Here is the leader-board through the first two rounds of this year’s playoffs:

1) Woodward –> 9-for-12

2) Philp –> 6-for-12

3) Levin –> 2-for-4

4) Muscat –> 6-for-12

5) Cohen –> 5-for-12

Eastern Conference

(6) New Jersey Devils vs. (1) New York Rangers

Cohen– Rangers win in 7 . X-Factor –> Devils’ Record-Breaking Penalty Kill vs. Rangers’ Lifeless Power-Play

Philp– Devils win in 7. X-Factor –> Martin Brodeur

Muscat– Rangers win in 7. X-Factor –> Rangers’ Third Line

Levin– Devils win in 7 . X-Factor –> Adam Henrique

Woodward– Rangers win in 7. X-Factor –> New York’s Power-Play

Western Conference

(8) Los Angeles Kings vs. (3) Phoenix Coyotes

Cohen–  Kings win in 7. X-Factor –> Mike Smith vs. Jonathan Quick: Who Cracks First?

Philp– Coyotes win in 6. X-Factor –> Mike Smith

Muscat– Kings win in 5. X-Factor –> Jonathan Quick

Levin– Kings win in 6. X-Factor –> Drew Doughty

Woodward– Kings win in 6. X-Factor –>Mike Richards/Jeff Carter Line

Stanley Cup Finals

Cohen (Edit #2)– Rangers Over Kings

Philp (Edit #2)– Devils Over Coyotes

Muscat (Edit #2)– Rangers Over Kings

Levin–                    Devils Over Kings

Woodward (Edit #1)– Kings Over Rangers

Conn Smythe Award

Cohen– Henrik Lundqvist (New York Rangers)

Philp– Zach Parise (New Jersey Devils)

Muscat– Henrik Lundqvist (New York Rangers)

Levin– Ilya Kovalchuk (New Jersey Devils)

Woodward– Jonathan Quick (Los Angeles Kings)

Once the finalists were announced, it was obvious that Malkin was the prohibitive favorite to win the award. The social media world exploded with opinionated outbursts claiming Stamkos didn’t deserve to be a finalist, mainly because his Lightning team failed to make the playoffs. One of the most boisterous was yours truly. I was full of snarky comments like this:

I set out to prove this point After crunching the numbers, I found myself shaking my head over my previous, uneducated rant. The numbers don’t lie. They show just the opposite.

Steven Stamkos is as deserving a Hart Trophy finalist as Evgeni Malkin.

*For the sake of this discussion, I am not including goaltender Henrik Lundqvist. Comparing a goaltender and a skater is a research project for another time.

The Malkin File

Won the Art Ross Trophy for leading the league in points with 109.

First player since 1995-96 to score five points in a game four times.

Finished second in the NHL (behind Stamkos) in goals with 50.

The Stamkos File

Won the Maurice Richard Trophy for leading the league in goals with 60.

First player since 2007-08 to score at least 60 goals.

Finished second in the NHL (behind Malkin) in points with 97.

Led the NHL and set a league record with five overtime goals.

Led the NHL with 48 even strength goals – The most since 1992-93.

Side By Side Comparison

*Goals Created-Calculated by adding goals scored to 0.5 times assists, then multiplying by team goals divided by team goals plus 0.5 times team assists.

Analysis

Stamkos played more games, had more goals, more game winning goals and a much higher shooting percentage.

Malkin had many more assists, points and shots, but a lower shooting percentage.

Stamkos was the more physical player, outhitting Malkin by 80 hits. Malkin blocked more shots.

Malkin had many more takeaways, but also gave away the puck 28 more times than Stamkos.

Both players dominated the bad teams (Maple Leafs, Islanders, Canadiens, Oilers and Blue Jackets). Malkin scored more goals and Stamkos had more points versus the playoff teams.

Stamkos scored more overtime goals (5) than anybody in the history of the NHL

Malkin dominated Stamkos in +/- rating.

The two were virtually even in faceoff percentage, penalty minutes, power play goals and average time on ice.

The competition is just as close in the area of “percentage of team” statistics. Stamkos has a slight advantage as he scored a higher percentage of his teams goals, power play goals and points, while Malkin had a higher percentage of his teams assists.

Both the Lightning and Penguins sorely needed the duo to appear on the score sheet. When Stamkos didn’t have a point, Tampa Bay’s record was 5-15-2. When Malkin didn’t have a point, the Penguins went 5-9-0.

Certainly this exercise proves beyond a shadow of doubt, that Steven Stamkos deserved a Hart nomination. Does he deserve the award?

