SB Nation - Steve Downie

Roloson's incredible saves

James Mirtle — Tue, 22 Dec 2009 05:12:27 -0000

He was the early star when he dived back into the net after the puck took a wild bounce off the boards behind him and came out in front. Roloson lunged to block Steve Downie's attempt at a wide-open net and then used his left skate to deny Todd Fedoruk's try on the rebound.

The puck remained on the line as the Lightning celebrated what they thought was a goal. But play continued, and a lengthy video replay confirmed that the puck didn't cross the line.

— The Associated Press

Stopping on Long Island on a snowy evening: Lightning vs. Islanders preview [UPDATED]

John Fontana — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 18:27:02 -0000

More photos » by Jeff Roberson - AP

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WHERE: Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum, Uniondale, New York
WHEN: 7 PM EST
MEDIA: Sun Sports, 620 WDAE

Lets start with the enws of the weekend that we did not report here on Raw Charge but it none-the-less happened. No, no, not what the title suggests, but the fact Lukas Krajicek was sent to AHL Norfolk. The new rub is, the Lightning have no intention of calling Krajicek back up to expose him to re-entry waivers (and letting other teams pick him up at half-price).

Coming off the victory versus St. Louis on Friday night, the Lightning are in need of somethign that has eluded the team since early November and only twice this season: back-to-back wins. Indeed, the last time the Lightning won back-to-back games was November 7th/12th (Montreal and Minnesota). Before that it had been October a full month (October 10th/12th versus Carolina and Florida).

So there is qa burden on the Lightning's shoulders tonight that the team has not beeen able to shake all season long - play a second winning effort and not fall back into the mire. Which team will show up remains to be seen - will they be the blunder-kids of the majority of this road-trip, or will they be the team that shut out this very Islanders team two weeks ago?

Indeed, last time these two teams danced, the Bolts shut out the Isles 4-0 at Times Palace. Mike Smith was in net for that one... As he will be tonight for this one. Smith is 5-9-5 on the season with a 3.14 GAA and .897 Save percentage. Both are well below his career average. We found out the Lightning had been showcasing Smith, playing him more often so scouts could see him, and offered him to Philadelphia earlier this month. Smith's inconsistency for the BOlts still reminds me far too much of former Lightning goaltender John Grahame -- aggressive to a fault, and liable to give up questionable or soft goals all too often.

The Isles are suffering on special teams at this point -- with a 16.6% power play conversion rate, a 75.4% penalty kill ratio. Due to snow conditions, the Isles did not practice yesterday.

This is one fo the rare games where the Lightning should have an outright chance when you look at the stat comparisons. Not only do they hold advantages on special teams (79% penalty kill rate, 17.3 power play conversion rate), but goals-for (2.46 vs. 2.42 for the Isles), goals against (2.89 goals allowed per game compared to 3.11 for the Isles) and faceoff percentage (51.7 versus 48.1).

Whcih Lightning team show sup tonight, though? The team humiliated in Chicago? Pushed around in Detroit? Or the winners in St. Louis?

The Bolts head home for the holidays after this one -- spending Christmas and New Years at Times Palace.

[Note by John Fontana, 12/21/09 6:00 PM EST ] It would appear that Zenon Konopka ill be scratched tonight -- a "body maintenance" scratch. Meanwhile, defenseman Matt Walker will also be out -- he suffered an injury in the 1st period of Friday's win over St. Louis. Steve Downie is set to return.

Tampa Bay Lightning Projected Lines

(updated December 21, 2009 by RawCharge subject to change)

Forward Lines:

Ryan Malone -Steven Stamkos - Martin St. Louis
Alex Tanguay - Vincent Lecavalier - Jeff Halpern
Blair Jones - Paul Szczechura - James Wright
Todd Fedoruk - Stephane Veilleux - Steve Downie

Defense:

Mattias Ohlund | Andrej Meszaros
David Hale | Victor Hedman
Kurtis Foster | Matt Smaby

Goalies

Mike Smith (starter)
Antero Niittymaki

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Tampa Bay Lightning Game 31: at the Colorado Avalanche

Cassie McClellan — Sat, 12 Dec 2009 19:17:10 -0000

The Tampa Bay Lightning lost to the Colorado Avalanche 2-1 in a shootout.

I've made no secret of the fact that I grew up on the West Coast. Colorado was one of my favorite teams, so it'll probably come as no surprise that I've seen quite a few Avalanche games on TV. And I have to say that, of all of the games that I've seen played in Colorado, this Lightning team was the most affected by the elevation change that I have ever seen.

It comes down to poor ice time management. Part of that were the coaches, but part of that were also the players. They were taking regular length shifts for much of the game, and you can't do that in Denver - and that was a coaching issue. Icing the puck without thinking and not clearing their own zone - that was the player issue. And it cost them the game because they were too tired by the third to really keep the lead.

