By Mark Pukalo
No complaints.
That’s how Tampa Bay
Lightning fans should feel today. The team battled through about every obstacle
it could face and finished one win – possibly even a few breaks -- from a
second straight trip to the Stanley Cup finals. You had to wonder what was
happening at times during the regular season with this group, but when the
biggest moments came the Bolts showed their heart and made it an entertaining
playoff drama.
It wasn’t difficult to see
it all coming apart in the second period Thursday night. The magic was fading,
except for a bit of individual mastery from Jonathan Drouin. The Penguins were
coming in waves and the Lightning struggled to exit their zone, continually
sending the puck backward and fighting through long shifts. Whether it was
fatigue or it was more about the forwards not helping out enough, a defensive
corps that had been a little better than expected in the postseason finally
succumbed in the final two games. With all the pressure Pittsburgh had, it’s a
credit to the Lightning that they still had a chance until the final seconds.
Andrei Vasilevskiy was outstanding.
Yes, the Penguins outshot
the Lightning throughout the Eastern final. Overall, they played better.
Regardless, the Bolts could have easily won the series in six games and the
goal by Drouin that was taken off the board due to an offside call may have
been the biggest moment of the near three-week war. The Penguins’ video coach
deserves plenty of praise for urging the bench to challenge the play which was
so close that if the officials ruled it was inconclusive, few would have
argued.
Several players took turns
making big plays through the 17-game postseason, but no one was better overall than
Victor Hedman. How a local radio host could keep him out of his top three is
beyond me. The big Swede was at his best against the Islanders and the first
five games of the Eastern finals, but maybe the mental fatigue hit him in the
final two contests. Hedman was actually pretty good in Game 7, but was asked to
do way too much work in his own zone and it took something out of him.
Nikita Kucherov’s 11 goals
probably make him No. 2, but he was a bit too quiet in the all-important Game 6
against Pittsburgh. Kucherov is a goal scorer and everyone would like to see
him become a little more selfish. Third choice would likely be Drouin or Alex
Killorn. Lightning fans will have to live with the occasional turnover from
Drouin. He is a high-risk passer. He will slowly eliminate some of the more dangerous
chances he takes as he continues to gain experience. Anybody that says he
doesn’t care to play defense wasn’t watching in the playoffs. He’ll never win a
Selke. But he worked at it.
Hopefully this postseason
taught coach Jon Cooper, and perhaps even GM Steve Yzerman, that this team
plays much better when it is aggressive. Look who won the Bolts’ division – the
Florida Panthers, who threw three scoring lines out when they had a healthy
roster available. Look who ended their season – the Penguins, who had three
scoring lines and one gritty, smart fourth-line center.
Yzerman told reporters at
his closing press conference Friday that the Lightning needs more scoring
throughout the lineup. Will the coach get the message? Too many times in the
regular season, Cooper leaned toward sending a pair of checking lines to the
ice. They were reacting to the other team, rather than making their opponent
react to them. That changed, for the most part, during the postseason with
Drouin introduced to the mix. You wonder what would have happened if Steven Stamkos
had not been gone and Drouin wasn’t quite as productive when he returned to
Syracuse.
That leads us to one of the
most important offseasons in Yzerman’s tenure. He gave the same group a second chance at a Cup this season and now changes need to be made. There will be some pain, but Yzerman can minimize that with some strong deals and a touch of luck.
The good thing for the
Lightning GM is he has valuable players to deal while he sets the salary cap
plan for the next five years. In my opinion, the most essential players to keep
are Hedman, Kucherov, Drouin, Ondrej Palat, Killorn, Ryan Callahan, Brian Boyle
and Anton Stralman – some because they are the best players and others because
they are key components to a winning team. Many would argue with Callahan’s
inclusion. He is surely not an untouchable if someone offers a great deal, but
it would be foolish to overreact to one rough year offensively. Let’s be
honest, he was used in a checking line role most of the season and did put up
points when he played with Stamkos.
Yzerman’s job begins with
decisions on captain Stamkos and the goaltending situation. In many ways, they
are linked.
Ultimately, it will come
down to what Stamkos wants for himself. The 26-year-old is not going to sign an
eight-year, $68 million contract offer that reportedly has been laid on his table.
