Timing seemed like it might be everything for the Tampa Bay Lightning at the trade deadline.
I wrote a few weeks before Feb. 27 that it would be beneficial for general manager Steve Yzerman to have a clearer view of where the Bolts stood before the shopping could begin.
It was difficult to say that moment didn’t come after a dispiriting 4-0 loss to Ottawa at home on Feb. 14. At the time, the Lightning were eight points out of eighth place and 11 behind Florida in the Southeast Division. Not only that, Tampa Bay was one point from the Eastern Conference cellar.
Yzerman did the prudent thing. He listened. When he heard something he liked from desperate teams, he moved. In all, he made eight trades. Most of them should help beyond this season.
A funny thing has happened on the way to next season. This season didn’t end.
Not only did Yzerman add to his collection of high draft picks the next few seasons (13 in the first four rounds in 2012 and 2013), the Lightning have responded with seven wins in the last nine games and stand just two points out of a playoff spot.
Amazing.
Some have suggested that maybe now they should have kept guys like Dominic Moore, Pavel Kubina and Steve Downie for a possible playoff run. But, even though those three guys are warriors and will always be missed as players and people, who knows if the status quo would have worked out like this?
There is something about the against-all-odds spirit they have now that is helping.
You keep everyone, you battle to the end and you finish ninth or 10th. What good would that do?
Yzerman had to make the moves. He had players that could step up into bigger roles. It would be a big test for guys like Brendan Mikkelson, JT Wyman, Brett Connolly, Tom Pyatt, Bruno Gervais and others.
The freshness of the group and the fighting mindset has helped keep them in the race. That, of course, along with some heroic hockey from Steven Stamkos, Teddy Purcell, Mathieu Garon and Marty St. Louis – even Victor Hedman before he was injured.
Still, it looked like the Lightning was one loss from falling out of sight before the game against the Devils last Sunday. St. Louis’ hat trick kept the Bolts ticker, well, ticking into trade deadline day.
It was then that Yzerman struck again with two big deals. Both could be considered daring, but make plenty of sense.
He sent power forward Carter Ashton to Toronto for 6-foot-6 defenseman Keith Aulie. Toronto needs young forwards and the Lightning has plenty of forwards in the pipeline. The Bolts needed another young defenseman. It fit for both teams.
It’s always risky to trade a young, promising player like Ashton. Power forwards who can score and skate are in short supply. But with Alex Killorn, Richard Panik and Cory Conacher coming, among others, it was worth the chance. As I told someone the day after the deal, if Aulie becomes a solid, physical top-four defenseman for the Bolts, Ashton can score all the goals he wants for the Leafs.
The second surprise deal involved two different types of defensemen. Unrestricted free agent Matt Gilroy went to Ottawa for restricted free agent Brian Lee. Around midseason, when Gilroy was on a really good run, I mentioned that maybe Yzerman should lock him up now. I’m not sure that would have been a bad move. But, although he showed flashes of brilliance, Gilroy’s play was a bit up and down. I really expected him to be a power-play guy, too, but he never really caught on. Gilroy is a good hockey player and he will find a place in this league, but at times it seemed he didn’t fit in this lineup.
Lee is a guy that was drafted out of high school, ninth overall by the Senators, in 2005. He played two years at North Dakota and joined the Senators, never really grabbing hold of a full-time position. All defensemen take time to develop and perhaps the Lightning will catch him as he is starting to find his game. He is more of a two-way defenseman that leans toward the defensive end, but he has some offensive instincts. His nifty pass to Stamkos for a goal showed that..
The acquisition of Lee gives the Lightning another of what they are looking for – defensemen with size that are mobile. With Aulie, Lee, Mikkelson and Hedman you have four guys that are young, big and can skate. Radko Gudas and Mark Barberio continue to make strides on the Norfolk blue line. They may need one more year of seasoning and third-round pick Adam Janosik could join the defense next season in the AHL. Don’t forget Evan Oberg either. How about his games against New Jersey and Montreal? He was outstanding and he is only 24.
Then, there’s goaltending. I saw a lot of fans ask, why the Bolts didn’t go after a goaltender like Ben Bishop? Or, why won’t they just give the job to Dustin Tokarski next season? The best answer I had for people is the cliché, “you can’t put all your eggs in one basket.” Yzerman might have traded a fourth-round pick for Bishop, who will be a UFA, to give him a look. But a second-round pick was not worth it. Plus, if you jump at Bishop now and sign him for next season – no matter how cheap he comes – you go into the season with Bishop and Garon. That could be good. But, if you wait, you could get a guy more proven like Cory Schneider or Jonathan Bernier.
Schneider and Bernier, who have been talked about for more than a year, may not turn into superstars. But they certainly have shown they have the tools to be No. 1s. As far as Tokarski, there’s no way you can’t like him. He’s a winner. But it is awfully hard to just hand the job to a guy who has played 44 minutes in the NHL to start a season. The scenario is this: The Bolts deal for either Schneider or Bernier and they have Garon under contract for one more year. After next season, Tokarski moves in as the backup and you have two good, young goalies to go forward with. Or if your No. 1 is playing so well, you can deal Garon and bring Tokarski up.
That’s not to downgrade Garon. The guy is playing great right now. He’s playing like a No. 1. It's just that he is 34.
But, enough about the future. Why not make the playoffs and see what happens? Eight of the next nine are at home.
Nine days after the 8-1 debacle in Pittsburgh, there is plenty of hope. Whether they make the playoffs or not now, Lightning fans will have a lot to look forward to in what should be a very interesting period from mid June to the end of July.
What is a hit?: I love the physical nature of hockey. Without the hitting and the hand to-hand combat that occurs on the boards and in front of the net, it is not as much fun to watch. I like the open-ice hit as much as anyone. I like a good fight every once and a while, especially when it’s in defense of a teammate – not one that’s staged.
The thing that I can’t understand is what happened between Dallas and Pittsburgh last week. After viewing Eric Nystrom’s hit on Kris Letang a few times, I can understand that there should not be any supplemental discipline. The level of Letang’s head went down and there was really no contact to it from Nystrom’s shoulder. The fact that Letang reached and tipped the puck made him fair game.
But here’s what I can’t understand. Nystrom had the inside track to the puck. He seemed to turn his head slightly at it after Letang got his blade on it. But instead of winning the puck, Nystrom went for the hit. The hit was hailed by many as a clean check and that Nystrom was just doing the job of a grinding player. But, why didn’t he go for the puck? It was there. Since he didn’t get it, how does he know a teammate was going to get there first? What good is his hit if Pittsburgh gets the puck, whips it out on the break and scores down the other end?
It was also said that Nystrom would have been benched if he did not do his job and go for the hit. I find that hard to believe. What would the coach do to Nystrom if he took himself out of the play and Pittsburgh had used the open ice to score down the other end? I think it’s idiocy to think a coach would bench him if he did not go out of his way to deck Letang.
I forget who said it, but when the puck is loose in the corner you go after it, “and you arrive angry.” Nystrom could have gone for the puck first and body checked Letang off of it as he arrived second.
I hate to agree with Mike Milbury. This might be the first time ever. But, to me, guys have to go for the puck and arrive angry instead of going out of their way to make a hit like Nystrom did.
Again, I don’t think it was dirty. I just looked at the play and said, “Why?”
Mark Pukalo
