Tampa Bay Lightning 2017-18 season: Top games each month

(Photo by Scott Audette/NHLI via Getty Images)
(Photo by Scott Audette/NHLI via Getty Images)
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(Photo by Scott Audette/NHLI via Getty Images)
(Photo by Scott Audette/NHLI via Getty Images) /

With a roster dotted with new faces and veterans and primed for a successful regular season, the Tampa Bay Lightning will hit the ice for the season opener in about two months.

The off-season is full of surprising moves and interesting trades, and the Tampa Bay Lightning made a few of their own this year. The Lightning did what it had to do in order to retool the roster a bit, and with most major transactions already made this summer, the Lightning can focus on their upcoming opponents in 2017-18.

While the upcoming season’s schedule was released in June, there’s still time to look at some of their top games and opponents in each month. As the season progresses, the matchups intensify, but there are still some quality meetings early on in the season.

Tampa Bay Lightning
Tampa Bay Lightning /

Tampa Bay Lightning

Beginning in early October, the Lightning will hit the ground running against Atlantic Division and in-state rival Florida Panthers during a back-to-back weekend set and will also face the Detroit Red Wings twice in a span of two weeks.

Looking later on in the season, Tampa Bay will take on the defending Western Conference-champion Nashville Predators and the Boston Bruins in the last week of the season before facing off against the Carolina Hurricanes in the final game of 2017-18. As Lightning fans hope, the team will have already clinched a playoff spot by that time or will be in a position to claim one.

After all, missing the playoffs last season was a bit unexpected, especially looking at the state of the team before the start of last season. Maybe this year will end with a better outcome.

As we continue to count down the days to opening night on Oct. 6, take a look at some of the top games in each month this season to pass the time.

(Photo by Scott Audette/NHLI via Getty Images)
(Photo by Scott Audette/NHLI via Getty Images) /

October

As previously mentioned, the Tampa Bay Lightning will open the season against the Florida Panthers at Amalie Arena and will travel to Sunrise the next day for their first road game of the year. This is an in-state and divisional rivalry, and those games are always interesting to watch. The Bolts went 2-1-1 during their four game season series against Florida.

Tampa Bay Lightning
Tampa Bay Lightning /

Tampa Bay Lightning

Though both the Lightning and Panthers had “off” seasons and missed the playoffs, there’s a chance this matchup will continue to be intense and rough, even though some people don’t consider it a true rivalry. Nonetheless, it’s a top set in October amidst other higher-profile games during the same month.

Just two days after their first two games, the Lightning will face the Washington Capitals on Oct. 9 at home and welcome the defending Stanley Cup champion Pittsburgh Penguins on Oct. 12. The Lightning did not fare well against either team, going a combined 1-5-0 in six games last season.

Both of those teams are expected to lead the Eastern Conference and contend for the Stanley Cup this coming season, aside from just being tough opponents on a given night.

The Tampa Bay Lightning will go onto to face the Penguins again just over a week later and travel to Ohio to take on another tough Metropolitan Division team in the Columbus Blue Jackets on Oct. 19. The first month also features two games against division rival Detroit Red Wings (Oct. 16, 22), which the Lightning swept in the season series in 2016-17.

That Oct. 16 meeting is a road game and will mark the Lightning’s first trip to Detroit’s new Little Caesars Arena downtown. Those Bolts vs. Wings meetings are always fun to watch, especially after recent playoff series.

(Photo by Scott Audette/NHLI via Getty Images)
(Photo by Scott Audette/NHLI via Getty Images) /

November

The month of November presents a few more, and similar, challenges for the Tampa Bay Lightning, as they’ll face several Metropolitan Division teams again. They start the month off against the New York Rangers (Nov. 2) and Columbus Blue Jackets (Nov. 4), though both games are at home. Last season, the Lightning went a combined 1-4-1 facing those two teams.

Following that stretch, Tampa Bay will head out to California to face the San Jose Sharks (Nov. 8), Los Angeles Kings (Nov. 9) and Anaheim Ducks (Nov. 12) and return home to face the Dallas Stars (Nov. 16), which are set to have a bounce-back season after missing the playoffs and boosting their roster with key acquisitions, like former Lightning goaltender Ben Bishop.

Those matchups in the Golden State are definitely ones to watch out for, but the home games against the Dallas Stars (Nov. 16), New York Islanders (Nov. 18), and the Chicago Blackhawks (Nov. 22) will be interesting, especially with the return of Bishop to Tampa and defenseman Dan Girardi facing his former team, of which he spent 11 seasons, for the first time since signing with the Lightning.

The Tampa Bay Lightning also have a couple Atlantic Division meetings and will take on the Washington Capitals (Nov. 24) and Pittsburgh Penguins (Nov. 25) in a back-to-back set later in the month. A late November game against the Boston Bruins (Nov. 29) will close it out.

(Photo by Brian Babineau/NHLI via Getty Images) *** Local Caption ***
(Photo by Brian Babineau/NHLI via Getty Images) *** Local Caption *** /

December

Based on the schedule, December looks to be a bit more relaxed, though it features matchups against the San Jose Sharks, Columbus Blue Jackets, and St. Louis Blues. The Tampa Bay Lightning will also face division rival Montreal Canadiens (Dec. 28) for the first time.

Tampa Bay Lightning
Tampa Bay Lightning /

Tampa Bay Lightning

Tampa Bay will conclude its season out-of-conference series and open the month against the Sharks on Dec. 2, and then they’ll face the Colorado Avalanche, which finished at the bottom of the league standings last season, at home (Dec. 7) and play them for a second time over a week later on the road.

