Game #53 – Tampa Bay Lightning (27-20-5) at Columbus Blue Jackets (16-24-10)
Time: 7:00 PM EST
Location: Nationwide Arena
Broadcast/Streaming: BSSUN, BSOH, ESPN+, Hulu
Opponent’s Site: Jackets’ Canon
Preview
Throughout a long regular season there comes along several small inflection points. Depending on what happens at those moments can go a long way to determining a team’s final outcome. Tonight could be one of those points. It’s been a rough start to the road trip for the Tampa Bay Lightning as they’ve dropped the first two games, and quite frankly, have been outplayed for most of the six periods they have been on the ice.
In their last two outings they’ve given up a combined 9 goals (one empty-net) and scored just three (one on the power play). They’ve yet to lead a game and the second period has continued to give them a migraine-level headache as they’ve been outscored 5-1 in the middle 20 minutes.
Oddly enough, their underlying numbers are reflective of the their goal deficit. At 5v5 they are above water in scoring chances (55.84%), high-danger chances (57.69%), and shot attempts (56.47%). Score effects play a small part in that discrepancy, especially against the Islanders, but it’s also a throwback to their early-season woes where their mistakes, of which they are making too many, end up in the back of their net.
They enter tonight with a chance to salvage the road trip. A win and they can head to Boston with a little momentum and a chance to finish the excursion with a split. A loss and they need to beat the division-leading Bruins to avoid a sweep. Not exactly a happy situation.
There should be no more excuses heading into the game. Coach Cooper has already stated his displeasure at the schedule, and while he has a point that teams coming off of a long break should face each other, it’s also the coaches job to get the players ready mentally and physically. It’s not like the schedule was a secret.
Now they’re back on their regular schedule and taking on a team that, on paper, they should beat. It’s been another rough season for the Columbus Blue Jackets who sit at the bottom of the Metropolitan division and are hoping their draft lottery odds are better this year than last. Injuries have played a part in their struggles again. Freshman forward Adam Fantilli is the latest victim as he recovers from a deep skate cut to his leg. The Blue Jackets are also without Patrik Laine who is currently in the NHL/NHLPA player assistance program.
While Columbus might be struggling (just 3 wins in their last 10 games) they aren’t going to roll over for the Bolts. There are young players fighting for a spot on next year’s roster and veterans trying to showcase their skills for other teams at the trade deadline. Also, don’t underestimate the power of a team wanting to play spoiler either.
Since the beginning of the calendar year Johnny Gaudreau has led them in scoring with 7 points in 12 games. All points are assists and had vaulted Johnny Hockey into the team leader in points on the season with 32 (7 goals, 25 assists). The goals have come from a couple of youngsters in Dmitri Voronkov with 5 and Yegor Chinakov with 4.
It’s apparent that scoring is an issue. Since the 1st the Blue Jackets have scored a total of 27 goals. The Lightning’s trio of Steven Stamkos, Brayden Point, and Nikita Kucherov have recorded a total of 21 just amongst themselves in that same time frame.
It’s not just a win that Coach Cooper will be looking for tonight. He’ll be looking for his team to get back to the fundamentals a bit and not be so careless with the puck. Against the Islanders they were disorganized in their own zone and it slowed their breakouts and ability to transition to offense. It’s not just on the defense to solve that problem. They need support from the forwards in order to break through any forecheck Columbus throws at them.
After tonight the Lightning have a three-game run against Boston, Colorado, and Florida. They really can’t afford to look ahead to those teams though, that’s how a two-game losing streak quickly turns into a four or five-game losing streak. Take care of business in Columbus and use a win as a stepping stone heading into that gauntlet.
Top Lightning players in Columbus:
Steven Stamkos – 9 games, 9 goals, 10 assists
Brayden Point – 13 games, 4 goals, 9 assists
Andrei Vasilevskiy – 10 games, 7-3-0, 2 shutouts, .926 SV%, 2.31 GAA
Top Blue Jackets at home against Lightning:
Jack Rosolvic – 6 games, 3 goals, 3 assists
Zach Werenski – 11 games, 2 goals, 2 assists
Elvis Merzlikins – 5 games, 3-1-1, .923 SV%, 2.25 GAA
Stats Match-up
Game #53 | Tampa Bay Lightning | Columbus Blue Jackets |
Overall Record | 27-20-5 | 16-24-10 |
Home Record | 17-5-3 | 9-13-4 |
Road Record | 10-15-2 | 7-11-6 |
Goals For | 178 | 148 |
Goals Against | 173 | 184 |
xGF | 165.76 | 141.06 |
xGA | 160.50 | 171.97 |
Power Play | 30.0% | 14.7% |
Penalty Kill | 81.2% | 77.6% |
Last 10 Games | 7-3-0 | 3-5-2 |
Lines
Tampa Bay Lightning Projected Lines
Forwards
Steven Stamkos – Brayden Point – Nikita Kucherov
Nick Paul – Anthony Cirelli – Brandon Hagel
Mikey Eyssimont – Tyler Motte – Conor Sheary
Austin Watson – Luke Glendening – Mitchell Chaffee
Defenders
Victor Hedman – Darren Raddysh
Emil Lilleberg – Erik Cernak
Calvin de Haan – Nick Perbix
Goalies
Andrei Vasilevskiy
Jonas Johansson
Columbus Blue Jackets Projected Lines
Forwards
Johnny Gaudreau – Boone Jenner – Yegor Chinakhov
Kent Johnson – Dmitri Voronkov – Kirill Marchenko
Alexandre Texier – Cole Sillinger – Jack Roslovic
Justin Danforth – Sean Kuraly – Mathieu Olivier
Defenders
Zach Werenski – Andrew Peeke
Ivan Provorov – Damon Severson
Jake Bean – Erik Gudbranson
Goalies
Elvis Merzlikins
Daniil Tarasov
The Playoff Race
Atlantic Division | Games Played | Record | Points | Games Remaining |
Boston Bruins | 51 | 32-10-9 | 73 | 31 |
Florida Panthers | 51 | 32-15-4 | 68 | 31 |
Toronto Maple Leafs | 49 | 26-15-8 | 60 | 33 |
Wild Card | Games Played | Record | Points | Games Remaining |
Lightning | 52 | 27-20-5 | 59 | 30 |
Detroit Red Wings | 50 | 26-18-6 | 58 | 32 |
New York Islanders | 51 | 22-17-12 | 56 | 31 |