Predicting the Lightning’s Quarter-Century Teams

Now that we’ve hit the good year 2025, the NHL is slowly releasing their Quarter-Century teams for all 32 franchises (yes, Utah is actually represented by Arizona because Uncle Gary refuses to let that dream die). The leagues started the reveal with St. Louis and Chicago, the two teams that participated in the Winter Classic, and appear to be rolling them out in no particular order. At some random point they will announce the Lightning’s honorees, but before that happens, we decided to give it a shot.

The criteria includes any player any player that played for the franchise after January 1, 2000 (sorry Michael Nylander, you don’t qualify since you were traded in November of 1999). A panel consisting of broadcasters, national media, local writers (no, we weren’t asked), and NHL.com writers who covered the respective teams were brought together to determine both a first and second team, each consisting of three forwards, two defensemen, and one goaltender. The six players on each franchises’ first team will be on a ballot for the NHL’s All Quarter-Century Team that will be voted on by fans in February.

Let’s face it, this isn’t going to be too difficult of a task, and a large majority of the names you’re going to see below are still with the team. All hail The Golden Age of Lightning Hockey

First Team

Forwards

Steven Stamkos – 1,082 games played, 555 goals, 582 assists, 1,137 points, 214 power play goals

The G.O.A.T. That’s it. It’s that simple. Regardless of what happened over the summer, Steven Stamkos will be the greatest Lightning for the near future. His place atop the statistical categories may be usurped, but his place in the franchise will last long after his number is raised in the arena and his plaque is hung in the Hockey Hall of Fame. It’s rare that a player exceeds the hype that surrounds him when he’s a top overall pick, but that’s what Stamkos did during his tenure with the Bolts. From individual glory, to the most iconic goal in franchise history, to raising not one, but two Stanley Cups, he lived his dream with the Lightning and brought us as fans a lot of happiness.

Does he have a shot at the NHL All Quarter-Century Team? We would guess he misses out simply because those that will edge him out, namely Sid Crosby and Alex Ovechkin, have a couple of years on him in the league.

Martin St. Louis – 972 games played, 365 goals, 588 assists, 953 points, 28 short-handed goals

It was an ugly break-up (hey, kind of like with Stamkos!), but that is water under the bridge at this point. The hockey personification of never giving up, Marty made the most of the chance the Lightning gave him after an unsuccessful stint in Calgary. From fourth-line grinder to video game cover boy, St. Louis never gave less than his all on the ice. Even as he moved up in the line-up, he never forgot the defensive aspect of the game and remained a force short-handed, as his 28 short-handed goals attests to.

Remarkably durable and consistent during his tenure in Tampa, he bested 90 points in a season four times in his Lightning career, and was a point-a-game player six times. He also recorded three overtime playoff goals, including the series-deciding goal against Washington in the third overtime of Game Six that propelled the Lightning to their first-ever playoff series win.

Does he have a shot at the NHL All Quarter-Century Team? Probably not. One of the overlooked aspects of his career was that he didn’t crest 18 minutes a night on a regular basis until his age 26 season. The lost season of 2004-05 cost him a year of his prime, while the 2012-13 lockout-shortened season cost him 30+ games in what might have been his best statistical season. Throw another 150 points onto his career totals and maybe he’s in the conversation.

Nikita Kucherov – 760 games played, 337 goals, 591 assists, 928 points, 1.22 points-per-game

When it’s all said and done, Nikita Kucherov is going to be the greatest offensive player ever to put on a Tampa Bay Lightning uniform. Simply put, the organization has never had someone that sees and plays the way the game the way he does. Sometimes his vision doesn’t track with his teammates and it results in turnovers, but more times than not, it results in magic. It’s going to be interesting to see what his final numbers look like because he doesn’t seem to be slowing down as he enters his early 30s, the time when the aging curve starts catching up with a lot of players.

Does he have a shot at the NHL All Quarter-Century Team? No. If they run a half-century team in 2050 he’ll probably be on it.

Defense

Victor Hedman – 1087 games played, 161 goals, 596 assists, 757 points, 541 takeaways

A year after the Lightning drafted their franchise center, they picked their franchise defenseman. He made his NHL debut on October 3rd, 2009 (against Atlanta!) and has been patrolling the blueline ever since. The all-time leader in games played for Tampa Bay, the smooth-skating Swede has been absolute force in the league. Despite his size (6’7″, 245 lb.) he isn’t a physical force despite leading the franchise in hits with 1,149. It’s his ability to use his reach and positioning to remove the puck from his opponents that is his greatest attribute. Only Marty St. Louis has more takeaways than Hedman’s 541.