This was a very winnable game for the Lightning. They were playing fairly well, few penalties were being called, and they were getting some great offensive chances. Vincent Lecavalier, Martin St. Louis, and Steve Downie played great together. In fact, they scored the only goal for the Lightning: Downie got the goal and Lecavalier and St. Louis the assists.

Despite not having played for three games, Antero Niittymaki looked very fresh and very on. The goal that he allowed by the Avs was more of a defensive breakdown than anything else. Which, again, came back to poor ice-time management - when you're tired you're not thinking as clearly as you perhaps should be. Even still, Niittymaki kept the team in the game, even in the third when Colorado had 18 shots for the period.

And why were Steven Stamkos and Ryan Malone even in this game? They'd both left the previous game with injuries and were listed as day-to-day. What would it have hurt had they sat this game out? Especially Stamkos, whose injury was bad enough to warrant a trip to the x-ray machine.

Give them some time to heal before you put them back into the line of fire - even if they say they're okay. You can't trust an athlete to give you an honest answer if you ask them if they're okay after going down. I should know; I've been there. They all lie so they can play. All. Of. Them. Even if they can't walk, they'll tell you that they're alright. Seriously.

Overall, it was the altitude that did them in. Which I found interesting, especially considering that Rick Tocchet was an assistant coach in Colorado for a while. You would think that he would have been more careful because of that. As you would've thought that Alex Tanguay - a long-time member of the Avalanche - would've warned his teammates. And maybe they did, but circumstances got the better of them. It's hard to say.

The next game is Sunday, 13 December, at the Chicago Blackhawks. Game time is 7 pm Eastern.

Lightning vs Avalanche coverage [SB Nation]

Mile High Hockey [SB Nation Colorado Avalanche site]

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Lightning vs Avalanche boxscore [TSN]

Alpine Lightning: Bolts at Colorado Avalanche preview (UPDATED)

John Fontana — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 17:19:27 -0000

WHERE: Pepsi Center, Denver, Colorado
WHEN: 9 PM EST
MEDIA: Sun Sports (cable), 620 WDAE (Radio)

The big failure of the recent six of nine games at home was the lack of points picked up in the standings by the Lightning. Nine games, five points picked up in the standings. 2-1-4.

That is not going to cut it if the Lightning are serious about making the playoffs this season.

In fact the Bolts have been lucky. The Florida Panthers are still behind them in the standings, but the Kitties are within striking distance of passing the Bolts... Well, if they stop taking out their own players... Still, it's the Bolts who are guilty of under-performing in most (if not all) areas of their game, and it will come back to haunt them unless things change.

Tonight's the second match-up between the Lightning and the Colorado Avalanche this season, and within the past two weeks at that. You might recall the Bolts being goose-egged by the Avs in Tampa at the end of November. The Avs are in the midst of a lengthy home stand, playing seven of eight at home. They opened that series up on Tuesday with a shutout loss to the Wild. They'll be looking to get back into the swing of things tonight.

From DDC at Mile High Hockey:

Meanwhile, the Avalanche are expected to get Craig Anderson back from a neck injury suffered in Florida. Anderson hasn't finished a game since...November 30th against the Lightning. Peter Budaj has been better-than-solid in Anderson's place (1.26 GAA, .956 Sv%), but that doesn't mean the Avalanche won't get a morale boost from the return of Anderson.

The Avalanche are converting 18.9% of their power play opportunities at current, that's good for 18th in the league. The Lightning, in contrast, are converting 18.3% of power play opportunities -- that puts them at 23rd in the NHL. Now factor in the potential that Ryan Malone (4 PP goals this season) and Steven Stamkos (7 PP goals) will be out tonight (as of this writing, this had not yet been determined) and the Bolts are likely at a bigger disadvantage with a man advantage. PP 18, 80.7 PK -15

And on the penalty kill? Colorado has an 80.7 kill-rate, good for 18th in the league. Tampa Bay? 77.5 (26th in the league), along with the second-lowest kill-rate on the road (71.4). Playing that weak a man-down means the Bolts need to be extra vigilant against taking stupid penalties. Members fo the Lightning blue-line have been the usual suspects for being penalizd, but RW Steve Downie has been guilty of playing more reckless as of late - and with his reputation, this only leads to refs all-too-willing to send Downie to the sin bin.

We'll post the starting lineup for the Lightning later in the day. If the trend over the past 9 games holds, the Lightning will likely start Mike Smith in net...

[Note by John Fontana, 12/11/09 3:03 PM EST ] We've got a general guess on the lines tonight. Matt Smaby will be in (his second game this season) as well as Kurtis Foster on defense. Antero Niittymaki will between teh pipes for the Lightning and it LOOKS like Ryan Malone will play. Lukas Krajicek will not play because of his status with the team.