The question is, if Yzerman pushes the total to 72, 74, maybe even 76 -- will
it make a difference? If the NHLPA is urging Stamkos to take no less than $10
mil per and he is on board, I don’t see the Lightning doing it. Honestly, even
76 would be pushing it. Yzerman should put the $72 mil on his captain’s night
stand and see what happens. If Stammer just wants to push it up to 9.1 or 9.2 per
to make himself look better, fine.
Stamkos is not so essential
that the Bolts need to open the vault. But I think at around $9-9.5 million he
is worth building around, rather than trying to replace his 30-50 goals. Stamkos
and Hedman as faces of the franchise for nearly the next decade would be comforting.
They are both leaders with strong character. The Lightning, in my opinion, do
not have a No. 1 center without Stamkos. They’d have a No. 2 and a pair of 3s --
at best.
Should Stamkos be in the
fold and Hedman comes in at $8-8.5 million per after next year -- with Kucherov
somewhere in the $6 million range -- the most logical way to save money would
be to deal goalie Ben Bishop as early as this summer. It won’t merely take
buying out Matt Carle or trading Valterri Filppula, although those options
should be explored thoroughly in the next few months. It's not the 2016-17 cap
number that is the problem. The ones in 2017-18 and beyond are. Yzerman has been
creative in the past and it’s time for him to perform more magic.
It may seem strange to trade
Bishop after what many think should be a Vezina campaign. Goaltenders are like
pitchers, though. Only the very best can sustain the kind of quality he
displayed last season over a long period and big long-term contracts for
netminders are dangerous -- unless your name is Brodeur. Bishop has been hurt three straight postseasons as well. Matt Murray and Martin
Jones, who would not be picked in the top 10 of the league, led teams to the
finals this season. Most years, it’s the players in front of the net who get a
team to the promise land. Will Vasilevskiy be great, one of the best in the
league? No one knows. But who could tell you he isn’t any good after what you
have witnessed from him before he turns 22?
There are other options if
Filppula and Carle cannot be dealt. The big one I have mentioned before is trading
Tyler Johnson. He will be due a big raise after next season if he puts up
numbers more like his 2014-15 campaign a year from now and I believe others are
more important to the team moving forward. Johnson is a talented player. It’s
nothing against him. You just wonder if he will be able to sustain a strong
level of production for a long period of time on a big contract. Palat and
Killorn are more versatile, and likely cheaper. In addition, Johnson would be a
valuable piece that could possibly bring in a top-3, right-handed defenseman
that the Lightning so covet.
The other option if Stamkos
is out the door is to try and extend Bishop at a reasonable rate (6.5?) and
explore a big package in return for Vasilevskiy. You could maybe get a center
with potential to be a No. 1 in the deal or at least a solid No. 2.
If the Lightning can keep
the next contracts of Stamkos, Kucherov, Killorn, J.T. Brown and Vladislav
Namestnikov under a total of around $22 mil, the latter plan could work better.
But that will be difficult. It may also mean discarding Jason Garrison at some
point, getting something for Cedric Paquette in a trade or starting the buyout
process on Carle right now. Yzerman must be a true Jedi master in the next
50-60 days.
You could have a top nine
that includes Palat, Stamkos, Drouin, Killorn, Namestnikov, Kucherov and
Callahan along with a few trade acquisitions, Adam Erne or perhaps Filppula,
with a Brown-Boyle-Tanner Richard fourth line.
Hedman, Stralman, Braydon Coburn,
Garrison and the emerging Slater Koekkoek give you a solid five on defense, but
one right-hand blue liner would make a huge difference. The Lightning could use
Garrison and Andrej Sustr in trades as well if they are to bring in two D – one
solid mobile righty and a lefty with size and potential on the younger side.
Sustr shows flashes. He was better in 2015-16 than in 2014-15. He’s just so
inconsistent. I just don’t see him as a long-term answer.
You can be sure Yzerman has
a plan, and plenty of irons in the fire. He usually surprises us. That’s why,
for some strange reason I think a Stamkos deal could still happen. If it does
not, there is still plenty of work to be done and options to choose.
It will be a fun next few
months.
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