Tampa Bay Lightning: 10 Reasons We're Going To Win The Cup

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Mar 24, 2015; Tampa, FL, USA; Tampa Bay Lightning center Tyler Johnson (9) is congratulated by right wing Ryan Callahan (24) and teammates after he scored against the Florida Panthers during the first period at Amalie Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

The Tampa Bay Lightning are going to win the Stanley Cup. There, I said it. I know some of you in Bolts Nation think it is wrong for anyone to say something like this, as if it could jinx the team. Nonsense.

Say it with me, the Tampa Bay Lightning are going to win the Stanley Cup this year!

Now, there have been some national publications such as The Hockey News that have predicted this very thing. So, I am going to give you my top 10 reasons why I believe that Stanley is going to be getting a tan this summer.

Next: Reason #10 - Leadership

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Mar 26, 2015; Tampa, FL, USA; Tampa Bay Lightning center Steven Stamkos (91) reacts after the game against the Nashville Predators at Amalie Arena. The Predators won 3-2. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

Leadership

We know Steven Stamkos is one of the best young Captains in the NHL. Still just 25 years old, Stamkos is without a doubt, the leader on this team. Not only does he lead with his play, his scoring, his work on the power play but he leads where it counts – in the locker room.

To bolster the leadership on this team, Steve Yzerman traded for, then re-signed Ryan Callahan, former Captain of the New York Rangers. Yzerman also brought Brenden Morrow, former Captain of the Dallas Stars to the club in the off season.

Look up and down this lineup and you see leadership. Coach Jon Cooper knows this and that is why I believe, that we saw so many players on the roster throughout the season wear the A in games.

In addition to Callahan and Morrow, we saw guys like Ondrej Palat, Brian Boyle and Victor Hedman wear the A.

Add to that guys like Matt Carle, Anton Stralman, Jason Garrison and Braydon Coburn. Players that other younger players look up to during the course of a long season.

There is little doubt that this team has a very good mix of younger players and veterans. Still, the Tampa Bay Lightning is the youngest team in average age to make the playoffs this year. That bodes well for future Stanley Cups.

Next: Reason #9 - Goaltending

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Apr 2, 2015; Ottawa, Ontario, CAN; Tampa Bay Lightning goalie Ben Bishop (30) covers the puck in the second period against the Ottawa Senators at the Canadian Tire Centre. Mandatory Credit: Marc DesRosiers-USA TODAY Sports

Goaltending

Conventional wisdom dictates that when a team is in the NHL playoffs, their goalie must have a .920 save percentage or better for that team to have a shot. The fact is that Ben Bishop has a save percentage of .915 for the season. Backup, Andrei Vasilevskiy is a fraction better at .918.

Here is what I see. Over his last four games, with three of those on the road, Ben Bishop has saved 112 out of the last 120 shots he has faced.

The Tampa Bay Lightning won three of those four games with the fourth going to a shootout where they lost to Ottawa.

That save percentage for Big Ben as we wind down the season and head into the first round of the playoffs is a gaudy .933.

That is noteworthy in and of itself but to think Bishop has accomplished this with half of his top six defensemen injured and not playing is huge.

While on the surface, it may not seem like goaltending is a strength, I maintain that getting all our injured players back for the playoffs will only strengthen the wall that Bishop is becoming as the regular season draws to a close.

In addition, we all remember losing Bishop to that elbow injury last season and him missing the first round of the playoffs. I know that Bishop has a lot to prove to a lot of people, mostly himself that he is an elite NHL goalie. Where better to prove that, than to stand on his head in the playoffs.

Next: Reason #8 - Power Play

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Apr 4, 2015; Sunrise, FL, USA; Tampa Bay Lightning right wing Ryan Callahan (24) celebrates his goal against the Florida Panthers with center Steven Stamkos (91) defenseman Nikita Nesterov (89) and left wing Jonathan Drouin (27) in the third period at BB&T Center. The Lightning won 4-0. Mandatory Credit: Robert Mayer-USA TODAY Sports

Power Play

I know some of you are going to go nuts reading that I think the team’s power play is a legitimate reason why they will win the Stanley Cup. Let me explain.

