Tampa Bay Lightning Fall to Panthers, Await Trade Deadline Shake-Up

What is the hardest part of the NHL trade deadline?

Tom Petty knows.

A Tampa Bay Lightning roster that seemed locked-and-loaded in a smothering 4-0 shutdown of the near-mythic Chicago Blackhawks on Friday night looked nowhere close to being ready for prime time in Sunday’s 4-3 loss to the more-desperate and more-motivated Florida Panthers in Sunrise.

As a result, all the talk of the Bolts sitting on the sidelines at the trade deadline evaporated as quickly as a John Tortorella smile. A Jekyll-and-Hyde month will have that effect on hockey conversation. Tampa Bay’s 6-5-2 record since February 3, with the Lightning defense yielding four or more goals in four of the five regulation losses, suggests the roster is not a finished product. Especially on defense.

And the ugly truth that the Panthers had repeated uncontested looks at goaltender Ben Bishop, that teams have consistently gotten behind the Bolts blueliners of late, makes it clear that waiting for the return of Matt Carle from his abdominal surgery may not be enough.

All of the “experts” say the Lightning need a right-shooting defenseman. That’s why Arizona Coyotes veteran Zbynek Michalek is mentioned often as a player Bolts general manager Steve Yzerman is checking out.

At the other end of the rumor mill is disgruntled Columbus Blue Jackets star James Wisniewski, whose acquisition would be more of a “hockey deal” than a rent-a-player. These and other names will be associated with the Lightning all day long leading up to the 3 p.m. official deadline on trade deadline Monday.

And so the Bolts players sit, waiting to see what changes may come before they next suit up on Tuesday to host the Buffalo Sabres. Who will stay? Who will go? Who will be coming in? For a team as close-knit as this squad seems to be, the waiting is the hardest part.

The Lightning came out Sunday evening like they planned to continue the “statement” they made Friday night in dominating the seemingly indomitable ‘Hawks. The Bolts took the first five shots of the game and kept the Florida offense well away from the crease.

Then the cracks appeared. Right at the halfway point of the first period the Panthers took their first shot, a point-blank stop by Bishop. Seconds later the Panthers were again on the doorstep, with shooters to the left and right of Bish. In swooped newly-acquired sniper Jaromir Jagr. The 43-year-old came in unblocked, picked up the rebound, and popped it past the beleaguered Lightning goaltender. Jagr’s 717th career goal gave his new teammates a 1-0 lead.

The Bolts responded less than two minutes later. “Cool Hand” Jonathan Drouin, he of the recent no-look pass that took Twitter by storm, literally skated circles around the Florida defense before dishing to Anton Stralman. With Brenden Morrow effectively screening Florida goaltender Al Montoya, Stralman blasted in the equalizer to make it 1-1.

The period ended at one-all, but that was the last of the good times for the Lightning and the huge numbers of loyal and loud fans who made their way across Alligator Alley to the game.

Oh, the second period started promising enough, what with Ondrej Palat launching Tyler Johnson on a breakaway that was thwarted by an NFL-quality tackle by Derek MacKenzie. Johnson was awarded a penalty shot, but Montoya made the save and the fire went out for the rest of the period.

A scramble in front of the Tampa Bay net ended when a Jagr shot bounced off Bishop’s chest was put in by Aleksander Barkov over Stralman’s desperate stick check, giving Florida a 2-1 lead. Later, a near-brawl broke out when Morrow tapped at Montoya as the whistle stopped play.

The adrenaline-producer resulted in five penalties and a power play for Florida but no energy-boost for the moribund Bolts offense. Brad Boyes scored with three minutes left in the period on a shot that bounced off Bishop and the Bolts were down by 3-1. And that’s how the second frame ended, the Panthers outshooting the listless Lightning by 14-5 en route to that 3-1 edge.

It would have been worse, but another Jagr blast missed the net with seconds remaining.

A bad break for the Bolts gave Florida a 4-1 lead early in the third period. Aaron Ekblad‘s shot caromed off defenseman Jason Garrison and past Bishop for the disheartening power play score. Meanwhile the Lightning power outage continued, the Bolts registering zero shots for the first eight-plus minutes of the final frame.

And just like that, the Bolts came to life.

Jason Garrison arced a long pass to Alex Killorn from the point. Killer redirected the pass to Steven Stamkos and the captain blasted it past Montoya to make it 4-2. The goal was Stammer’s 35th of the season.

The Bolts buzzed the net. Stamkos hit a post. Tyler Johnson just missed. And then Nikita Kucherov ended a long Lightning visit to the Florida zone by hitting Johnson at the back door with an amazing cross-ice pass. Johnson tapped it in and the Bolts pulled to 4-3 with 2:44 left.

Too little too late.

The game ended at 4-3.

The Bolts fell to 38-20-6 on the season and 6-5-2 since February 3. With 82 points they remain five behind Montreal, holding on to second place in the Atlantic Division by one point over the resurgent Red Wings. Florida, in the meantime, pulled to within two points of Boston, the Bruins barely hanging on to the eighth and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.

In beating Tampa Bay, Florida showed the value of a quality pick-up at the trade deadline. Jagr, playing his second game for the Panthers, had a goal and an assist and was named the No. 1 star of the game. Jagr’s new linemate, Jonathan Huberdeau, had three assists and was named the No. 2 star. The other new linemate, Aleksander Barkov, scored a goal. Huberdeau (age 21) and Barkov (age 19) are together not even as old as the 43-year-old Jagr.

So the Tampa Bay Lightning players, secure in their playoff ambitions but reeling from defensive lapses in recent weeks, will be nervously awaiting 3 p.m. on Monday, waiting for news of a trade that may never come, the addition of a teammate they have never known, a change in the locker room they never wanted.

And THAT is the hardest part.

Next: NHL Trade Rumors: Would Mike Green Be A Good Fit for the Lightning?’

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