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

Oct 29, 2015; Tampa, FL, USA; Tampa Bay Lightning right wing Ryan Callahan (24) shoots on goal against the Colorado Avalanche during the second period at Amalie Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

1. Pass, Pass, Shoot!

If there is anything that has become the absolute bane of the Tampa Bay Lightning’s existence this season, it is their propensity to pass the puck a million times despite having every opportunity in the world to fire off a shot that would more than likely find its way to the back of the net.

There are no words to accurately describe how frustrating this has become for Tampa Bay Lightning fans here in the Bolts Nation as well as those whose only opportunity to see their Bolts play is from the bright lights of their television screens. I cannot elaborate to you how many times a night the lady who sits behind me at the Amalie Arena screams “Shoot!” at the top of her lungs in any given night.

While there are some people who would find this annoying (not I), she makes a very valid point. There are plenty of times when the Tampa Bay Lightning will charge into the offensive zone with little to no opposition, but because of their constant overpassing and their split second hesitation they find themselves stripped of the puck and chasing it back down the ice into their defensive zone.

We have a little rule of thumb us here at Bolts By The Bay think the Tampa Bay Lightning should take to heart, “Pass, Pass, Shoot!” In most cases, after the puck has been passed twice in the offensive zone, the third player to touch the puck should have some sort of opportunity to make their way to the back of the net.

We digress, not every single one of these shots is going to find their way to the back of the net. That’s ok. This is where the little thing we mentioned earlier about digging for rebounds comes into play. It doesn’t matter if you are Bruins goaltender Tuukka Rask or New York Rangers netminder Henrik Lundqvist, if you pepper them with shots long enough, one of them is bound to go in.

After all, you don’t score on 100 percent of the shots you don’t take.

At the end of the day, we know the Tampa Bay Lightning has all of the pieces they need to be successful in the 2015-16 season. After tasting success and playing at the highest level possible last season, the Tampa Bay Lightning are determined to taste that very same success again. If they can make a few minor adjustments and find some consistency in the coming games, they could very well become one of the most dominant teams in the National Hockey League.