If you look only at the numbers and base your decision solely on the individual statistics and the players worth to his team…The answer is yes, he deserves it just as much as Malkin does. If you look at the team results, Malkin wins the award easily as he led his team to a fourth seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs.

Puck Daddy’s Greg Wyshynski put it this way:

In the end, I believe Stamkos is a worthy finalist and it would be hard to argue if he won the award, based on his numbers. But the fact that the Bolts finished out of the playoffs cannot be ignored.

Given the choice between Malkin and Stamkos, Evgeni Malkin is your Hart Memorial Trophy winner.

*Statistics courtesy of Hockey-Reference.com and NHL.com.

Follow me on Twitter @Lightningshout and “Like” Hockey Independent Lightning on Facebook.

Eastern Conference

(7) Washington Capitals vs. (1) New York Rangers

Cohen– Rangers win in 7 . X-Factor –> Marc Staal

Philp– Capitals win in 7. X-Factor –> Capitals’ Penalty-Kill

Muscat– Rangers win in 7. X-Factor –> Rangers’ Third Line

Levin– Rangers win in 7 . X-Factor –> Michael Del Zotto

Woodward– Rangers win in 6. X-Factor –> Dan Girardi

(6) New Jersey Devils vs. (5) Philadelphia Flyers

Cohen– Flyers win in 6. X-Factor –> Ilya Bryzgalov

Philp– Flyers win in 5. X-Factor –> Philadelphia’s Prolific Power-Play

Muscat– Flyers win in 6. X-Factor –> Ilya Bryzgalov

Levin– Devils win in 7. X-Factor –> Patrik Elias

Woodward– Flyers win in 5. X-Factor –> Martin Brodeur’s Ability To Overcome Father Time

Western Conference

(8) Los Angeles Kings vs. (2) St. Louis Blues

Cohen–  Blues win in 7. X-Factor –> David Perron

Philp– Blues win in 6. X-Factor –> The Blues’ Defense

Muscat– Blues win in 7. X-Factor –> T.J. Oshie

Levin– Blues win in 6. X-Factor –> Jamie Langenbrunner

Woodward– Kings win in 7. X-Factor –>Mike Richards

(4) Nashville Predators vs. (3) Phoenix Coyotes

Cohen– Predators win in 6. X-Factor –> Mike Fisher

Philp– Coyotes win in 6. X-Factor –> Mike Smith

Muscat– Predators win in 5. X-Factor –> Alexander Radulov

Levin– Predators win in 5. X-Factor –>Patric Hornqvist

Woodward– Predators win in 6. X-Factor –> Phoenix’s Secondary Scoring

Stanley Cup Finals

Cohen (Edit)– Rangers Over Predators

Muscat (Edit)– Blues Over Rangers

Philp (Edit)– Capitals Over Coyotes

Woodward (Original)– Rangers Over Predators

Steven Stamkos’ 60-Goal Season – An infographic by the team at TampaBayLightning.com

Tampa Bay will certainly look to improve the goaltending and defense first, while adding to a solid nucleus of forwards.

Here is a thumbnail look at the Lightning roster today.

For a full look at the team depth chart, click here.

Click on the players name for full salary capsule.

Forwards

Lightning forwards are a solid group

Ten forwards under contract:  Vincent Lecavalier ($7,727,273), Steven Stamkos ($7,500,000), Martin St. Louis ($5,625,000), Ryan Malone ($4,500,000), Teddy Purcell ($2,362,500), Brett Connolly ($1,633,333), JT Brown ($1,350,000), Nate Thompson ($900,000), Dana Tyrell ($600,000) and Tom Pyatt ($600,000). Buyout Vaclav Prospal ($1.166.667)

Forward UFA’s. (Unrestricted Free Agent-Players whose contracts have expired):  Tim Wallace, Ryan Shannon, Adam Hall and JT Wyman.

Defensemen

Four defensemen under contract:  Eric Brewer ($3,850,000), Mattias Ohlund ($3,607,143), Victor Hedman ($4,000,000) and Marc-Andre Bergeron ($1,000,000).

Defensemen UFA’s:  Brett Clark, Mike Commodore and Bruno Gervais.

Defensemen RFA’s:  (Restricted Free Agent-Players who are no longer considered ”entry-level” but do not qualify as unrestricted free agents become restricted free agents when their contracts expire):  Brian Lee, Keith Aulie and Brendan Mikkelson.

