The Tampa Bay Lightning push forward with their eight-game homestand as they take on yet another Atlantic Division rival, the Ottawa Senators.
The Tampa Bay Lightning has been traveling a rather interesting road over the last couple of weeks. The Lightning has been forced into extra time in seven of their last eight games. The only matchup they’ve been able to finish in regulation during this time was Mar. 8 when they ran roughshod over the New York Rangers.
The Bolts have reached the halfway point in their eight-game homestand. Tomorrow night, the Lightning enter the back half of the homestand as they take on yet another Atlantic Division rival, the Ottawa Senators.
The Ottawa Senators have hit a bit of a rough patch in the last couple of games. Despite being able to hold onto arguably the highest sought after defenseman in the National Hockey League at the NHL Trade Deadline, Erik Karlsson, the Sens have been on quite a skid as of late.
Coming into tonight’s contest, the Senators have lost two of their last three games. With losses to the Buffalo Sabres, Calgary Flames, respectively, the Senators will be coming into the Bolts Nation looking for another taste of redemption. Unfortunately for them, they will have to go through the best team in the NHL right now.
Tampa Bay Lightning
The Lightning has an interesting opportunity in front of them right now. After the NHL Trade Deadline, there are no roster limits. This means the team is free to keep all the extra players they have on their roster right now, like goaltenders Louis Domingue and Peter Budaj.
This could turn out to be a good thing for the Bolts. Having an extra goaltender on the roster could allow the Bolts to rest starting netminder Andrei Vasilevskiy a little more as the Lightning continues their trek towards the postseason. Once the playoffs start, Vasy will need to be in top form and considering how much they have been leaning on him this season, a little time off is well deserved.
There has been no official word from the team as of yet which netminder will be between the pipes against the Senators and it will certainly be interesting to see who gets the nod when the team takes the ice.
While Lightning fans all over the Bolts Nation await puck drop, let’s take a closer look at all the information one will need in order to stay on top of all the action between the Tampa Bay Lightning and the Ottawa Senators tonight from the Amalie Arena in the heart of Downtown Tampa.
Game: Tampa Bay Lightning vs. Ottawa Senators
Venue: Amalie Arena
Location: Tampa, Florida
Date: Tuesday, March 13,, 2018
Start Time: 7:30 p.m. EST
TV Info: Fox Sports Sun, RDS2, TSN5
Radio Info: Lightning Radio on 970WFLA or TBL Power Play on iHeartRadio
Live Stream: Fox Sports Go App in the iTunes App Store and Google Play Store
There are a lot of storylines playing out in the Bolts Nation right now. Each game that passes brings us one step closer to the playoffs. The Lightning was the first team in the NHL to reach the 100 point mark and are currently six points ahead of their nearest competition (Boston Bruins) in the standings.
Unfortunately, this guarantees the team absolutely nothing. If they want to remain the best team in the league, they are going to need to keep their feet on the gas and play a consistent 60 minutes of hockey. The journey continues later tonight against the Ottawa Senators.