The Tampa Bay Lightning have not lost a game since acquiring Anthony Duclair on March 7th. Tampa Bay has now won five in a row and seems to be finding their stride and their trend in the right direction has come with Duclair hitting the ground running so far in Tampa and producing at a level few expected to come this fast.
When the Lightning traded for Duclair just days before this year's deadline, the expectation for him was to slot into the Lightning's middle six forward group, likely as a third line winger. His speed was his most attractive asset to a Lightning lineup that has been wanting to get faster. He has produced some solid numbers when playing up in the lineup in his NHL career but with the Lightning's talent up in the lineup, Duclair was not a shoo-in for top-line minutes.
In his five games with the Lightning, Duclair has a point in each one of them, including four goals. His latest came Thursday night against the team that dealt him to Tampa Bay in the Lightning's 4-1 win in San Jose.
Anthony Duclair is doing big things on the Tampa Bay Lightning
An absolute beauty from the former Shark 😮💨 pic.twitter.com/i6hX7erFFC
— Bally Sports Sun: Lightning (@BallyLightning) March 22, 2024
Duclair's production has earned him to skate on the Lightning's top line in the last few games with Brayden Point and Nikita Kucherov. A handful of faces have had the opportunity to play with Point and Kucherov this season but this could be Duclair's role to run with if he continues to produce at this level. When you are playing with the NHL's scoring leader in Kucherov, there will be opportunities to regularly find yourself on the scoresheet.
Duclair's run has been particularly impressive considering how it typically takes time for players to adjust to a new team. The Lightning's recent deadline acquisitions have all been known for slow starts, at least as far as offense is concerned.
In their first five games after joining Tampa Bay midseason, Blake Coleman, Barclay Goodrow, Brandon Hagel, Nick Paul and Tanner Jeannot combined for a total of eight points. Duclair's seven points in five games show that he has acclimated into the Lightning lineup faster than any other recent midseason acquisition as far as production goes.
There seemed to be no transition period at all for Duclair as he even recorded a goal and an assist in his first game with Tampa Bay against Philadelphia.
WELCOME TO TAMPA BAY, ANTHONY DUCLAIR! 🙌 pic.twitter.com/MCg9tGrer5
— NHL (@NHL) March 10, 2024
Tampa Bay gave up a third round pick and one of their best defense prospects in Jack Thompson to get Duclair, a fairly steep price for a soon-to-be Unrestricted Free Agent. So far, Duclair has lived up to the price and the trade will look even better if the Lightning are able to re-sign him this summer.
Duclair has played over 550 games in the NHL and has never been able to stick long-term with a team. He has never played longer than three seasons with one franchise and if the situation is right with Tampa Bay, this could be the place he wants to stick around. It will be tough for the Lightning to juggle but Anthony Duclair will likely be a piece that the Lightning will try to retain this summer as he has fit in exceptionally in his early days with the team.