Goalies

One goalie under contract:  Mathieu Garon ($1,300,000)

Goalie UFA’s:  Dwayne Roloson and Sebastien Caron.

Salary committed for 2012-13: $48.095 million

2012-13 Salary Cap:  $64,300,000

For the full Lightning salary chart, click here.

Is the Kings Bernier a candidate?

General Manager, Steve Yzerman will be looking for a number one goalie this summer and he is armed with two first -round draft choices in the June draft and up to four second round picks. After all, the Bolts had the worst goals-against average (3.34) and save percentage (.889) in the NHL for the second straight season. Vancouver’s Cory Schneider is most often mentioned as the top candidate, but he is a future RFA and the Bolts could only acquire him through a trade involving a top Lightning prospect. Also, Vancouver may decide to let Roberto Luongo and his huge contract go before trading Scnneider. There are many other interesting options out there including trading for the Kings Jonathan Bernier, but the goalie free agent market is weak. Yzerman’s only real option is to trade for a young number one.

Here is a list of free agent goalies:

UFA Goalies:  Martin Brodeur-New Jersey, Antero Niittymaki-San Jose, Tomas Vokoun-Washington, Jonas Gustavsson-Toronto, Johan Hedberg-New Jersey, Scott Clemmensen-Florida, Alex Auld-Ottawa, Martin Biron-New York Rangers, Josh Harding-Minnesota, Al Montoya-New York Islanders, Ray Emery-Chicago, Curtis Sanford-Columbus, Dwayne Roloson-Tampa Bay and Sebastien Caron-Tampa Bay.

For a complete list of goalie UFA’s, click here.

RFA Goalies:  Carey Price-Montreal, Tukka Rask-Boston, Ondrej Pavelec-Winnipeg, Cory Schneider-Vancouver, Anders Lindback-Nashville, Devan Dubnyk-Edmonton, Leland Irving-Calgary, Ben Scrivens-Toronto, Richard Bachman-Dallas, Justin Peters-Carolina, Cedrick Desjardins-Colorado and Jaroslav Janus-Tampa Bay.

For a complete list of goalie RFA’s, click here.

Photographs courtesy of Linda Hamilton.

Salary numbers courtesy of capgeek.com

Follow WB Philp on Twitter @LightningShout. And “Like” Hockey Independent Lightning on Facebook.

After the game, Stamkos praised the Jets fans for the ovation, even though they spent most of the night booing him (A Winnipeg tradition). “That made it even more special, to like I said do it inCanadaand have them do an ovation like that it was amazing,” Stamkos said.

To put Stamkos’ achievement in perspective, according to HockeyLegends.com, there are 4,726 NHL players who did not score 60 goals in their careers.

With Stamkos’ goal on Saturday, he joins Alex Ovechkin, Jaromir Jagr and Teemu Selanne as only the fourth active player to have scored 60 goals in a season. Of the nine franchises that have joined the NHL since 1991, he is the first player to score 60. Stamkos is the first player to score 60 since 2007-08, when Alex Ovechkin (65) did it. Stamkos’ career high 97 points put him second on the list of players to score 60 with the fewest points.

An interesting side note:  The last player to score 60 goals in a season and not make the playoffs was Lightning GM Steve Yzerman in1988-89 with the Detroit Red Wings.

Stamkos led the NHL in goals, outdistancing second place follower, Evgeni Malkin by ten goals. He led the league in even strength goals with 48 and game winning goals with 12. Had Tampa Bay (38-36-8) made the playoffs, Stamkos would have been a top candidate to win the NHL MVP Hart Trophy. But, he certainly is the Lightning MVP, leading the team in games played (82), goals (60), points (97), power play goals (12), even strength goals (48), game winning goals (12), total time on ice forwards (1806) and shots (303). He was second on the team in +/- (+7), shooting percentage (19.8) and average time on ice forwards (22:01). Stamkos was third on the team in assists (37).

Click here to view the embedded video.

Despite the gaudy individual numbers, Stamkos is a total team player, “You trade this stuff in a heartbeat for winning a championship,” the Lightning center said. “You don’t play to score a certain amount of goals or to get individual awards. You play to win a league championship game.”

The Bolts future is in good hands.

Photo courtesy of Linda Hamilton.

Follow WB Philp on Twitter @LightningShout and “Like” Hockey Independent Lightning on Facebook.

“This is a good time to put it together for sure and it’s a good team in here, great team.” – Brian Rolston

Things didn’t exactly get off to an ideal start for Claude Julien’s squad as they found themselves behind a goal only five minutes into action. It was Stamkos – the NHL’s leading scorer – who would put the Bolts ahead early after taking advantage of a Boston turnover and firing a wrist shot past Tim Thomas for his 54^th tally of the season.

