Top 350 songs in my 50 years of Music: 50-41

50. Tequila Sunrise – The Eagles. … Don Henley and Glenn Frey co-wrote this beautiful, short song from the under-rated album, “Desperado.” “Take another shot of courage. Wonder why the right words never come. … You just get numb.”

49. Under the Milky Way – The Church. … Bass guitarist and lead vocalist Steve Kilbey said the song just came to him and then-girlfriend Karin Jansson while smoking a joint one day. The Australian band did not quite fulfill its potential, but this late 80s masterpiece will live on.

48. I saw her standing there – The Beatles. … The first track on the Fab Four’s debut album “Please, Please Me” in 1963 is my choice as their top tune. “We danced through the night, and we held each other tight. And before too long, I fell in love with her.”

47. What I like about you – The Romantics. … The Detroit band’s “power pop” tune brings back memories of UConn days. It only made No. 49 on the billboard charts in 1980, but has become much more popular as a party dance song since. “Keep on whispering in my ear, tell me all the things that I wanna hear.”

46. Comfortably Numb – Pink Floyd. … The best song from a masterpiece concept album named, “The Wall.” Roger Waters and David Gilmour wrote about a troubled rock star and end the tune with some amazing guitar work.

45. Feelin’ Stronger Every Day – Chicago. … The “rock and roll band with horns” will finally be inducted into the Hall of Fame this year. The group was at its best in the first half of the 70s, led by this powerful tune.

44. (Just like) Starting Over – John Lennon. … Some songs bring back vivid memories. The lights went on to end a concert at Jorgensen Auditorium when I was at UConn and this tune blared through the big speakers. It never sounded better and I remember people dancing, arm and arm out of the building. It was released as a single less than two months before John was murdered and reached No. 1 after his death.

43. Put the Message in the Box – World Party. … Maybe a reach, but this likeable sing-along tune, from a brilliant album named “Goodbye Jumbo,” sounds the call for saving the environment. “See the world in just one grain of sand. You better take a closer look. Don’t let it slip right through your hand.”

42. Every little thing she does is magic – The Police. … Sting and the boys have fun with this nifty little tune that mixes a little dance, reggae and rock from the album, “Ghost in the Machine.” “I resolve to call her up, a thousand times a day, and ask her if she’ll marry me, in some old fashion way.”

41. Voices Carry – Til Tuesday. … Aimee Mann calls out her boyfriend triumphantly at the end of one of the best videos of all time. Mann penned the song, reportedly, about one of her own bad relationships. “I’m in the dark, I’d like to read his mind. But I’m frightened of the things I might find.”

Drouin Drama Could Turn Positive

By Mark Pukalo

Two wrongs may end up making a right for the Tampa Bay Lightning in the case of Jonathan Drouin.

You read that correctly. The issues are all out in the open now. That’s ultimately good for many reasons.

The team’s potential star probably should have kept his trade request in-house a little longer because injuries have made it somewhat prudent that he spend a few weeks of conditioning in the minors. It would not have been my choice, but it is understandable. You never like 20-year-olds making this declaration. Perhaps he should have battled through the entirety of one more season, and then made a decision.

That being said, the Bolts have bungled the development of a skillful, creative player since the start of last season. No one was asking for him to be given anything. He knew he had to work for his top-nine minutes. The problem was, it’s difficult to earn more time when you are playing 10-12 minutes on the fourth line and not using your skill on a power play that was seriously lacking playmakers. Despite all that, he led the league in assists per minute. Not for rookies. The whole freaking league, as I told ESPN’s Scott Burnside on twitter after he called Drouin a “major disappointment.”

Whether he should have been in the lineup or not in the playoffs, coach Jon Cooper unnecessarily embarrassed the third pick in the 2013 draft by relegating him to the black aces at one point and dressing Mike Angelidis for the pregame skate instead of him.

Drouin had a solid camp this September and put up six points in the first five regular-season games while playing with Steven Stamkos and Ryan Callahan. He was a plus-5 the first seven contests and appeared to be screwed out of another assist in Buffalo. Drouin had a few off games – apparently -- after the first injury and suddenly was on the fourth line, playing 9:26 against Calgary. Perhaps, that is when the trade request came.

The left wing had two points against Anaheim in his first game back after sitting out for a third stretch. He struggled in the following contest versus San Jose on Dec. 5, but was the best player on the ice for the Lightning against the LA Kings one day later with four shots and several nifty setups that went unfinished. Soon after, he was injured again.