Over the last five games, we have seen the unit click to score a power play goal in each of those five games. Over this span, the PP unit has scored on 7 of their 21 power play opportunities.

That, my friends, is a 33% clip. The number one power play in the NHL belongs to the Washington Capitals with a 25% success rate.

I submit that the Tampa Bay Lightning, specifically their power play units are gelling at the right time. They are succeeding at a rate that would outshine any possible opponent.

Coach Cooper has juggled the special teams like a mad scientist.

Hell, we have even seen Big Brian Boyle stand in front of the opposing goalie on the power play. Whatever works, Coop, whatever works.

Since I am already out on this limb, I will go further and say that the power play unit for the Lightning will explode in the playoffs.

Next: Reason #7 - Coach Jon Cooper

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Mar 30, 2015; Montreal, Quebec, CAN; Tampa Bay Lightning head coach Jon Cooper during the second period against the Montreal Canadiens at the Bell Centre. Mandatory Credit: Eric Bolte-USA TODAY Sports

Coach Jon Cooper

Last summer, I wrote an article on the coach of the Tampa Bay Lightning, Jon Cooper. As I researched Coop, I realized this guy has won at every level he has coached.

Now that it has been a couple of years since Coop took over as the Coach of the Lightning, I see why he is such an asset to this organization.

He never gets rattled. He never seems to lose control. The angriest we have seen him is when he is chomping down on the gum he chews every game.

Aside from his even keel, the players act as if they would skate through a wall of fire for him. Only truly great coaches, truly great leaders of men, can say that their players would do something like that for them. Coach Jon Cooper is one of those truly great coaches.

I know his NHL playoff record is 0 and 4. I get it. Like his goalie, Cooper has a lot to prove and I believe that the time for the NHL world to see how good a coach Jon Cooper really is has come.

Next: Reason #6 - The Fans

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Dec 29, 2014; Tampa, FL, USA; Tampa Bay Lightning fans cheer during the second period against the Toronto Maple Leafs at Amalie Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

Tampa Bay Lightning Fans a.k.a. The Thunder

It certainly helped that the Tampa Bay Lightning organization decided to give local fans first crack at the playoff tickets this year. The fans in and around the Tampa Bay area answered that call. The first sets of tickets for the first round that went on sale were virtually sold out in hours.

In addition to this local address rule for pre-sale playoff tickets, Amalie Arena also announced that in certain Club sections, no opposing sweaters will be allowed. Amalie Arena, I applaud you. I, for one, am tired of our arena being loused up with so many fans of the opposing teams.

Certain sections, 307 comes to mind, and other local groups like the Sticks of Fire group have really began to swell the fan base with their promotions.

Fan pages on social media, like Thunder Nation on Facebook and others have added to the Bolts base. In addition to Bolts By The Bay, there are several dedicated blogs to the Lightning with some very good writers who are also increasing the fever for the Bolts.

I am so tired of hearing how Tampa is a “non-traditional” NHL market. Well, let me tell you something. We have been in existence for 21 years. We have one of the best, if not the best owners in the NHL. We have an NHL Hall of Famer at the helm of this ship. We have one of the best players in the world on our team and we are about to win our second Cup.

I will match up our fan base, our organization, our arena and most of all our team against any in the NHL. I heard a report recently on the radio that opposing players who have come in over the last two years are asking Lightning players, “does your owner really give out $50,000 to a community hero every home game”?

Jeffrey Vinik does that as a way of telling all of us in this community that he is ALL IN. Remember that slogan from a couple of years ago? Well, looking at attendance figures for this season, we have filled Amalie at 98%. Okay, we have a little work to do in that area. Next year, we will hit 100%. I guarantee.

