TORONTO — There’s a narrative the Tampa Bay Lightning are eager to squash.
It’s that their window to win is closed. Or closing rapidly, at least.
And, I mean, there’s no denying that Father Time is undefeated in the salary-cap era, although the Washington Capitals and Pittsburgh Penguins are going down swinging, that’s for sure.
But the Bolts don’t feel ready to hand in their penthouse keys after years as one of the NHL’s true heavyweights.
An 11-2-1 record since March 1 has solidified the Lightning’s playoff positioning, and internally, it’s also fortified the preseason belief that they’re still among the elite teams in the NHL and aren’t done taking swings at deep playoff runs.
Since the midway point of Tampa Bay’s season, on Jan. 8, the Bolts have the third-best points percentage in the NHL (.714), behind only the Carolina Hurricanes (.722) and Dallas Stars (.737).
For one, the Big Cat is back. Star goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy struggled after returning from back surgery earlier this season, but he leads the NHL in wins since Jan. 1 (21). Scary.
Nikita Kucherov is having a spectacular, Hart Trophy-worthy season. Brayden Point has gone next level in the second half.
The championship core is doing its thing again.
“They are a team full of championship pedigree from top to bottom,” Toronto Maple Leafs general manager Brad Treliving told The Athletic. “They have champions’ standards and habits and a clear understanding of the level required when the calendar turns to April and beyond. They simply know how to win when it matters most, and that is a powerful trait.
“Besides their immense talent, they have the championship experience of understanding all nuances of each situation. Understanding the ebbs and flows of momentum and an elite knowledge of the gamesmanship required within the game. They have the earned calluses formed from championship runs.”
The question mark, for me at least, is whether the Lightning have enough depth underneath that core to go four rounds.
The supporting cast has changed dramatically in the past few years. Gone from that 2019-20 Stanley Cup roster are Ondrej Palat, Yanni Gourde, Blake Coleman, Alex Killorn, Barclay Goodrow, Ryan MacDonagh and Luke Schenn, among others.
Lightning head coach Jon Cooper on Wednesday morning remarked that there’s a team picture in the team gym from the outdoor game in Nashville in February 2022 and, “Of the 23 guys (in that picture), there’s only eight guys left.”
“That was two years ago,” Cooper said. “There’s a good core here, but there’s a lot of new guys. You know sometimes it takes a little time for the guys to mesh. But what I do know is that when it got time to get going, these guys have kicked it in.
“We still have work left (to clinch a playoff spot), there’s no doubt. But I like what they’ve done here over the past month.”
There’s an argument to be made that Cooper is actually doing some of his best coaching ever with this group, meshing all the new faces with the core into a unit now that looks playoff-ready. I doubt he’ll garner many Jack Adams Award votes, though. People just take that for granted with him.
But Cooper and his staff have had to coach this team back into gear, especially on the defensive side of the puck.
Our stats expert Dom Luszczyszyn wrote this of the Lightning in his 16 stats column Thursday, noting that offense has been their strength all season while the defense has come on after a tough start:
“The defensive zone has been a major problem all year, one they’ve done well to clean up lately, allowing just 2.1 expected goals against per 60 at five-on-five. That’s the third-best mark in the league. Couple that with a penalty kill that has outscored teams 2-1 since the deadline and the Lightning are looking like a potential defensive force again.”
A defensive force again?…
This article was originally published by a theathletic.com . Read the Original article here. .