Tampa Bay Lightning 2017-18 season: Top games each month
By Will Clewis
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.