Tampa Bay Lightning leads the way through first half of season
Despite their shootout loss to the Montreal Canadiens on Thursday night, the Tampa Bay Lightning continues to light the way through the first half of the NHL season.
The expectations were incredibly high for the Tampa Bay Lightning coming into their 25th Anniversary Season. There were a number of key changes to the lineup and quite a few young faces coming into the storyline. What people didn’t know at the time is how intensely the Lightning would blow these expectations out of the water.
The Lightning has gotten off to one of the best starts in recent history this season. The Bolts are currently one game shy of reaching the halfway point in the season and they have consistently lit the path for every other team in the league almost all season long.
Despite the Lightning’s 2-1 shootout loss last night to the Montreal Canadiens, the Lightning continue to lead both the Atlantic Division and the National Hockey League with 61 points. The Bolts were the first team to the 50 point and 60 point mark this season. Given the way they have been playing as of late, it wouldn’t be surprising for them to be the first team to the 70 point mark.
This is not to say the Lightning hasn’t seen their fair share of woes this season. One of the biggest negative impacts on the team this season has been injuries. Lightning alternate captain Ryan Callahan just made his return to the ice after missing eight games with an Upper-Body Injury sustained on Dec. 14 against the Arizona Coyotes.
The most recent addition to the Lightning’s injury list is goaltender Peter Budaj. Budaj was involved in a rather nasty looking hit from behind collision with Philadelphia Flyers forward Scott Laughton on Friday, December 29 at the Wells Fargo Center in Philly.
Tampa Bay Lightning
According to the Tampa Bay Lightning’s official site, Budaj is out indefinitely. However, according to Joe Smith of the Tampa Bay Times, Budaj is currently in week-to-week status. Granted, in reality, neither one of these options is good for the team, but one is a little more optimistic than the other.
Against the odds, the Lightning has continued to forge a path towards greatness. This is in no small part to the Lightning’s top line, consisting of Lightning captain Steven Stamkos and forwards Nikita Kucherov and Vladislav Namestnikov.
Steven Stamkos and Nikita Kucherov have been like two Alphas leading the same pack this season. These two seem to push each other to limits they may never have realized on their own. Thanks to their amazing chemistry, Kucherov is currently tied with Washington Capitals captain Alex Ovechkin for the league lead in goals and he is currently leading the NHL in overall points.
Stammer isn’t far behind Kuch in the overall points category. Stamkos is currently in a three-way tie for second place in the league, along with New York Islanders captain John Tavares and forward Josh Bailey with 50 points each.
Someone who has been incredibly underrated this season is Namestnikov. While Stammer and Kuch seem to get all the attention, Vladdy has been there quietly making plays happen and playing some of the best hockey of his career. Vladdy is currently in fourth place on the team in overall points.
Another player who has gone above and beyond this season and has played a huge part in the Lightning’s success thus far is goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy. All eyes were on Vasy this season as this is his first season as the number one goaltender after taking the reins from Ben Bishop last season.
Right now, Vasilevskiy is either at the top or near the top in all goaltending categories. Vasy currently leads the NHL in both Wins and Shutouts with 26 and six respectively. Ironically enough, tied with Columbus Blue Jackets goalie Sergei Bobrovsky for second place in shutouts is Vasy’s predecessor, Ben Bishop.
The 23-year-old netminder is currently in second place in the league in two goaltending categories. Vasy’s 1.92 Goals Against Average places him in second place in the league behind St. Louis Blues goalie Carter Hutton. Ironically enough, Vasy’s .939 Save Percentage also places him in second place, once again behind Hutton.
Another piece of the puzzle which is the Lightning’s success this season has been rookie defenseman Mikhail Sergachev. As most Lightning fans are aware, Sergachev made his way to the Bolts Nation as a part of the trade with the Montreal Canadiens which saw forward Jonathan Drouin make his way north.
Needless to say, the Lightning got the much better end of the deal from the way things have played out lately.
Sergachev currently leads all rookie defensemen in the league in goals and overall points, coming in a close second in assists. One of the things the Lightning has desperately needed over the last couple of seasons is another solid two-way defenseman. Having both Victor Hedman and Sergachev in the Lightning’s arsenal has paid dividends for the Bolts this season.
What has truly made the Lightning so successful this season has been their teamwork. Every single player brings something to the table, which has helped elevate the team.
Next: Steven Stamkos Named All-Star Captain of Atlantic Division
It’s this kind of teamwork and work ethic which has led the Bolts to where they are now and will hopefully lead them to where they want to be at the end of the season. If the Tampa Bay Lightning continue on the course they’re on right now, there is a good chance the Lightning will be bringing home a lot of new hardware at the end of the season. Hopefully, one of them is Lord Stanley’s Cup.