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Edmonton - Tampa Bay post-game: Zorg, meet Gordie

Bruce McCurdy — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 06:20:53 -0000

More photos » by Chris O'Meara - AP

Edmonton Oilers right winger Zack Stortini, foreground, celebrates with the bench after completing his "Gordie Howe Hat Trick" by scoring the game-winning goal against the Tampa Bay Lightning during an NHL hockey game Wednesday, Dec. 9, 2009, in Tampa, Fla. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara)

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Well I know that we're all supposed to be pulling for losses and losing streaks so we can nab that all-important Bingo ball, but tonight the Oilers went and won again and that's four in a row now so when will these guys buy in to the game plan? Granted they haven't been beating up the class of the league but there's this old axiom that you can only beat the team you're playing, and to do that four times in a row on any road trip is cause for hope. Oilers were hanging on in the third tonight but had just enough in the tank and between the pipes to get the job done. 3-2 again, this time in regulation, over Tampa.

The "fourth" line of Zack Stortini centring Robert Nilsson and Ryan Stone has been together for four games now and Oilers have won all of them. The trio is +5/-0 in that time, with Nilsson also chipping in a couple of powerplay points while Stone and Stortini have looked after the physical side of the game including three fights tonight. Nilsson looks far more effective playing with grunts than smurfs so I hope Coach Quinn doesn't promote him too quickly. It's working, leave it alone.

The man of the hour tonight was one Zack Stortini, who made a gigantic impact on this game in just 6:22 ice time. "Zorg" hit for the Gordie Howe Hat Trick Plus with an assist, a goal, and two** fights against Zenon Konopka. The goal was the game winner, set up on an effective doubleteam forecheck, a nifty kick pass by Stone, and Stortini taking it to the net, walking in front of the goal line and finding the far corner beyond Mike Smith to put the Oil in front to stay, 3-2.

(**The second fight was pretty lame.)

Stone is the closest thing the Oilers have had to Glencross since Glencross, and the presence of an effective LW on the fourth line has made all the difference. He played another solid game tonight in just 6:07 ice time, and while the goals can't continue at this rate the hitting and the good positioning and the effective puck movement appear to be ingrained. He also proved pretty handy with the dukes when he took on Tampa hooligan Steve Downie and got the better of him, especially in the scrap's late stages after Downie attempted to slewfoot Stone.

The other good news is that after his disaster in Vancouver Jeff Deslauriers has bounced back with four solid efforts in a row, holding opponents to 2 or fewer each time. Tonight was a big step forward in my view, as he looked more composed and commanding than I've seen previously, tracking the puck well and handling it almost competently (which is a Huge improvement). He backed that up with 15 saves in the third including a huge stop on Downie in the final minute to hold that 3-2 lead to the end.

On the other side of the puck Marty St. Louis is just a wonderful hockey player who is a joy to watch.

Selected stats after the jump:

EV Corsi by line (listed in order of EV TOI)
-------------------------------------------------------
Horcoff -8, Jacques -9, O'Sullivan -12
Penner +1, Brule -1, Gagner -2
Cogliano +2, Potulny +2, Moreau -2
Nilsson +4, Stone +3, Stortini +2

Visnovsky -9, Smid -11
Souray +3, Gilbert +3
Staios -2, Strudwick -4

That first unit drew the lion's share of the assignment against Lecavalier (+12) and St.Louis (+15), which explains their results to a significant degree.

Faceoffs
-----------
Penner 5/10 = 50%
Potulny 5/11 = 45%
Gagner 5/12 = 42%
O'Sullivan 2/5 = 40%
Horcoff 4/15 = 27%
Stortini 0/6 = 0%
Cogliano 0/1 = 0%

Team 21/60 = 35% = Brutal

Horcoff 22:12
Jacques 5 hits
Staios 4 blocks
Stortini 1-1-2, +2, 12 PiM, 3 hits
Gilbert 1-0-1, +2, 4 shots, 1 hit
Deslauriers 32/34, .941, W

* * *

Lecavalier 22:51, 0-1-1, +2, 4 shots, 2 hits, 20/29 = 69%
St. Louis 23:22, 1-1-2m +2, 7 shots, 2 hits

* * *

Next up: @ St. Louis, Friday, 18:00 MST

Recap: Caps 3, Lightning 0

Becca H — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 03:59:06 -0000

More photos » by Chris O'Meara - AP

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[AP Recap - GameCenter - Game Summary - Event Summary]

With Alex Ovechkin on the sidelines the last two games, the Capitals put together back-to-back dominant performances - picking up four points and a hell of a lot of goals. And while getting someone like Ovechkin back in the lineup is never a bad thing, there was some question as to whether the team would continue to step up or revert back to relying on #8.

