Salvaging the road trip: Tampa Bay Lightning at Boston Bruins preview

Game Eighty: Tampa Bay Lightning (48-25-6) at Boston Bruins (43-26-10)

Time: 12:30 PM

Location: TD Garden, Boston – Where, in 1919, a 2.3 million gallon flood of molasses raced down the streets of the North End neighborhood at approximately 35 MPH.

TV/Stream/Radio: ABC, SNW, Lightning App

Odds: Lightning

Know the Opponents: Stanley Cup of Chowder

If there is one thing we know about this Tampa Bay Lightning team is that they don’t lack in confidence. So, we shouldn’t worry too much about their psyche during their current losing streak. These guys know that they are a good team going through a rough stretch, and that they should break out of it at some point, just as they have with every other bad streak they’ve had so far this season.

That being said, no one likes losing. Picking up a win in their final game on this road trip will go a long way to easing their grip on the sticks. Maybe, with the possibility of winning the division now a distant glimmer of a possibility, they will get back to just playing solid hockey. There have been bits and pieces of the style they need to play (mostly in the third periods of their losses), but they haven’t been able to put it all together for 50-60 minutes at a time.

The most distressing part of their game right now is their lack of scoring chances being generated. Outside of the Ottawa game where they had 27 scoring chances (with 12 of those coming in the third period) they have generated 18 or fewer in three of their last four games. The high-danger chances number is even more disheartening as they haven’t cracked double digits in that category in their last four outings.

Their inability to generate chances is starting to reflect in their offense. Over their last ten games, Jake Guentzel is leading the way with six 5v5 goals. The only other players with more than one are Corey Perry, Brandon Hagel, Charle-Edouard D’Astous, and Anthony Cirelli. Nikita Kucherov and Brayden Point have just one while Gage Goncalves, Oliver Bjorkstrand, and Yanni Gourder have zero.

For the most part, the team has been okay on defense, but they just aren’t getting the scoring that they need at the moment. It will take a dirty, greasy goal or two to get them going again, and Boston might be a decent team for the Lightning to pick a couple of those up against. Unlike the Canadiens and Sabres, the Lightning don’t have to worry as much about the speed of the forwards getting behind them. Boston is a good team, but they are similar in style to the way the Lightning play – they like to cycle the puck and build goals in the zone as opposed to flying down the ice with their helmets on fire.

The Lightning have three games left in the season. Wins would be nice, but generating scoring chances and spending more of the game in the opponent’s zone than their own would be a nice way to finish out this long regular season.

Potential Lines

Tampa Bay Lightning

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Boston Bruins

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