That brings us to today. Why could it be a positive that this drama has occurred? The bolt of Lightning could develop a better Drouin if he returns, and I think he will. He should be even more determined to prove himself. It will also force the coaches and GM Steve Yzerman to take a fresh look at what they are doing with him – and finally get on the same page. If all else fails, it creates a huge bidding war for a top prospect and a possible overpay (more on that, later).

The fact that teammates seemed to come out in support of Drouin on Monday was a major positive. There didn’t appear to be a hint of a concern about his work ethic. Ben Bishop told the Tampa Bay Times, “we’ll probably laugh about this (request)” some day.

After the disappointment of a demotion and getting the request off his chest, Drouin should have some serious steam when he takes to the ice with the Syracuse Crunch on Friday in Albany. Could we see him with Mike Peca and Adam Erne? Maybe with Jeff Tambellini? The hope is, Drouin puts up 10 points or so in six to seven games and he comes back to Tampa ready to make an impact, diving in for the final 35 games as things work themselves out with the lineup.

Yzerman has probably gotten offers for Drouin before. Now he will get more. This is not a Marty St. Louis situation. He can wait as long as he wants. He can wait to see if Drouin changes his mind. He can say no, very easily. The only difficult thing now is the team is up against the cap. Personally, I hope they keep him and see what happens in the offseason. But if they are to trade him, this may be the opportunity to free up cap space for the future. Here’s how. Hey, Colorado, you want Drouin to play beside his buddy Nathan MacKinnon? Ok, give us a No. 1 in 2016 and you take Matt Carle’s whole contract off our hands in a package deal that could include a few more items.

A friend of mine, who has a good hockey mind, apparently wants me and others to bash Yzerman. While I disagree with his hands-off approach with coaches and a few of his decisions (why three years for Erik Condra?), Yzerman has done a great job overall. I have confidence he knows what he has with Drouin and will do the right thing. It’s also good that Tyler Seguin happened. It spikes fear into every NHL GM that thinks of dealing a high pick.

Cooper may also re-evaluate the way he puts together a lineup if the Lightning continue to wallow below the playoff line. As I have said before, the modern-day NHL does not require two scoring lines, a checking unit and a threesome of muckers. It’s nine forwards with solid defensive instincts sprinkled among them and a strong checking unit for a fourth line. Cooper seems to prefer two scoring lines and two checking units. In my opinion, I’d go Drouin-Stamkos-Callahan, the triplets, Alex Killorn-Valtteri Filppula-Jonathan Marchessault and a fourth unit that is anchored by Brian Boyle with J.T. Brown, Vladislav Namestnikov and Cedric Paquette around him at this point. If Marchessault continues to struggle defensively (look it up, he’s minus-7), maybe Namestnikov or Brown can move up.

My hope is that Drouin returns to Tampa in a few weeks and gets a substantial role while helping the Lightning climb back into playoff position. Then, as Bishop says, we all can have a good laugh about the last few days.

Lightning Need to Find Swagger

By Mark Pukalo

You knew it would not be easy for the Tampa Bay Lightning this season. You didn’t expect this.

The Lightning are barely over .500 with the midway point of the campaign just around the corner and they are not showing any signs that a complete turnaround will occur. This 2-2-1 start to an important homestand is example No. 1. No consistency. Little spark.

Blame it on injuries all you want, but it is only one of the many issues the Lightning have developed after getting within two victories of a Stanley Cup last June. The biggest problems seem to be mental, but there are lingering lineup concerns as they return to full health.

“I don’t know what to say, there is no magic answer,” captain Steven Stamkos said Wednesday after the 5-2 loss to the New York Rangers at home. “These close games, last year we were finding a way to win. Now we’re the team sitting back on our heels. I don’t know if it’s lack of confidence or lack of execution, but there is really no consistency to our game right now.”

Solutions are elusive, because most of the problems are in their heads.

Some people who were there more often than I have told me the Lightning went through the motions a bit in the preseason. That is understandable after a long playoff run. It’s also dangerous. The thing is, if it was a smoldering issue it didn’t seem to affect them as the Lightning came out of the chute with three straight wins to start the regular season. It might have been the worst thing for them. It told them – “We’re fine. No problem. It’s just going to happen.”

However, once it did not “just happen” for them and they needed to find that fighting spirit, that intelligent play and that aggression they had last season -- it wasn’t there. More hungry teams kept finding ways to beat them. Playing only good stretches of games was not nearly enough.

The goal-scoring drought also worked on their confidence. Because the puck wasn’t going in, it seemed as though they reverted back to the “we-have-to-pass-the-puck-into-the-net” mindset that has made their fans’ heads explode at times over the past half dozen years. There’s no doubt with shot blockers everywhere, you have to get pucks through and be careful. But the Lightning have to lead the league in shots passed up.