There were certainly some shaky moments, but by the end of the night there was no longer a question. The Caps were able to welcome back the best player in the world and still put together a fine team road win - with everyone doing their part, Ovechkin doing his thing and a certain Russian in net doing everything and more.

Ten more notes on the game:

The story before the game was Ovechkin's return; after, however, it was all about Semyon Varlamov - and rightfully so. Tampa always seems to have some firepower, but Varly stood tall and made all the routine stops, all the tough stops, and all the stops that made you wonder just why this kid still isn't getting Calder talk outside of CapsNation. Tremendous effort by Varlamov en route to a 26-save shutout.
On the other end of the rink, Tampa got a pretty decent showing from their own netminder, Mike Smith. He made a lot of saves that had guys searching the rafters for guidance, and one especially dazzling glove save on Alexander Semin that seemed to surprise even him.
Brooks Laich, Tomas Fleischmann and Alexander Semin couldn't buy goals tonight despite many golden opportunities. Some of that was Smith. Some of that was over-passing. And some of it was just pure bad luck.
There was a time when Vincent Lecavalier was a pretty prolific Caps-killer. There was also a time when he scored goals period, and neither one was happening tonight. With all due respect to Vinny, I'm sure we were all happy to let his little slump continue at least one night more.
Overall it was a good road win, but the Caps certainly played with fire in the opening twenty minutes. Too many passes, too many squandered opportunities and too much flash without any finish. The puck possession, particularly on the first power play, was certainly dazzling - but if no one's going to shoot, no one's going to score. And that's why the period ended 0-0.
Not sure if you heard, but Alex Ovechkin was suspended for two games. Oh, and he came back tonight. And scored two goals, one of the gorgeous kind and one we'll just nickname "Brooks Laich". For those of you keeping track at home, that's 22 goals and 20 assists for Ovechkin in 31 games against the Lightning. Yawn.
If you had to pick someone to play Mike Duco / Daniel Carcillo in tonight's little drama, Steve Downie would probably have been a good pick. He did rack up quite a few penalty minutes, but the fact that they were all spread out and stuff clearly stymied the Caps, and they failed to cash in. They did finally get one with big Lecavalier in the box, though - and killed off all four penalties whistled against them, too.
Eric Fehr is simply on fire. Either that or he's simply just starting to achieve the potential he's had hovering over him since he was drafted back in 2003. Whatever it is, we're not complaining - another shift crashing the crease, another goal, and just like that Fehr's up to 15 points in 20 games.
Mike Green had no shots on goal and got knocked down in what was probably an ill-advised check attempt late in the game. He also finished +1, with two hits, two blocked shots and a takeaway in just over 26:00 of ice time - and no goals were scored. We'll take it.
In fact, the entire blue line earns some special praise tonight. There were some little mistakes here and there, but all in all a solid defensive outing (if you can call zero goals against merely "solid"). And good on John Erskine for coming to the defense of a fallen Brian Pothier late in the third.

This is a Tampa Bay Lightning team that has clearly made some strides and is a much more formidable opponent than they were just a year ago.

Still, it would have been easy for the Caps, with Ovechkin back in the lineup and riding a 5-game winning streak, to attempt to coast through this game. It would have been easy to assume that offense only needed to come from the top line. But while Ovechkin did have two goals, it wasn't just because of him that they take away another two points - and maintain their pristine record against both the Lightning and the Southeast.

Tonight the individuals shone, but it was the team that earned the win.

Game highlights:

Tampa Bay Lightning Game 28: versus the New York Islanders

Cassie McClellan — Sun, 06 Dec 2009 18:18:44 -0000

More photos » by Steve Nesius - AP

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The Tampa Bay Lightning beat the visiting New York Islanders 4-0.

Victor Hedman scored his first NHL goal against the team that first overall pick of the 2009 NHL Entry Draft John Tavares plays on. Mike Smith got the shutout. And the team played better than it has in quite a while.

This was a team effort, not a star player effort. The goal scorers on the night were Hedman, Steve Downie, Jeff Halpern, and Ryan Malone. Vincent Lecavalier, Martin St. Louis, and Andrej Meszaros each had two assists. And that is definitely a good mix of players doing very good things on the ice together.

A player that had a great night was Meszaros. He was all over the ice, doing everything that he could to help his team out. Not only did he have two assists, but he also had five shots on goal and two blocked shots on the night. The cracked pane of glass in this game was not caused by one of his shots, however, as the two previous cracked panes of glass had been.

The Islanders are actually ahead of the Lightning in the standings, so the Bolts didn't beat the Islanders of the past couple of years. They're a decent team - about on part with Tampa Bay right now. So this wasn't the case of the Lightning running over a pushover team.

The team still has its problems, of course. But this game the team looked far more organized then it has. The defense was standing people up more and challenging the other team's forwards, instead of collapsing and bunching up together. And they were clearing the defensive zone. They accomplished all the little things they needed to in order to prevent the Islanders from getting shots off.

