One of the wonders about the Tampa Bay Lightning season at current, as small a sample as it is in only 6 preseason games and 4 regular season games, is that the upper tier players are being asked to play on the penalty kill regularly, and to actually attack the opposing net in the process.
The idea of a short-handed goal by the Lightning is almost foreign now. It’s been years since we used to see the likes of Martin St. Louis and Fredrik Modin as not only top penalty-killers, but consistent scoring threats on the penalty kill.
Tonight’s game against the Florida Panthers saw the Bolts first shorthanded goal of the season, scored by Steven Stamkos with 6:06 left in the first period. While the feat in itself is nice (a change of pace and it was Stamkos’ first goal of the season too), it also was only the second shorthanded goal scored by Stamkos in his career. The last time Spicoli notched a goal shorthanded was his breakout season of 2009-10 when he scored 51 goals and tied with Sidney Crosby for the Rocket Richard Trophy as the National Hockey League’s leading goal scorer that season.
It just seems odd that a prolific scorer such as Stamkos has only 2 shorties at this point. Perhaps it’s a testament about the system that was employed by Guy Boucher… Or just the fact Stamkos wasn’t asked to contribute minutes to the penalty kill? Regardless, he scored shorthanded tonight.