Next: Reason#5 - Penalty Kill

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Feb 5, 2015; Dallas, TX, USA; Tampa Bay Lightning center Cedric Paquette (13) skates against the Dallas Stars during the game at the American Airlines Center. The Lightning defeated the Stars 5-3. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports

Penalty Kill

Currently sitting eighth in the NHL with an 83.5% kill rate is the Tampa Bay Lightning penalty killing unit. Despite the injuries throughout the season that affected this unit, the next man was always ready to step up. See reasons #10 and #7 above.

Look at a guy like Cedric Paquette, a longshot to make the team in pre-season, he was sent down to Syracuse at the start of the season.

An injury to Jonathan Drouin brought up Paquette for what was initially thought to be a two week trial.

Paquette not only played his way onto the team but has seen valuable minutes on the PK unit. This kid blocks shots without any thought to bodily harm. Kid has got some brass ones.

As we get our defensive corps back from the rash of recent injuries, we will only see the penalty kill teams get better.

Brian Boyle and Cedric Paquette. Palat and Tyler Johnson. Jason Garrison and Anton Stralman. J.T. Brown and Vladislav Namestnikov have seen time on the PK. No matter who Cooper puts in, they seem to step up and kill off the penalties.

Next: Reason #4 - Defense

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Feb 27, 2015; Tampa, FL, USA; Tampa Bay Lightning goalie Ben Bishop (30) and Tampa Bay Lightning defenseman Jason Garrison (5) congratulate each other after they beat the Chicago Blackhawks at Amalie Arena. Tampa Bay Lightning defeated the Chicago Blackhawks 4-0. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

Defense

During the playoffs teams tend to give more minutes to their star players. Nowhere is it more apparent that on a team’s defensive unit. Guys who average 24 minutes of ice time during the regular season see that shift upwards to the 27 or 28 minute level.

That is one of the reasons that being a TOP 4 defenseman means so much. Being a top 4 means that you are on the ice when the opposing team has their scorers out there.

In the East, the Lightning could see snipers and scorers like Alex Ovechkin. Pavel Datsyuk, Henrik Zetterberg to name a few.

Any team that makes a long and deep playoff run needs to have the horse on the blue line to neutralize those types of players. Now, top 4 defensemen do not grow on trees.

Well, I have to say that Steve Yzerman to his credit has acquired three top 4’s since the end of last season and that is another reason why the Bolts are going to win the Cup.

Anton Stralman, Jason Garrison and Braydon Coburn all played with other teams last year. All three are top 4 NHL defensemen. All three now play defense on the Tampa Bay Lightning.

When you add Victor Hedman to those three and throw in Matt Carle, Andrej Sustr and even Mark Barberio and Nikita Nesterov. Being out on this limb, I will add that, when 100% healthy, the Tampa Bay Lightning have the best defensive group in all of the NHL.

Next: Reason #3 - Depth

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Mar 31, 2015; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Tampa Bay Lightning forward Vladislav Namestnikov (90) congratulates forward Ryan Callahan (24) after scoring against the Toronto Maple Leafs during the first period at the Air Canada Centre. Mandatory Credit: John E. Sokolowski-USA TODAY Sports

Depth

The Tampa Bay Lightning are deep. How deep? Their fourth line center has scored 15 goals. They have 10 players that have scored 10 or more goals and that does not count Brett Connolly who scored more than 10 with the team before he was traded to Boston in March. That would be 11 players on the roster who put the biscuit in the basket 10 or more times for the Bolts this year.

In the Eastern Conference of the current playoff teams, only the Washington Capitals have 10 guys who have scored more than 10 goals for their team this season.

Let us look at total points. Let us use 50 points as the measuring stick. Only one team has 5 players that have accumulated more than 50 points this season. You guessed it – The Tampa Bay Lightning.