Smith had a very good game. I've personally seen him play better, but he still did a good job. He was solid in net, and not shaky like he has been. He didn't give up a lot of rebounds and he was good about when he should and shouldn't handle the puck. Puck handling has been what's gotten him in trouble this season. He was communicating with his defense, like he should be. He did the stuff he needed to in order to be successful.

The forwards were a much more stable group. It really helps that they weren't being shuffled around like a deck of cards all night. The lines were a lot more consistent, and they played much better for it.

The next game is at home against the Washington Capitals on Monday, 7 December. Last I'd heard, this will be Alex Ovechkin's first game back from suspension/injury. Game time is 7:30 pm Eastern.

SB Nation's Islanders vs Lightning coverage

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Lightning 4, Islanders 0: Mike Smith shuts 'em out while Rick DiPietro inches back

Dominik — Sun, 06 Dec 2009 04:36:28 -0000

More photos » by Douglas Healey - AP

Rick DiPietro's return to live action in Bridgeport ended up being far more interesting than the Islanders' performance in Tampa Bay.

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Oh hockey, you beast, you giveth and you taketh away. One night you treat us to a perfectly executed, convincing win against the hottest Southeast foe. Two nights later you frustrate us with a flailing powerplay that couldn't get the puck in against a Southeast team that had lost four in a row.

Though the refs made a soft interference call to disallow what would have been the only Islanders goal, Lightning goalie Mike Smith very much earned this shutout. Though all the "intent to blow" calls lately make me wonder how the refs allowed Ryan Malone to poke the puck free from Dwayne Roloson's glove on the first goal, the Islanders very much earned this 4-0 loss.

Game Sum. | Event Sum. | Recaps: nhl.com | Isles

Final - 12.5.2009	1	2	3	Total
New York Islanders	0	0	0	0
Tampa Bay Lightning	2	0	2	4

Complete Coverage >

It wasn't that the Islanders were awful, but they were certainly out of sync. Had they faced a weaker goalie, perhaps they'd have achieved a more flattering score. Tip your hat to Smith's 30 saves -- several of them highlight reel quality -- and hope for his sake that this is a sign his pre-concussion form is attainable.

Partly thanks to Smith, and partly due to their own failings, the Islanders drew several powerplays but could not score. The first was a generous 1:21 5-on-5 that produced a few chances and a few gaffes. Shortly after that failure, Brendan Witt took a frankly stupid slashing penalty on a Martin St. Louis breakaway, and the Lightning converted on the ensuing PP to make it 2-0. To add insult, the anticipated first John Tavares-Victor Hedman meeting produced little of interest from either of them ... until Hedman finally netted his first NHL goal on a nice pinch to complete the scoring half way through the third.

The Witt Penalty

Well, there were two, but the first was another example that makes me wonder if they ever can teach this old dog new tricks. It's the new NHL -- it has been since 2006 -- and you simply cannot take free hacks at a guy on a breakaway anymore. What was worse about this one is the home run pass from Vincent Lecavalier was bouncing, so St. Louis had to chase it off to the side, in a far from ideal shooting position. So not only did Witt take a sure-penalty slash on a guy, he took it on a guy who was now in a low-percentage shooting position. And the slash, incidentally, did nothing to weaken the scoring chance. It's hard to unlearn old habits, I know; it's also hard to watch a guy who used to be very effective make the same avoidable mistakes.

The Bergenheim/Nielsen/Hunter Line

Thursday they were heroes for shutting down Kovalchuk and company, tonight Sean Bergenheim, Trent Hunter and Frans Nielsen were each minus-2. [UPDATE: No, no they weren't. As our emerging eagle-eye commenter BenHasna pointed out, the NHL game sheet had it wrong yet again. This line wasn't on for goal #4, but rather Witt and Jackman and friends were. Question everything.] But they didn't have awful nights; they produced some of the Islanders' better scoring chances, with 8 shots between them. (Hunter's first-period blast even cracked the glass behind Mike Smith.) But no one looks good in a 4-0 shutout.

The 2009 Draft Matchup

Well, this angle was a dud. Eighteen-year-olds playing night after night in the NHL will have their anonymous nights, and tonight was no different for Tavares and almost for Hedman. If I were watching in a vacuum, I'd have had a very hard time figuring these two guys were the two brightest stars picked last summer. Hedman's goal salvaged his night and made it memorable. But before then, he looked like a very big guy with agility and the capacity to be a pretty good defenseman.

Tavares left even less of an impression: He looked like a guy with some nice hands and moves, which only yielded a single shot tonight. (Hedman had two shots.) That's alright; even superstar veterans have quiet nights. I know both of these guys will treat us to some epic nights for many years to come.