The perfect example was the blown lead in Washington when Nikita Kucherov passed up a try at the right side of the net and sent the puck back to Vladislav Namestnikov in front. Philipp Grubauer made a great save, but only because he was still there. He wasn’t at the right post where Kooch could have probably flipped a shot into the corner of the cage.

I can be too hard on coach Jon Cooper at times. I admit. He has needed to tinker with the lineup and forward lines this season with injuries and lack of production. No doubt. But his impatience with the chemistry of lines has been a problem in my opinion. I still wonder why the Jonathan Drouin-Stamkos-Ryan Callahan unit was never reunited after some early success.

Cooper can’t seem to figure out how to use Drouin. It is easy to me. Stick him with players that can score in places that he can succeed (the power play?) and let him grow. He is the third pick in the draft. Not a third rounder. Instead, the Lightning have sent him to the minors today, screwing with his head again. Other teams put players picked much lower than Drouin in the lineup and let them progress on their time. Drouin is not a finished product. He has shown improvement defensively this season and his positioning is better, but she still holds onto the puck too long sometimes. He needs to play at this level to learn and adjust, and not on a checking line. The Lightning may realize this when he’s putting up 80-90 points a season for some other organization some day while Stamkos continues to search for a setup man.

The power play, even though it is somehow 9-for-29 the last five games despite still looking mostly dreadful, has become the butt of jokes. As Stamkos said recently, “it is costing us games.” The Lightning make everything look so difficult, passing the puck into crowds, trying high-risk plays. They need to be more selfish. Move it, shoot it, get to the rebounds. Jonathan Marchessault does all those things and he’s had success. Valtteri Filppula never wants to shoot. Kucherov tends to defer to Stamkos. Drouin rarely gets chances. Special teams play is one issue that can be solved on the chalkboard. It is one thing that can turn the team’s season around. That doesn’t mean it’s easy.

No doubt the Lightning miss Ondrej Palat, and Tyler Johnson has not been the same player all season -- although he showed a little more burst the last four periods. Drouin has not been able to stay healthy either and build off his strong start (six points, five games). It just seems like there is something missing, though, apart from injured players.

The emotion, the spirit, the skating is there for a few shifts and then disappears. They play simple and smart in their own zone at times and then they are getting rid of the puck like it’s a grenade on their sticks, too often to the middle of the ice without a teammate in site (see winning goal Wednesday, and it was two of the team’s best players). Yes, it’s difficult to play 60 minutes of great hockey. But the Lightning has been in and out all season. In 2014-15, that was not the case with the same lineup.

Let’s face it. While the Lightning showed their grit and were very worthy of their trip the finals, it was close to being over in the first round. Johnson saved them in Game 4 against the Wings or else they probably lose in five and Ben Bishop stood on his head in the first period of Game 7 before the Bolts found their footing. Where would we be now if they had lost in the opening series two straight seasons?

One thing I was concerned about in preseason was that they appeared to have six players who were better at center than wing. Namestnikov has played some good minutes on left wing, but he still looks better at center and Cedric Paquette seems to play his best hockey in the middle. In my opinion, Paquette and Brian Boyle are two solid fourth-line centers. Both can’t be there. Maybe I make too big a deal of this. But I believe it’s an issue when Cooper puts together his lines.

The lack of a Stamkos contract extension is definitely an issue. Is it a big one in the locker room? No. I’m not sure it isn’t affecting the captain’s play though. He is having his worst season as a pro and it’s not necessarily only about his 16 goals and 28 points. He is making poor decisions with the puck all over the ice and that has led to more time working in his own zone. In Stamkos’ defense, he has continually had different linemates and it’s been hard to find a rhythm. But let’s be honest, he has not been the same since Marty St. Louis left.

The thing is, before his injury Lightning fans – including this reporter -- were arguing Stamkos was better than Alex Ovechkin. Right now, you can’t say he is. Stammer is not playing like a star that makes others around him better. He needs to use his speed, be aggressive, play North-South hockey and forget the little cute passes. Is he still a great player, a great leader and good person? In my opinion, yes on all counts. Is he worth $88-100 million for eight years? Not at the present time.

This might sound strange after saying that, but I would still sign Stammer for eight and 80-88 -- if I knew I could jettison a particular bad contract and had a plan to keep Kucherov, Palat and Alex Killorn, along with inking Victor Hedman to a long-term deal, and made it all work. But if it’s Hedman or Stamkos, the answer has to be the big Swede. He makes more of an impact on the game nightly at this time.

