Tampa Bay Lightning Game 79: versus the Carolina Hurricanes

The Tampa Bay Lightning lost to the Carolina Hurricanes 8-5.

Dear hockey players of the Tampa Bay Lightning,

Okay, we know you’ve had a less than wonderful season. And we know that you’ve only got three games left. We know that you guys are proud and that you want to win as badly as the fans want you to. We get that.

We also know that sometimes winning is a lot harder than at other times. We can’t fault you if you’re obviously trying your best. We might not enjoy the outcome, but we understand that things happen – you don’t get the bounces, the other team is clicking, the opposition’s goaltender is hot. We’re hockey fans; we’ve seen how these things work.

So, bottom line, we know that sometimes you’ll lose. That’s a given. As the saying goes, you can’t win them all. We’d all prefer that you win most, but I guess that goes without saying.

At this point, we know that you may not win at all. And that’s okay. The season’s essentially over. I think we’re all tired of this whole deal, and most are looking forward to the changes in the offseason that new ownership will bring.

However, it is not a good time watching you guys get embarrassed.

And that’s what’s happened in the last week or so. You’ve embarrassed yourselves. Letting in four or five goals in the first period? Come on. You guys are far better than that, and you know it.

This isn’t about effort, and right now it isn’t even about coaching. This is about where you are mentally. Your play is sloppy and scrambly, plain and simple. No fan appreciates that, and I’m sure your opponents don’t either. Playing on either side in a blowout isn’t fun for anybody.

We just want you to pull yourselves together for these last three games. Remember why you’re still playing hockey. It’s a game; it’s supposed to be fun.

Enjoy these upcoming games with your teammates – because you don’t know who’ll be back next season. Relax and play the game the way it’s supposed to be played. Ending the season on a winning streak might be nice, but just playing good hockey would be great as well.

All we ask is that you don’t embarrass the fans for supporting you again.

Thanks.

The next game is Thursday, 8 April, versus the Ottawa Senators. Game time is 7:30 pm Eastern.

Hurricanes vs Lightning coverage [SB Nation]

Canes Country [SB Nation Carolina Hurricanes site]

Hurricanes vs Lightning recap [TSN]

Hurricanes vs Lightning boxscore [TSN]