Those two games aren’t notable per say, but the Lightning should take advantage of a projected last-place team and win both meetings, something they struggled to do against “bottom feeders” last season.

More notably, the Lightning will take on the Vegas Golden Knights (Dec. 19) for the first time on the road. It’ll be the final game of a four-game Western road trip after playing the Blues, Arizona Coyotes, and the Avalanche. The last date the Lightning faced an expansion team for the first time was on Oct. 18, 2000, against the Minnesota Wild (this game was also on the road).

Speaking of the Wild, the Tampa Bay Lightning will face them at home Dec. 23 before starting a four-day break. A meeting with the Blue Jackets on the last day of the month will close out December.

MONTREAL, QC – APRIL 7: Andrei Vasilevskiy
MONTREAL, QC – APRIL 7: Andrei Vasilevskiy /

January

At this point, the NHL season is nearing its halfway point and the All-Star Game weekend, which is going to be in Tampa, by the way, is during this month. The Tampa Bay Lightning, at this point, should be in good positioning for the playoffs, or at least close, as that is what the expectation is for this coming season.

Tampa Bay Lightning
Tampa Bay Lightning /

Tampa Bay Lightning

January presents a new set of challenges, and the Lightning will continue to play opponents from the Western Conference, as this month is more West-heavy like December is. The Lightning will face six opponents from the other conference but also face six Eastern Conference teams, so it may not be as West-heavy as you think. Those western games are still important, though.

The Lightning will start off the new year with four straight games against division opponents, all on the road. Of the four games, the ones to watch out for would include both the Jan. 2 meeting with the Toronto Maple Leafs and the Jan. 6 meeting with the Ottawa Senators; this goes for the Toronto matchup especially, because it shouldn’t come as a surprise that they’ll be contending again this season.

From there the Lightning will return home to face the rising Carolina Hurricanes (Jan. 9) and get ready for an appropriate three-game homestand, which features the Vegas Golden Knights on Jan. 18, so be sure to purchase your tickets for that game if you want to be a part of a little “history.” Single-game tickets for the 2017-18 season are available for purchase, in case you’re not aware.

In addition, Tampa Bay will face the Chicago Blackhawks (Jan. 22) and the Nashville Predators (Jan. 23) in back-to-back games on the road toward the end of the month. They’ll finish the first month of the new year with a road matchup with the Winnipeg Jets, a team that has a chance to build on a solid finish to an 87-point season in 2016-17. We won’t know how they’re performing in a tough Central Division until then, though.

TAMPA, FL – APRIL 9: Vladislav Namestnikov
TAMPA, FL – APRIL 9: Vladislav Namestnikov /

February

As the season moves into February, the Tampa Bay Lightning will, as fans hope, be in solid playoff positioning, and to begin the month, they’ll be in the midst of a four-game Western Canada road trip. The end of this trip features a matchup against the Edmonton Oilers (Feb. 5), a team that finished with 100-plus points and nearly won the Pacific Division. Oh, and don’t forget about that Connor McDavid guy.

The Lightning split the two-game series last season with the Oilers.

Prior to facing the Oilers, Tampa Bay is scheduled to take on the Calgary Flames (Feb. 1) and Vancouver Canucks (Feb. 3), but neither of those are must-watch games. A Feb. 10 game against the Kings could be one of interest, though.

Following that trip, the Lightning will face five Atlantic Division opponents in two weeks, including a Feb. 15 meeting with the Detroit Red Wings at home.

On Feb. 20, Tampa Bay will wrap up its season series with the Washington Capitals on the road (Feb. 20) and take on four division opponents to close out the month. The Canadiens are one of those opponents, and the Lightning will face them at the Bell Centre for their third meeting of the season.

The Buffalo Sabres (Feb. 28), which the Lightning swept during the regular season, will come to town to conclude February and send the schedule into March. Overall, the month isn’t full of too many intriguing matchups, but there are a few on the schedule.

TAMPA, FL – APRIL 9: Anton Stralman
TAMPA, FL – APRIL 9: Anton Stralman /

March and April

March features a much needed and lengthy homestand that starts toward the beginning of the month. After traveling to the Lone Star State to take on the Dallas Stars (March 1), the Tampa Bay Lightning will return home to face the Philadelphia Flyers on March 3 and play the next seven games on home ice.

During the rest of the homestand, the Lightning will take on the Florida Panthers (March 6), the Montreal Canadiens (March 10), and Boston Bruins (March 17), among other teams. The Edmonton Oilers will also visit the Lightning on March 18.

After the eight-game homestand, the Bolts will travel to the New York City area to take on the New York Islanders (March 22) and New Jersey Devils (March 24) for a two-game trip. They’ll return home for a season-high ninth home game in a single month and then hit the road again for two games to close out the month. The Lightning will face the Bruins (March 29) and the New York Rangers (March 30) in back-to-back games.

This month is crucial for the Tampa Bay Lightning with all the home games, and it’ll be especially important to claim as many wins against division opponents as possible. The regular season will end during the first week of April, and they’ll have to face the Bruins (April 3) and Buffalo Sabres (April 6) for the final time in addition to the Nashville Predators (April 1), all visiting opponents. The Lightning will end the season with a road meeting against the Carolina Hurricanes (April 7).

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The 2017-18 NHL season is much anticipated for the Tampa Bay Lightning and their fans, and as usual, each month features a few intriguing matchups, or so we speculate before the season begins. A return to the Stanley Cup Playoffs is something the team hopes to accomplish this coming year, and a strong start to the season will be the first step in reaching that goal.

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