The defense has not played as good as their numbers indicate. Bishop is the reason the Lightning is seventh in the league in goals-against. The top four is solid and Andrej Sustr has shown some progress. But they could use another impact defenseman, especially with Brayden Coburn in the last year of his contract.

It may be time for Steve Yzerman to do something to change the deck chairs a bit. Instead of sending Drouin down, it could have been as simple as putting Erik Condra on waivers and bringing Slater Koekkoek up to play. The Bolts brass has reportedly been at a lot of St. Louis Blues games of late. I speculated a Kevin Shattenkirk-Filppula deal could help both teams, although the Blues appear to be getting center Patrik Berglund back.

Perhaps Yzerman has considered it already, but struggling defenseman Matt Carle (zero points) would likely accept a trade to Colorado where he played college hockey. It would have to be a very creative deal, but the Lightning’s GM has pulled off some gems before. Carle (two years left after this one) and a pick for injured Brad Stuart (one year left after this one for less money) would help with cap space. I’d also make Paquette available. He can be a good player, but I’m not sure he’s a third-line center long term and the Bolts have one of the best fourth-line pivots in the league. He’s got value, so maybe packaging him with Carle could get a trade done. Or maybe I’m dreaming.

It will be an interesting few months. All is not lost. Palat’s return will help and if Drouin can come back in a week or so more confident and healthy with a chip on his shoulder, he would be a big plus. You cannot complain about their goaltending. Bishop has been terrific.

I don’t doubt the players’ desire. They care. You can tell by looking at their faces in the locker room. Through the first 38 games of the season, they are simply not dealing with adversity the way they did last season. That must change. They need to find that swagger they had most of the previous two seasons. Play simple. Be aggressive. Make other teams react to them. There’s only 44 games left. It has to start Saturday.

Top 350 songs in my 50 years of Music: 60-51

60. Angie – Rolling Stones. … Whether it is really about a woman or Keith trying to quit heroin, the 1973 No. 1 hit is my favorite from the super group. “With no loving in our souls and no money in our coats, you can’t say we’re satisfied. But Angie, Angie, you can’t say we never tried.”

59. Brian Wilson – Barenaked Ladies. … Still steamed the Canadians didn’t perform this cheeky tune the last time they visited Tampa. Former band member Steven Page wrote and sang the song about a man who suffered from mental illness like the Beach Boys’ talented leader. “So, I’m lying here, just staring at the ceiling tiles, and I’m thinking about, oh what to think about.”

58. Indian Summer – Poco. … The under-appreciated Southern California country-rock band produced some terrific songs and none better than this title track from a 1977 album. It reminds me of my favorite time of year in New England. “Cool at night – and hot all day.”

57. Life’s Been Good – Joe Walsh. … Joe wrote this epic tune about rock stardom, with a nod toward his partying and room demolition days with Keith Moon and others. “I live in hotels, tear out the walls. I have accountants pay for it all.”

56. Never can say goodbye – Jackson Five. … Clifton Davis wrote this beautiful song that was originally slated to be performed by The Supremes. Michael, in the innocent days of the early 1970s, took the lead at age 12 while backed by the amazing Tito along with Jermaine, Marlon and Jackie.

55. Walk On – U2. … The song was dedicated to Aung San Suu Kyi, a Burmese academic who was put under house arrest for 11 years due to her pro-democracy activism. Bono said he wrote it as an uplifting anthem, praising the work she did. “You could have flown away, a singing bird in an open cage, who will only fly, only fly for freedom.”

54. Operator – Jim Croce. … The South Philadelphia native sang about guys named Leroy and Jim, who you shouldn’t mess around with, before he tragically died in a plane crash at age 30 in 1973. His incredible work will live on, led by this tune, “and you can keep the dime.”

53. Friday, I’m in Love – The Cure. … The British alternative rock band’s best tune, and you can dance to it. “I don’t care if Monday’s blue, Tuesday’s grey and Wednesday, too. Thursday I don’t care about you, it’s Friday, I’m in love.”

52. Mexico – James Taylor. … JT writes and sings about fun and a “sleepy senorita with the eyes on fire,” in a Mexican border town while Graham Nash and David Crosby add backing vocals on this 1975 tune.

51. Distant Sun – Crowded House. … Seven Worlds did collide when this tune graced one of my favorite albums entitled “Together Alone.” The under-rated band was formed in Australia and led by New Zealander Neil Finn, who wrote this one. “I can’t pretend to know what you want, but I offer love.”