Almost from start to finish this year, the Lightning have been the highest scoring team in the NHL. All four lines have scored. They have scored on the power play and even scored while shorthanded.

Even with the injuries they have experienced to key players like Jonathan Drouin, Tyler Johnson and Ondrej Palat they find a way to score. Even when they lose half of their defense, guys from Syracuse step up and play like cagey veterans.

Yzerman has built this team from the ground up. Through trades, free agency and most importantly, the draft, Stevie Y has built a team to not only make a deep run for the Cup but to do so year after year. How fortunate that we are here at the beginning of an NHL dynasty.

Next: Reason #2 - The Triplets Line

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Apr 9, 2015; Tampa, FL, USA; Tampa Bay Lightning center Tyler Johnson (9) is congratulated by teammates after scoring a goal against the New Jersey Devils during the first period at Amalie Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

The Triplets Line

The answer to the question as to which NHL line is the best this season is easy. The Triplets Line. Ondrej Palat, Nikita Kucherov and Tyler Johnson have formed the best line in the NHL this season.

All three are over 60 pts scored. Imagine that! Montreal only has 3 players over the 50 point mark and we have a line where all 3 guys are over 60 points.

These guys have been phenomenal. Here is the best part of all. These guys are so young, we could see this line dominate the NHL for the next decade. Johnson and Palat are only 24 and Kucherov is only 21 years old.

Hard to believe that when your team has a Steven Stamkos that he isn’t even on the top scoring line on the team. Clearly, there was no sophomore slump for any of these three.

Kudos also has to go to Coach Cooper for putting these guys together and keeping them together. Playing together for a season now, you can see, they play as if they have eyes in the back of their heads. They know where the other guys on the line are going to be.

This is as formidable a line as there is in the NHL. So, let opposing teams attempt to stop them, don’t forget we still have another line that has Steven Stamkos. That leads me to the final reason why the Tampa Bay Lightning are going to win the Stanley Cup this year.

Next: Reason #1 - Steven Stamkos

Apr 2, 2015; Ottawa, Ontario, CAN; Tampa Bay Lightning center Steven Stamkos (91) skates with the puck in the third period against the Ottawa Senators at the Canadian Tire Centre. The Senators defeated the Lightning 2-1 in overtime. Mandatory Credit: Marc DesRosiers-USA TODAY Sports

Steven Stamkos

One of the youngest captains in the NHL, Steven Stamkos has definitely come out from the long shadows that Vincent Lecavalier and Martin St. Louis cast when he first joined the team.

Stammer played with those two for the first five years of his NHL career. There is no doubt in my mind that Stamkos learned a lot from both those former Lightning players. But I think that Stamkos has always been a leader.

When you see the way he bolted (no pun intended) for Brad Marchand a couple of weeks ago, after Marchand took a cheap shot at Valtteri Filppula. Seeing their captain stand up for one of their own, the team responded and beat Boston handily that game.

For the fourth time in his short career, Stamkos has eclipsed the 40 goal mark. Then again, no one ever doubted his ability to score. This year though, we saw the maturity of our Captain.

In interviews, how he carried himself on the ice. Stamkos is ready to claim his place as the preeminent player in the NHL. Like his coach, Stamkos is driven to succeed. When you see veterans like Ryan Callahan and Brenden Morrow praise a “kid” like Stammer for his leadership then you know there is something to him. When you see the way his team responds, especially in the third period of games, you have to look at the leader of the team and that is Steven Stamkos.

When you think about the fact that the Tampa Bay Lightning went the whole season without losing three games in a row, you know that it is because Stamkos is the straw that stirs the drink, the engine that runs this machine, the man that the other 22 players on the roster are going to follow. All the way to hoisting the Cup.

The Tampa Bay Lightning are going to win the Stanley Cup this year. Just remember, you heard it here first.

Next: BBTB Round Table: Who Was the Lightning’s Best Acquisition This Season?

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