Five Things The Tampa Bay Lightning Need To Do To Get Back On Track

Nov 1, 2015; Raleigh, NC, USA; Tampa Bay Lightning forward Vladislav Namestnikov (90) skates with the puck against the Carolina Hurricanes during the 3rd period at PNC Arena. The Tampa Bay Lightning defeated the Carolina Hurricanes 4-3. Mandatory Credit: James Guillory-USA TODAY Sports

4. Keep Your Eyes On The Puck

Ok, so maybe we don’t want the Tampa Bay Lightning to take this one too literally. If they consistently kept their eyes on the puck and not where they are headed on the ice, there is a good chance the players would end up running face first into the boards or worse – being slammed into them by the opposition.

At the same time, the Lightning’s puck possession as of late has been absolutely atrocious. This was made all to evident on Halloween Night when the Tampa Bay Lightning battled captain Zdeno Chara and the Boston Bruins in their final game before heading out on their current four-game road trip.

In the course of maybe 15 minutes, the Tampa Bay Lightning would turn over the puck at least five times resulting in a breakaway by various Bruins players forcing Lightning goaltender Ben Bishop to scramble to keep the puck out of the net with little to no assistance from the Lightning defense.

As we mentioned on the previous page, the Tampa Bay Lightning is filled to the brim with some of the most talented players in the National Hockey League. While we completely understand the Lightning is a very young team right now, they set the bar awfully high for themselves with the tremendous play they displayed during the 2015 Stanley Cup Playoffs.

In other words, we know they are capable of much, much better.

Yes…we are totally aware the team is dealing with a multitude of injuries at the moment, whether it be players who have been relegated to the sidelines or players who continue to take the ice every night, playing through some minor nagging injuries. At the same time, if they are going to be successful this season, the Lightning are going to have to find a way to keep their heads in the game and adapt when things get thrown in their path.

As we said just a few moments ago, we know they are capable…they just need to find a way to execute.

Next: 3. Shake Things Up A Bit