on the season, ranking fourth in the big leagues. On the season, they gave away the second-fewest (405) possessions, translating to more offensive possession which, as you guessed it, translates to scoring more goals on offense.
As mentioned above, this defense lost one of their top blue-liners, but overall, they maintain almost an identical lineup to last year’s championship team. Expect the Bolts to have a top 3 defense in the 2020-21 season as Mikhail Sergechev continues to grow and develop into a true top-pair D-man, and their elite prospects continue to grow into the ranks of the pros.
Tampa Bay will always have one of the better goals-against averages due to having one of the best goalies in the league but pay attention to their Corsi score to see how much of that is attributed to their elite defense.