Tampa Bay Lightning Look To Find Balance In Sunrise

The Tampa Bay Lightning look to get back on track and restore balance as they head into the BB&T Center in Sunrise to face the Florida Panthers.

The Tampa Bay Lightning started out on a rollercoaster ride that somehow transformed into a free fall. Now, with only three more games left in the regular season, the Lightning hope to find their center and charge into the BB&T Center and get back on the winning track against the Florida Panthers.

The Tampa Bay Lightning played one of the best games that they’ve played all season long as they completed the series sweep of the Montreal Canadiens, thus clinching the Lightning’s place in the 2015 Stanley Cup Playoffs.

Unfortunately, that dream game quickly turned into a nightmare.

The very next night the Tampa Bay Lightning would fall 3-1 to the Toronto Maple Leafs and then again on Thursday night to the Ottawa Senators; this time in the overtime period.

While we will concede that the Tampa Bay Lightning is dealing with more than their fair share of injuries right this minute; some of which are on key players in the Lightning’s success this season, the playoffs are very unforgiving, and if the team continues to drop games like this, we may be in for a repeat of last season.

The good news is that the Lightning still has plenty of time to turn this ship around, and that all starts tomorrow night in Sunrise. What better place to get back on track than in the home of our in-state rivals, the Florida Panthers?

The Lightning has won two of the three encounters that they have been in with the Panthers so far this season. A win in Sunrise against the Panthers tonight would do so much more for the Lightning than steer the ship back in the right direction; it would also mean that we would win the Governor’s Cup for the second year in a row.

It may not seem like much to people outside of the Sunshine State, but here in Hockey Paradise, it’s a pretty big deal; especially with a rivalry like the one between the Bolts and the Panthers.

One of the biggest questions heading into tonight’s game is when we will start to see some of our heavy hitters that have been sitting the sidelines due to injury will be making their way back to the ice.

Players like Tyler Johnson, who is currently considered day-to-day with an Upper Body Injury, and Victor Hedman, who is currently day-to-day with a Lower Body Injury, have been instrumental in the Lightning’s success this season. Both players have been making progress and should be back on the ice soon, but the real question is when.

When the Lightning takes the ice tonight, there is one player in particular that they will need to keep their eyes on, Panthers center Brandon Pirri. Pirri has nine points in his last eleven games and will certainly be looking to improve that record tonight.

The Panthers are an incredibly hungry team who are fighting for their playoff lives right now. If the Panthers fall to the Lightning on Saturday night, they kitty cats would essentially be eliminated from playoff contention. This means that they are going to be aggressive and capitalizing on every opportunity put in front of them.

When the Bolts hit the ice, they need to not only strike first and strike hard, but they need to be focused and prepared. We may have clinched our spot in the post season, but positioning and home ice advantage has their benefits; something that the Lightning could use to their advantage.

Everyone knows that the Tampa Bay Lightning has tremendous depth this season. This is one of the main reasons we have weathered the storm through our plethora of injuries this season. Another thing we have playing to our advantage is that the Lightning has not lost more than two games in a row all season long.

We don’t know about you, but we have full faith that our boys in blue will be able to pull out a win tonight, send those Panthers backing all the way to the golf course, and get back on track as we head into the post season.

The puck drops at 7:00 p.m. Make sure you’re ready to Be The Thunder when game time rolls around!

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