Tampa Bay Lightning: What Went Wrong In Game 6?
A Simple Lack Of Aggression
If there was any aspect of the Tampa Bay Lightning’s performance on Tuesday night it was the plain and simple lack of aggression and their unwillingness to shoot the puck. While the Lightning did mount a superb effort in the final 10 minutes of the game, it was unfortunately too little, way too late.
The moment the air seemed to release from the Lightning’s sails seemed to be the moment Jonathan Drouin’s goal was disallowed. After that moment, the team seemed as if it relegated itself to making the trip back to Pittsburgh for Game 7. We’re not quite sure what went wrong here, but the one thing we know is it simply must change before the Lightning take the ice for Game 7 on Thursday night.
One of the things we noticed and made quite clear on our Twitter account during the game is that whenever Valtteri Filppula had a real opportunity to take a clear shot on goal, he would feign the opportunity and elect to pass the puck to someone else. It’s almost as if without someone like Steven Stamkos to pass the puck to, he’s not sure what to do.
Filppula is one of the only people on the Tampa Bay Lightning’s current roster who has his name on the Stanley Cup. If anyone on the team has the knowledge of the game enough to know what needs to be done and complete the task, it’s most certainly the veteran center.
Another thing that hindered the Lightning’s chances of defeating the Pittsburgh Penguins in Game 6 was their lack of shots on goal. Throughout the first two periods of play, the Lightning were being outshot by the Penguins 26-11. That’s right…it wasn’t until the third period of play when the Lightning would have any chance of mounting an offense against the Pens.
It is well known we have always been a proponent of the quality over quantity philosophy, but there is no circumstance in which you can score a goal when you don’t take a shot at the net. If the Tampa Bay Lightning wants to defeat the Pittsburgh Penguins in Game 7 on Thursday night, they are going to have to capitalize on every opportunity they are presented with.
This means taking every shot opportunity they have. In addition to this, the Lightning needs to make sure someone is placed in the front of the net preparing to dig for the rebound. If you’ve followed the team for many years now, you will remember this was one of the roles former Tampa Bay Lightning left wing Ryan Malone used to serve in during his time with the team.
There are more than a few players who are capable of putting the puck in the net. Players like Tyler Johnson, Nikita Kucherov, Alex Killorn, and Brian Boyle have proven time and time again they have what it takes to get the job done. On Thursday night, these players and more will need to kick their game up a notch if they want to leave Pittsburgh with a new schedule to face on May 30th.
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