Steve Downie: Still a Fool

Steve Downie showed nice hands scoring a powerplay goal in tight during the first period. Later, he showed the complete lack of perspective that has landed him in trouble multiple times in his checkered career. After zealously stabbing at Roloson's pads past when play was whistled dead, he received the predictable shoving response from upset Islanders defenders, including Andrew MacDonald.

Downie's Mensa response? To immediately start raining uppercuts on MacDonald, as if they were in a fight. Downie picked up the extra roughing minor, and could have drawn more for his three free shots. At every level of hockey, there's always some guys who just don't get it.

The Powerplay

It's still anemic. 0 for 5 on this night, with 7 shots on goal. In fact, the Islanders looked more dangerous at 5-on-5, which is probably why they drew so many powerplays.

* * *

Overall, a disappointing showing in what might have been quite a winnable game. Worse, a missed chance to climb a little in the standings and create some space above the Flyers, who were demolished at home by the Capitals in Peter Laviolette's Philadelphia debut.

Rick DiPietro Returns

There was a more significant event tonight, of course: Rick DiPietro's return to competitive action in Bridgeport. He let in one softie among 3 goals on 13 shots in 40 minutes of action (actually, a lot of that time there was no action). The Sound Tigers built a 3-0 lead before Springfield erased that against DiPietro. A 3rd-period surge gave Bridgeport a 7-3 win.

We'll have more on that tomorrow, but check these reports from nhl.com, Chris Botta at FanHouse (and his PB play-by-play), and Islesblogger Mike's live blog as well as his Twitter bits on the game. You know Mike Fornabaio will have more, too.

New Jersey Devils Win with Late Tip-in Goal over Tampa Bay Lightning, 3-2

John Fischer — Sat, 05 Dec 2009 04:27:09 -0000

More photos » by Rich Schultz - AP

Tampa Bay Lightning's goalie Antero Niittymaki is seen here actually having to do something. Zach Parise looks on as part of a Devils offense that really wasn't much of a threat tonight. (AP Photo/Rich Schultz)

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I am ardent believer that a not-so-good-looking win is superior to a "good" loss. I don't have the pretension of "playing beautifully" or that it is better to be "attacking" and lose rather than "hold back" and win. This is a results-oriented business and on that alone, I'm glad the New Jersey Devils defeated the Tampa Bay Lightning, 3-2. It is the first regulation win over Tampa Bay this season and makes the season series 3-0-0 in the Devils' favor. All thanks to a Jamie Langenbrunner tip on a shot by Andy Greene with 38 seconds left to play. Don't tell me there's no drama with the Devils. In any case, the win is especially nice to have with a more intriguing opponent coming to the Rock tomorrow in the Detroit Red Wings.

That all said, this was definitely not a great win for the Devils. I felt their performance could have and should have been better, especially on offense. I'll explain further after the jump. NHL.com has their recap up with links to the boxscore, highlights, and more stats. For the Lightning perspective, check out Raw Charge later (tomorrow morning?) for a recap. Needless to say, given that the game was won with a

On a quick, pre-jump note, Tom Gulitti reports some potentially bad news. I didn't notice during the game, but Colin White wasn't available for the last 8 minutes of the game. According to Gulitti he left due to "lower body soreness," and he is questionable for tomorrow. I honestly felt he had an OK game, a few hits, a few takeaways, and good positioning. He's been part of the "big 4" since the loss of Johnny Oduya and Paul Martin, and his presence will be missed if he is significantly injured.

Let's cut right to what I found most frustrating about the game: the offense. It wasn't exactly a great game for Tampa Bay either. Both teams struggled to put shots on net, with Tampa Bay coming up ahead 24-19. But extra attention should be pointed to the home team first. The Devils' offense was particularly frustrating to watch. Tepid would be the nicest way I could describe their effort. In the first period, their forecheck was looking good, the Devils maintained more possession, and I felt they were just a bit off in their shooting. No problem there; but in the second period, they basically fell flat. I think they went 14-15 minutes with only one shot on net in the second before registering a few near the end. That's simply unacceptable.

After 40 minutes of hockey, the Devils had a whopping 11 shots on net and were down 1-0. Thankfully, the Devils' defense and Martin Brodeur held up well after Vincent Lecavalier's wraparound goal in the second. Yet, New Jersey completely forgot about concepts such as "aiming shots at the net," "taking the puck in yourself on an odd man rush," and "setting up in the opponent's zone" throughout the second. Antero Niittymaki had to stand on his head in the last Devils-Lightning game; but tonight, he just had to wait until the Devils actually threatened with a shot!

