It would appear that the Tampa Bay Lightning's brief fling with success is over after this week.

The team slammed head first into its early season ways of giving up early goals, giving up leads, shaky defense, shakier goal tending, and just general mediocrity. And, in all reality, the excuse of playing two good teams is invalid. Good teams can find ways to play around good fundamentals, but they rarely can find ways to just flat eliminate good fundamentals. And there were certainly times this week that Bolts were playing non-fundamentally sound hockey that sometimes was just plain sloppy.

Not to mention the fact that before this week, the Lightning had registered points in seven straight games and were one of the hottest teams in the NHL. Seems safe to say that that seven-game streak was the aberration, not this week.

All was not lost though, as GM Steve Yzerman did come out and say that there were no offers out there that benefited the team in any way. Patience is a virtue folks. And as frustrating as this season as been - and as next year may be as well - if Stevie is successful in what he's trying to do, this team will be fun to watch until the time Dwayne Roloson has grandchildren. If he doesn't already.

After the fold: Super skate with the Canes; Marco Sturm is still alive; Knuble done with the Caps?; and the Jets are back in it. The week that was in the Southeast.

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The Tampa Bay Lightning are in a tough spot. They've earned a whole bunch of points on a nice little streak lately and thrown themselves marginally back into the mix. They still have a pretty overwhelming deficit in terms of points in order to get into the playoffs, and that hasn't really changed.

So, why are they in a tough spot then, you might ask. Well, that's because this team is showing that they can play at the level everyone expected of them out of the gate. They are playing full games, being more responsible with the puck, and even the goalies have decided to actually participate.

Obviously, the goaltending will be handled regardless, and a move will be made. We all know that. But, where things become increasingly difficult is that with this latest run of good play, more and more of the team's assets are becoming attractive. Steve Yzerman's phone has probably already started lighting up more and more, and the most difficult question to ask is to pull the plug on this admittedly long-shot chance at a run in order to build for next year, or ride it out and see what happens in the offseason?

I know the playoffs are not going to happen, but as a fan, I am enjoying the quality hockey. But, at the end of the day, I say bring on next season.

After the jump: Canes sweep; Panthers get a loan; Caps are still on break; and good vibes for the Jets. The week that was in the Southeast Division.

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So far, so good this week for the Tampa Bay Lightning.

It's no secret that the chances of the Bolts making the playoffs are virtually nil. But, it is nice to see the boys turn in respectable performances starting at the first drop of the puck. Instead of the first drop of the puck in the third period.

Unfortunately though, we're seeing what we pretty much knew all along about this version of the Tampa Bay Lightning: they could be really damn good, if they just went for it.

It's going to be a strange second half for the Bolts. There are just too many teams in front of them to make a realistic push for the playoffs, but, the team is finally starting to figure out how to play, and how to play well. So what happens at the deadline? It's been firmly documented that Steve Yzerman wants to plan for the future, so it's fair to say that his transactions at the deadline may seem like head-scratchers at first.

If there's one caveat to the Lightning being in this position though, it's that as fans, we can just sit back and watch things unfold. Because despite the rough season so far, we're in good hands.

After the jump: Adios Poni; Panthers ready for the break; and the Caps take over. The week that was in the Southeast.

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There are really not a whole lot of positive things to say about the Tampa Bay Lightning right now. They've lost five in a row, have about a million injuries, and now the dreaded talk of the coach making excuses for the players has crept into the equation.

Even the simple joy of the All-Star Game is not going well for the Bolts, as Martin St. Louis was inexplicably not chosen for the game. Not chosen despite having 33 points in 37 games, a third of which he played with a broken face. Talk about insult to injury.

At any rate, the season continues to be a lost one for the Lightning. And it continues to ask more questions than it really answers. All along the talk has been that the team would address its goaltending issues, everyone would get healthy, and they'd be back to normal next season. But at this point is that really true? You don't end up only two points out of the Conference cellar halfway through the season solely because of poor goaltending and a few injuries.

There are deeper, more complex issues going on with this team; issues that throwing a fistful of hundreds at Cory Schneider is not going to solve.

Coming up: Ward and Staal finding it; terrible Campbell an All-Star; and Claude Noel is not soft. The week that was in the Southeast.

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Well, it's been a thoroughly dismal week for the Tampa Bay Lightning. After finishing off a three-game, three-win home stand on Saturday, the Bolts took to the road and showed us that the away game woes that have plagued the team most of the season are not only still there, but are perhaps even worse.

Losses to the Toronto Maple Leafs at Ottawa Senators by a combined score of 11-4. And the Leafs and Sens aren't exactly world beaters.