Does he have a shot at the NHL All Quarter-Century Team? Maybe. His offensive numbers and multiple Norris Trophy finalist appearances will bolster his case. The two Stanley Cups and one Norris Trophy won’t hurt either. He ranks fourth in points-per-game among defenders that have played at least 800 games since January 1, 2000

Dan Boyle – 394 games played, 66 goals, 187 assists, 253 points, 24:15 TOI/GP

This might be the most controversial pick on the board considering he didn’t even crack the 400 games played mark for the Lightning. However, he was really, really good during that relatively short time with the Bolts. He also played a lot. The 24:15 average ice time is tops in franchise history. Prior to Hedman’s tenure with the team, Boyle was the franchise’s best power-play quarterback as his 126 points on the advantage constituted almost half of his career totals. Most impressive is that he averaged 5:28 on the power play with the Bolts. The guy never left the ice (granted, their other options weren’t exactly great).

His tenure with the team pretty much coincided with the Lightning’s first run to the top of the Eastern Conference as he was acquired from Florida for a fifth-round pick in 2002. Then, his trade to San Jose in June of 2008, along with the drafting of Steven Stamkos a few days later, signaled the end of an era. The branches of that trade tree also led to the Lightning eventually drafting Andrei Vasilevskiy, which has to count for something.

Does he have a shot at the NHL All Quarter-Century team? No.

Goaltender:

Andrei Vasilevskiy – 506 games played, 309-155-31, .917 SV%, 2.55 GAA, 36 Shutouts, 20 Assists

By far the easiest part of the ballot to fill out. Andrei Vasilevskiy, aka Vasy, aka The Big Cat, may not have played his first game until 2014, but he is head and shoulders above any netminder that has donned a Lightning uniform over the past 24+ years.

Does he have a shot at the NHL All Quarter-Century team? No. His numbers are very, very good but that is going to be a three-way race between Roberto Luongo, Marc-Andre Fleury, and Henrik Lundqvist.

Second Team

Forwards

Vincent Lecavalier – 838 games played, 331 goals, 416 assists, 747 points, 13 short-handed goals

Vinny walked so that Stamkos could sprint. Branded the Michael Jordan of hockey and saddled with the weight of an organization before he could legally drink in his home arena, Lecavalier made it throw some growing pains to become the first true superstar in franchise history. The first Bolt to score 50 goals in a season, Lecavalier was a scoring machine until injuries sapped some of effectiveness in the offensive zone. Still he he scored at least 20 goals in 12 of his 14 seasons with the Bolts and is still third-overall in franchise goals.

Brayden Point – 613 games played, 287 goals, 311 assists, 598 points, 12 overtime goals

Point went from undersized prospect with decent but not overwhelming skating to a constant blue of motion on the ice. Somewhat overshadowed by the fact that he has spent his entire career playing with Steven Stamkos and Nikita Kucherov, Point is a star in his own right with the knack for scoring at the right time, be it overtime or in the playoffs. In 87 playoff games he has 87 points (42 goals, 45 assists), fifth all-time in franchise history.

Ondrej Palat – 628 games played, 143 goals, 280 assists, 423 points, 448 blocked shots

Palat simply did everything a team needs, and did it at a very high level. The Lightning don’t win two Stanley Cups without him providing some semblance of defensive responsibility on the top line. It doesn’t hurt that he had 12 game-winning goals in his Lightning postseason career. A quietly physical player, Palat had 1,082 hits in his 628 games as a member of the Bolts, second to Stamkos (who played 400 more games) among forwards. The 448 shots he blocked as a forward still leads the franchise.

Defense

Mikhail Sergachev – 471 games played, 48 goals, 209 assists, 257 points, 170 even-strength points

Sergy may be shuffling along the blueline in Utah now, but for the better part of seven seasons he was a first-pairing defender stuck behind one of the greatest defenseman of his generation in Victor Hedman. The duo gave Jon Cooper 40 minutes a night of high-level defense on the left side of the ice every night. Sure, he also gave Coach Cooper more than his fair share of headaches as well, but there was a lot more good than bad when Sergachev was on the ice. Unlike Hedman, Sergachev never had the opportunity to learn at the NHL during a bad season. The Lightning were a Stanley Cup contender every season Sergy was on the ice and that carries a lot of pressure.

He also didn’t have quite as much power play time to help boost his point totals (at least outside of the 2022-23 season). It would have been interesting to see how his career compared to Hedman’s had he stayed with the Lightning. Through his six seasons with the Bolts, he outpaced the Big Swede in terms of points (257-229), and trailed him by just one goal (49-48).