Thankfully, the offense was gifted three straight power plays by the Lightning to in the first half of the third, and even they took advantage. Brian Rolston let loose with a bomb right after Rob Niedermayer won the faceoff, which proved two things. First, winning faceoffs in your opponent's zone is very beneficial. Second, Brian Rolston's slapshot is a legitimate threat. While the Devils didn't do much with the second power play, Nicklas Bergfors was the target of a Tampa Bay giveaway to the slot by David Hale (good work by Vladimir Zharkov for forcing that play). While he was gifted the scoring chance, Bergfors did well for taking full advantage and putting the puck through Antero Niittymaki's goal. Despite 40 minutes of "not much," the Devils went up 2-1.

Yet after that, Tampa Bay decided that they should respond with some aggressive offense and got the Devils into a dooming cycle of clear-line change-clear from their own zone. So the Devils contributed next to no offense after their second goal and the Lightning were attempting to do the same with mixed results. Sometimes, this works for New Jersey. Tonight, it didn't. Eventually, Tampa Bay got the benefit of a power play of their own (Mark Fraser with a hook) and they, get this, set up a play. It was a beautiful quick series of passes that left Steve Downie all alone on Brodeur's flank for the easiest goal he'll score for a while and the game's equalizer. Of course only then did the Devils wake up and try to make some plays happen (most notably Matt Halischuk nearly putting in his own rebound, but was denied by a desparate Bolt defender).

Then the tip from Langenbrunner came in and that was the game. Yet as a final piece of evidence of how poor the Devils' attack was tonight, the Devils could have scored on the empty net but Patrik Elias missed. Need more proof? Check this out. Not one Devil had more than 2 shots on net. Not Parise, not Zajac, not Elias, not anyone. 2 was the max for any one player across the team. Here's another ugly stat: the Devils had 19 shots on net, 9 shots blocked, and 14 miss the net entirely in tonight's game. That's right, the Devils didn't even put half of their attempted shots on net. That's really unacceptable against any team, in my view.

I'm writing all this now and even I'm wondering how in the world they pulled off this win. I'm looking at this highlight video and I'm still amazed the Devils pulled this one out. I can't complain too much about the defense or Martin Brodeur; but the offense was really a sore spot tonight. I almost want to say that they won in spite of the lack of shots on net.

I do have to give credit to the Tampa Bay Lightning. Not that they should categorize their effort as great, or feel that they were "robbed." They didn't build on much of anything after the Vincent Lecavalier goal and outside of Steve Downie's goal, their power play was easily snuffed by the Devils' PK. Taking three straight penalties in the third period - one about a minute in, one right after Rolston scored, and one after the second penalty was killed - is definitely worthy of criticism. The awful, awful give away by David Hale definitely sticks out like a sore thumb. And despite Tampa Bay relying heavily on the their top two lines, they put up only 24 shots on Martin Brodeur.

But after a poor Boston game, their defense held up fairly well. They were very poised in their own zone, and especially on their blueline. It was very noticible that the Devils had to dump the puck a lot tonight, especially in the second period, because a Tampa Bay player was always on a Devil attempting to enter the zone. A few of them made big plays that saved some goals (I believe it was Krajicek who ensured Matt Halischuk's late drive didn't result in a goal off the rebound?). After reading about how poor they were, I felt they did pretty good tonight. And while he didn't get a lot of work, it's not like the three goals against were Antero Niittymaki's fault. He had no real chance on Rolston's blast or Langenbrunner's tip in; and while the Bergfors goal went between his legs, he was really hung out to dry on that one. I felt he was OK.

On the Devils side, I do have to give some credit to the call-ups from Lowell. Vladimir Zharkov and Matt Halischuk were flying out there, looking to leave a lasting impression on the Devils coaches. If not to convince them to stay up in New Jersey, then to convince management that they will be ready for the NHL very, very soon. Halischuk came close to scoring and he looked poised out there. Zharkov was good on the forecheck and forced a turnover that led to Bergfors' goal, earning his first assist in the NHL. And I do mean earn, you could easily tell that he was giving his all out there on the rink. We'll definitely see him in Devils red sooner rather than later. Rod Pelley got back into the lineup and threw 5 hits in 10 minutes to show that he can handle playing on an "energy" fourth line, as well as try to keep his job. On defense, Mark Fraser was steady in the 11:17 he played, but he took a dumb hooking call late in the game. Matthew Corrente looked solid but only got 6:17 because he was in the box twice for fighting - he wanted to show he can be "tough" when necessary. Corrente has been OK in limited minutes so far in his call up, you can get a sense that he can develop into a very strong defenseman in the future. They all stood out in my eyes tonight in one way or another. It'll be a tough decision to see who goes down as Jay Pandolfo and Johnny Oduya come back.

Again, this was not a great win, but it was a win and that's the important thing. No rest for the weary, though; as Detroit comes to the Rock tomorrow night. Thanks to all the readers and commenters out there. I'll have to comment a bit less as using my phone sometimes makes me miss some of the action as I frantically tap at the keys during breaks in the action. Still, I appreciate those who read and participated. Please leave all your comments about tonight's game in the, well, comments.