I'm as frustrated as the next fan, but my frustrations aren't so much with the lack of defense and goaltending, or the lack of secondary scoring, or even the pitiful play away from Tampa. I'm frustrated because I just don't sense any urgency from the team. And I'm not referring to Steve Yzerman's approach to team building. There's no point in going overboard on transactions right now, there are too many teams between the Bolts and 8^th place to realistically make the playoffs now, so I'm full onboard with him in waiting until "prices" go down in the trade market. But I just plain don't see urgency from the Lightning to turn in a respectable effort every game. I've followed this team since day one, and I'm still following them, so it's not like I expect the playoffs every season, and I certainly don't turn them off when they are losing. But I do expect them to take some pride in themselves, and I'm just not terribly convinced they're doing that right now.

After the jump: Uneasy Canes; Questionable official involvement; Alzner loses a bet; and an awful week for the Jets, the week that was in the Southeast.

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At first glance, it's been an awesome week for the Tampa Bay Lightning. An awesome-to-see 5-1 drubbing of the newly-but-not-really hated Philadelphia Flyers, and a come from behind victory in front of the home crowd ruining Montreal Canadiens faithful - pretty good, right?

From a pure entertainment standpoint, absolutely. I loved every second of it, but, it unfortunately does not indicate an instant turnaround of this season.

The first point of note is the obvious fact that we have no idea what is going on with Victor Hedman. He left the game against Philly with an "Upper-body injury," and that's still really all we know. As mistake prone as he can be, that's one more regular defender the Lightning don't have available. I'm available however, Mr. Yzerman.

At any rate, the other things to keep in mind are:

A.) For the rest of this season, at least, the boys feel like they have a score to settle with the Flyers because of their continued stall shenanigans.

B.) The Canadiens have been as thoroughly lackluster as the Lightning have been lately.

Now, there is certainly reason for be optimistic after the past two games, because by all accounts, the Bolts did show some characteristics we have not yet seen this season. But, until it's sustained for a couple weeks, don't set yourself up to be let down.

At the end of the day though, the Lightning are still not ready to be talked about in terms of playoff contention.

After the break: Ward scores; Winter Classic in Miami?; Caps need consistency; and Baby Buff. The week that was down South.

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Tampa Bay Lightning fans got an early Christmas present on Wednesday, when Martin St. Louis not only surprised everyone by practicing, but then suited up for that night's game (if you want to call it that) against the San Jose Sharks. Then, just to delight us even further (and because he's Marty freaking St. Louis), he scored a goal.

It didn't help, as the Bolts gave up five goals in the first period, and seven for the contest in arguably their worst game of the entire season. The porous defense and goaltending - the theme for the season, and really the history of the team - has once again inspired a lot of Lightning fans to call for trades, signings, and all-out panic. Including many's favorite target: Vincent Lecavalier and his long-term contract.

I'm a big fan of Vinny, and depending on your view of the guy, you might call me a Lecavalier apologist. I've never tried to hide that, and I'm certainly not afraid to admit it. So, let me provide you with basically the only stat you need to know about him: The Lightning are 16-27-1-5 all-time in games Vinny has missed because of injury. That's twice as many losses as wins.

Last season, the Lightning won 46 games during the regular season. They then went on to win another 11 out of 18 in the playoffs. In those 18 games, Vinny had 19 points. Five more than Steven Stamkos, and only one point behind Marty.

I think we can all agree that last season was one of the most magical seasons in Lightning history. That season, and that playoff run especially, does not happen without Vincent Lecavalier. Period, end of story.

It's been a rather light week in the division, but coming up after the fold: The Canes save Christmas; Dineen owns Montreal; Mike Knuble rocks; and Pavelec on the wrong end of a call-out. The week that was in the Southeast Division.

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Well, it's been more than a week now. We all weren't sure what to expect from a psyche-injured Tampa Bay Lightning team that had just lost its cornerstone, Martin St. Louis.

Turns out, we were in for pretty much more of the same.

The Bolts won an emotional game against the New York Rangers the night Marty went down with a broken face, then gave up five goals two games in a row to the Philadelphia Flyers and the New Jersey Devils, and then ramped up the nostalgia to defeat the Calgary Flames in the 2004 Stanley Cup rematch last night. That game also happened to be Jay Feaster's return to Tampa after being shuffled out the door by those who shall not be named.

Until this team quits trading a win for a loss, or a win for two losses, I'm not going to get my hopes up too high, but, as has been alluded to by pretty much everyone, last night's formula usually ends up in a loss for the Bolts.

Did someone finally step up and say something in the dressing room? Did Guy Boucher trade his usual think-this-through approach for some good ole fashioned bag skating? Did they just get lucky?

Hard to tell with such a small sample size, but the collective sigh of relief and "finally" we all released last night was quite a welcome sight.

Coming up after the pause, Southeast inconsistency; blame Cam Ward; it's fun to play for the Panthers; and it's time to blow up the Capitals. The week that was in the Southeast.

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