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Tampa Bay Lightning Game 9: versus the Buffalo Sabres


The Tampa Bay Lightning lost in a shootout to the Buffalo Sabres 3-2.

Sorry for the lateness of this post, but I was having computer problems.

Vincent Lecavalier finally scored his first goal this season. So he finally got that monkey off of his back. And good for him; he's been trying to do that for while but just hasn't gotten the bounces. Alex Tanguay still is goalless, however, so hopefully that will inspire him.

Three of the four goals that were scored in regulation were scored in the last minute of their respective periods. That should tell you everything that you need to know about the game right there. The fact that everyone on the ice took a mental break when the period was almost over showed how unfocused many of the players were.

This was a mediocre game by both teams. No one really looked sharp - at least, not consistently. The only players that were on for most of the game were Ryan Miller of Buffalo, Lecavalier, and Martin St. Louis. If Miller had been playing like the rest of his team, then the Lightning might've won this game.

The Lightning's record is now three wins, three losses, and three overtime losses. Technically, that's six losses on the season, despite receiving a point for going into overtime. Not that great so far, if you ask me.

Star-divide

In all honesty, not much happened in this game. Not many players looked all that great. But then, in the Lightning's case, the schedule is probably partly to blame. Sure, they just played last Thursday before playing Saturday, but they don't play again until next Thursday now. Where's the incentive to stay sharp?

The shootout was interesting in that the typical players didn't start it. The shootout went to six players aside before anyone managed to score. The first three players for the Lightning were Steven Stamkos, Ryan Malone, and Alex Tanguay. Following them were Lecavalier, Mattias Ohlund, and St. Louis.

Ohlund was an interesting choice since he's better known as a stay-at-home defenseman. It's not that he doesn't have a good shot - because he does. It's just that he thinks defense first and scoring second.

The look on St. Louis' face when his time came up was priceless, tho. I'm not sure if he was expected to be heckled by the crowd for his YouTube performance during the strip shootout or not. But he clearly had that "oh boy...." look on his face before he went to shoot on Miller.

A few interesting notes.... Zenon Konopka was 6-1 in faceoffs, which is winning 86% of the ones he'd taken. Victor Hedman had four giveaways last night. He had moments of brilliance, but hasn't been very consistent in his play recently. St. Louis has a point in every single game so far this season - including against the Sabres. The Lightning were again outshot 32-26. 18-year-old rookie James Wright must either be sent back to his junior team by the next game, or he will be ineligible to play in junior hockey.

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What is wrong with this team?

I am a casual hockey fan. I catch most of their games on TV and go to a couple each year. On paper to a casual fan our team should be much better. Is it coaching, ownership turmoil, lack of character in the players, game plan? Sometimes they look emotionless and flat. Being a casual fan, it seems to me that often the more aggressive team wins. To me, we look like we play for the pretty pass, and other teams are able jam home a score by sheer will and determination. Are we soft? Please educate me.

Gary Williams for President!
Put Rose in the Hall of Fame

by terp12 on Oct 25, 2009 4:49 PM EDT reply actions  

Yes to all of the above!

Actually, the biggest problem is that the team hasn’t been very good the past couple of years. On paper they are good, and most of the personnel holes have been adequately filled. But mentally they’re still in that transition between being a bad team and a good team.

I guess the bottom line is that they can be very easily discouraged and are going to be inconsistent because of that. Add to that that Tocchet hasn’t been a head coach for very long, and it’s going to be a bit bumpy this season. But they’ll get there. The last half of the season should be a lot better, I think.

Cassie
Raw Charge, an SBN Tampa Bay Lightning Blog. Calling shotgun in the clown car.

by Cassie McClellan on Oct 25, 2009 9:51 PM EDT up reply actions  

Lets hope so

There are a lot of veteran players on this team that, one would think, would know what it takes mentally to prepare to play.

Gary Williams for President!
Put Rose in the Hall of Fame

by terp12 on Oct 26, 2009 3:56 PM EDT up reply actions  

Even still, you can’t become a good team overnight. It just doesn’t happen that way, no matter who you have playing on the team. In the end, it’s more a group thing than an individual thing.

Cassie
Raw Charge, an SBN Tampa Bay Lightning Blog. Calling shotgun in the clown car.

by Cassie McClellan on Oct 26, 2009 9:08 PM EDT up reply actions  

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