Tampa Bay Lightning Face A Tough Task Tonight Against Capitals

Heading into tonight’s game against the Washington Capitals, the Tampa Bay Lightning find themselves in the midst of a four-game losing streak. Will they end the skid against another tough opponent?

If you look back to last season right around this time, the Tampa Bay Lightning was in a similar situation. The team got off to a strong start, hit some bumps through the first two months of the season, and eventually succumbed to a rash of injuries.

The Lightning couldn’t put together a full 60-minute effort on most nights and they were on the outside of the playoff picture well into December. Some fans blamed all the injuries for the inconsistency and lackluster effort the team put forth for most of the first half of the season in 2015-16.

Does this sound somewhat familiar? Well, it should and the Tampa Bay Lightning is desperately need of a win, or even a point, for that matter.

Tampa Bay Lightning /

Tampa Bay Lightning

It doesn’t get any easier tonight, as the high-powered offense that is the Washington Capitals is in town and the Caps is definitely capable of sending the Lightning to a fifth straight loss. If that happens, would it be time to hit the panic button? We’ll just have to wait and see.

Currently, both the Lightning and Capitals occupy the two wild card spots in the Eastern Conference, and neither team has a firm hold on those spots.

Tampa Bay has 27 points (13-11-1) and has the tie-breaker over the Philadelphia Flyers, at the moment, with three more ROWs (Regulation plus overtime wins), and Washington has 28 points (13-7-2).

The Capitals, though, has played three fewer games than the Lightning. Now, don’t use the eye test and assume both teams have had similar seasons just based on the standings. Washington started the season with an overtime/shootout loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins on the road but then went 8-2-0 in its next 10 games, which included a five-game win streak.

The Capitals was not as consistent in November, but the team managed to not dip down in the standings and now sit only two points behind the Columbus Blue Jackets for third place in the highly-competitive Metropolitan Division.

During the 2015-16 regular season, Washington avoided dropping back-to-back losses in regulation the entire way, which was a big factor in its ultra-consistent play last year, but this season has been a bit different for the Capitals. Washington has already dropped two sets of back-to-back regulation losses and will look to avoid three straight losses tonight against the Lightning.

So, both sides have the urge to win and end losing streaks in this game, but one team is a bit more desperate, as we know.

As mentioned previously, the Tampa Bay Lightning is trying to avoid a fifth-straight loss after dropping all three games on the last road trip, including a stinker at home against the Blue Jackets before the trip.

On that road swing, the Lightning gave up four or more goals and around 30-plus shots in each game. Also, the team gave up the first goal in all three meetings, which has been an issue for a majority of the season.

We can factor in the injuries into all of this, but aside from that, there’s no excuse for this recent stretch of poor play, especially on defense. The Lightning will have most of its defensive core ready to go tonight, except for Jason Garrison, who isn’t expected to be out for long, per Joe Smith of the Tampa Bay Times. Anton Stralman returned on Thursday against the St. Louis Blues, so he’ll be in the lineup tonight.

As for the forwards and rest of the lineup, the Lightning is bit more banged up. Steven Stamkos is out, of course, and will be out for the next few months, but winger Ryan Callahan was put back on injured reserve (IR) with a lower-body injury and will be eligible to return in the coming week or so.

Fortunately, the Tampa Bay Lightning has tremendous depth in the organization and several players from the Syracuse Crunch have been called to help contribute in place of the injured forwards. Most notably, forwards Joel Vermin and Michael Bournival have stepped in and will be in the lineup, as they participated in line rushes during the morning skate today.

Despite the negativity surrounding the team lately and the poor play over the past few games, the fans need to realize that everything will work out and it’s still fairly early in the season. However, we cannot sugar coat it and the Lightning certainly needs to put forth better performances in the coming games if the team desires to stay afloat in the Eastern Conference.

If you have been following the NHL for a bit, you’ll know that both the Lightning and Capitals can score some goals and both possess some of the top offensive talents in the league.

As such, the players to watch out for tonight include forwards Alex Ovechkin, leading the team in goals with 12, and Nicklas Backstrom, who leads the team in points with 20 (6-14–20). Also, keep an eye out for Marcus Johansson, who has 15 points in 22 games and looks to have another 40-plus point year.

For the Lightning, it’s obvious that any team needs to watch out for the young star in Nikita Kucherov, who leads the team in goals (12) and points (28). Kucherov could very well eclipse the career-high 66 points he put up last year, especially with an increased role.

Also, forward Brayden Point has shown that he belongs in the NHL, and though he hasn’t shown up on the scoresheet as much, the young playmaker has been working hard and creating dangerous scoring chances.

Don’t forget about the recent call-up, Joel Vermin, who had two assists, two shots, three hits, and more than 16 minutes of ice time against the Blues, and he could very well be a factor in tonight’s game.

In order for the Tampa Bay Lightning to emerge with a much-needed victory at home over the Washington Capitals, the team as a whole will need to come out with a strong effort in the first period and hopefully grab the lead. Lightning General Manager, Steve Yzerman, pointed out ,

"“We’re giving up far too many scoring chances. That would be the biggest concern for me. There’s breakdowns in our systems and way too many unnecessary turnovers.”"

Also, the Lightning cannot give as many penalties to the Capitals as they did to the Blues on Thursday. St. Louis scored three Power Play goals on seven attempts and that’s far too many in general for any team to allow. Washington has not been nearly as good this season on the man advantage as the team has in previous years, but they still pose a threat, especially with Ovechkin in the lineup.

Next: Anton Stralman Makes Return In St. Louis

It won’t be easy, but the Tampa Bay Lightning will look to end a nasty four-game losing streak tonight against a tough opponent in the Washington Capitals. Can they do it? You’ll have to wait and see. Tune in at 7 p.m. locally for puck drop on Fox Sports Sun and Lightning Radio, 970 WFLA. You can also watch the entire game on the run with the Fox Sports Go app in select areas. Go Bolts!