2010 Olympic Hockey Preview:The Tampa Bay Lightning

Cassie McClellan — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 17:00:38 -0000

by Chris O'Meara - AP

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The Olympics will be played in Vancouver during the last half of February 2010, and the national rosters are expected to be announced in about a month. Here's a list of potential Lightning players who could participate for their respective countries. All of the players listed have some kind of previous major international hockey tournament experience.

Canada

The problem with picking players for Canada is that Canadians make up over 50% of the players in the NHL. The talent pool is just so large that they could literally field three teams – and have at least two of them medal. So with competition for spots being so fierce, drastic decisions will be made. Guys who would be a shoe-in for any other national team won’t make it on to Team Canada.

In – Steven Stamkos. You’ve got to believe that, with the start he’s had so far this season, he’ll be on the team. And probably as a center (or centre, if you will), which is one of the most competitive positions on the roster. Though, the option may also be there for him to play wing, if necessary. Stamkos has played in a World Juniors Championship and a World Championship.

Bubble – Martin St. Louis. Normally, he’d be on this squad in a heartbeat. But having scored only five goals so far this season, it’s hard to say for sure that he will be. If they’re looking for leadership and a character guy who can contribute in a supportive role, then he will. If they’re looking for just goal scoring, then he won’t. Only the fact that the majority of wingers scoring goals in the NHL this season are left wingers is keeping him in the mix, since Marty plays right wing. He has played for Canada in a World Cup, two World Championships, and on their 2006 Olympic team.

Out – Vincent Lecavalier, Alex Tanguay, Steve Downie. Yes, I said Steve Downie. All of these players have international experience with Team Canada. Tanguay and Downie have both played for Canada in the World Juniors Championship, while Lecavalier has not only played in World Juniors but also in the World Championships, World Cup, and was on the last Olympic squad as an auxiliary player. So far this season, these three guys have not played well enough to crack the overly talented Canadian lineup.

Czech Republic

Out – Lukas Krajicek. I don’t know enough about the Czech team to really make this call, but I’m going to guess that he’ll be a no-go. Krajíček has played well at times, but has also been invisible at others. He just hasn’t been very consistent this season or last season. Krajíček’s chances will probably depend on how many quality defensemen are available for the Czech team. He has played for the Czech World Juniors team and a World Championships team.

Finland

In – Antero Niittymäki. All you have to look at are his statistics for this season. He is sixth in the NHL in goals against, and second in the NHL for save percentage. Sure, his overall record isn’t the best – he’s 6-3-3 this season – but the team he plays on is 10-7-8 25-games in. Niittymäki’s national experience includes having played in World Juniors and the World Championships. He also played in the 2006 Olympics on a silver-medal winning Finnish team, personally winning the tournament MVP as well as being named to the Olympic Tournament’s All-Star Team.

Slovakia

In – Andrej Meszaros. Meszároš has been playing really well recently, particularly in Mattias Öhlund’s absence, so that certainly ups his chances at making the Slovak Olympic team. Another factor that strongly suggests he’ll play for his national team are the many international tournaments he’s already participated in. He’s played in two World Juniors tournaments, two World Chapionships, and took part in the last Olympics. Add to that that he’s only 24 years old, and he’s a definite candidate for the Olympics.

Sweden

In – Mattias Öhlund. No one else on the Lightning roster has played hockey for his country more than Mattias. While his recent ankle injury might have hobbled him momentarily, no other Bolt is more likely to play in the Olympics than he is. Read it and weep, kids: 1994 World Juniors, 1995 World Juniors, 1996 World Juniors, 1997 World Championships, 1998 Olympics, 1998 World Championships, 2001 World Championships, 2002 Olympics, 2005 World Cup, 2006 Olympics. I’m not sure what his personal medal count is, but he does at least own one Olympic gold medal.

Bubble – Victor Hedman. Sweden has a number of good defensemen – both in the NHL and in Europe – so it’s hard to say whether or not the soon-to-be 19-year-old rookie will get the call. He might have to wait his turn until the next Olympics in Russia in 2014, assuming that the NHL participates in those. Even if Hedman gets his chance this February, he likely won’t play much, simply because of seniority. He has played in two World Junior Championships thus far in is hockey career.

United States

In – Ryan Malone. Invited to the USA Hockey Olympic Orientation Camp in Chicago last August, Malone has proven that he deserved not only deserved that invite, but that he should be on the Olympic team. He has 15 goals and eight assists for 23 points in 25 games. Malone has participated in two World Championships.

Bubble – Jeff Halpern. Halpern is a longtime participant with USA Hockey. He is only second to Öhlund on this list in the number of times he’s played in international tournaments. He was not invited to the US Olympic Orientation Camp, however. His resurgence playing now as a winger instead of at his natural position, center, may have helped his cause.