Just keep truckin’ on: Lightning at Blues preview

Game Forty-Six: Tampa Bay Lightning (29-13-3) at St. Louis Blues (18-21-8)

Time: 8:00 PM EST

Location: Enterprise Center, The Gateway to the West

TV/Stream/Radio: The Spot, FDSNMW, ESPN+, 102.5 FM, Lightning App

Odds: Lightning

Know the Opponents: Bleedin’ Blue

After a couple of days off (and a brief trip back to Tampa) the Lightning are back on the road to finish off their five-game stint away from Benchmark International Arena. Based on records and expectations, tonight’s game against the St. Louis Blues should be the easier of the two remaining games on the trip.

A 4-6-0 run over their last 10 games has damped the playoff hopes of the Blues as they now sit five points outside of the wild card with four teams between them and the San Jose Sharks for the last spot in post-season standings. The trade winds have started swirling harder, especially around goaltender Jordan Binnington.

Moving any of their skaters would take some creativity as most of the ones that garner interest are signed long-term, hurt, or both. Their injured reserve list rivals the Lightning as Robert Thomas, Pius Suter, Mathieu Joseph, and Dylan Holloway are all out. Defenseman Torey Krug is out for the season (and possibly his career).

Still, the Lightning can’t take the night off just because the team on the other side of the ice is a little beaten up. Despite their issues, the Blues did take down Carolina 3-0 their last time out, it was some of their younger players that led the way. Dalibor Dvorsky (20) and Jimmy Snuggerud (21) had goals in the win, and highlight a forward corps that is shot through with younger players getting a chance due to the injuries to older players.

The Lightning know a thing or two about injuries with Brayden Point the latest player that is going to to miss an extended length of time. Coach Jon Cooper mixed things up a little in the absence of his top center, as he flipped Nikita Kucherov back-and-forth on a couple of lines. He spent most of the night on a line with Nick Paul and Jake Guentzel, but also had more than four minutes of 5v5 time with Brandon Hagel and Anthony Cirelli.

It appears that Coach Cooper has decided to deploy the Yanni Gourde, Pontus Holmberg, and Zemgus Girgensons trio as his go-to group. They were on the ice for 11:00 minutes against the Penguins with the team posting an edge in scoring chances (7-4) and goals scored (1-0). The fact that they are starting to turn their chances into goals bodes well for them getting even more playing time moving forward.

No line has played together more at 5v5 than Gourde, Holmberg, and Girgensons as they’ve racked up 317 minutes together so far this season. They’ve rewarded Coach Cooper’s faith in them as the Lightning are posting a 57.01% edge in expected goals when they’re on the ice. The offense took a little time to come around, but they’ve been solid defensively with the Bolts allowing just 1.89 goals-per-60.

During the winning streak they’ve outscored their opponents 5-3 and absolutely crushing the scoring chances battle (55-29) and high-danger chances battle (23-12). They’ve succeeded by keeping the puck in the offensive zone and wearing down the defense. It not only helps them out, but also sets up the two-scoring lines.

The Lightning have a big match against the Dallas Stars looming on Sunday. With the Stars looking like they are set for a deep run in the Western Conference there could be a tendency for the Bolts to look ahead to that game. If they do, St. Louis could sneak one out tonight. To their credit, that hasn’t been an issue for the Lightning this season, especially during their recent stretch of play They have been present for each game, and focused on the task at hand. If they can do that tonight, they have a chance to set a franchise record for the most wins in a row.

Potential Lines

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St. Louis Blues

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