The Black and Gold would even the score nearly six minutes later after Zdeno Chara – who was honored with a pre-game ceremony for playing in his 1,000^th career NHL contest this past Saturday out in Los Angeles – showed some offensive prowess, dangling around the Tampa Bay defense and taking it to goal, with allowed Shawn Thornton to stuff home a rebound into an empty net. “Well, it’s obviously very nice to get that recognition and ceremony. Like I said, I very much appreciate it. It’s very nice from the NHL, the Boston Bruins organization, from my teammates and everybody that supported me” said the Boston captain of the ceremony orchestrated by the Bruins’ brass.

Boston would take the lead for the first time of the night during a four-on-four situation late in the second period. Zdeno Chara’s blistering slapshot was stopped by Tampa ‘tender Dwayne Roloson, but a perfectly place (for Boston) rebound allowed Big Z’s defense partner Dennis Seidenberg to fire home his fourth of the season.

Unfortunately for the 17, 565 Black and Gold-clad fans that packed the Garden on Tuesday, the Bolts would even the score early in the third period when a Stamkos’ power-play rocket found the back of the Boston net. Soon after, the B’s would jump back ahead when Brian Rolston found Benoit Pouliot open in front of the Tampa net for his 14^th tally of the campaign. Only four minutes later, Boston would add to their lead when Brad Marchand fired a wrist shot through traffic and past Roloson for his team-leading (tied with Tyler Seguin) 26^th marker of the season. With just seven seconds left on the clock, Rich Peverley would score in the empty net to seal a 5-2 home ice victory for the Bruins. The B’s have now won three games in a row – for the first time since December – and five of their last six.

“We’re putting together some points at a very important time that, heading down the stretch here, gives us a little cushion, which I think is a good thing.” – Tim Thomas

The loss all but eliminates the Bolts from post-season contention, as last year’s Eastern Conference runner-up now find themselves nine points out of a playoff spot with only six games left on the docket. Superstar forward Steven Stamkos reflected on the team’s season in an exclusive interview with Hockey Independent.

“It’s been a tough year. Every team has to go through it (injury problems) but it’s definitely been a lot more than previous years. That’s the trick of this league: the team that stays the most healthy is usually the most successful. Even at the beginning of the year when we were healthy, we didn’t play the game that we wanted to. We didn’t see the results and we dug ourselves a hole. No one gave up on this team. It was a big hole to climb. There’s no excuse for how we started the year, and that’s why we’re not in the playoff mix right now. I’d love to trade those (scoring records) in for a playoff spot. But it is what it is right now. For me personally, I just want to finish strong down the stretch and build as much confidence as I can. Try to score goals and create offense to help our team win.” – Steven Stamkos

Ben’s Three Stars:

1) Zdeno Chara (3 Assists)

2) Steven Stamkos (2 Goals)

3) Martin St. Louis (2 Assists)

What’s Next?

– The B’s will host Alex Ovechkin and the Washington Capitals on Thursday evening. The Bolts will finish up their current road trip with a game in New Jersey on Thursday.

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Records: Tampa Bay 35-33-7 (77 Points) , Boston 44-28-3 (91 Points)

Location: TD Garden , Boston, Massachusetts

Time: 7:30 P.M. (EST)

TV/Radio Info: NESN (Edwards, Brickley, Funayama) – 98.5 The Sports Hub (Goucher, Beers)

Last Game: Lightning 5 , Philadelphia Flyers 3  ……. Bruins 3 , Anaheim Ducks 2

Tonight’s Lineup (Subject To Change):

FORWARDS:

Lucic–Krejci–Seguin

Marchand–Bergeron–Peverley

Pouliot–Kelly–Rolston

Caron–Campbell–Thornton

DEFENSE:

Chara–Seidenberg

Ference–Boychuk

McQuaid–Zanon

GOALTENDER:

Thomas

Turco

Scratches– ….. Mike Mottau, Joe Corvo, Torey Krug, Daniel Paille

Injuries:

Nathan Horton (Concussion) – Boston’s top right winger remains sidelined with a concussion he suffered back on January 21. Number eighteen has made regular appearances at TD Garden during home games and reports have indicated that he has begun to ride the stationary bicycle.

Tuukka Rask (Groin) — The B’s back up goaltender will remain absent from the lineup until Mid-April with a lower abdomen/groin injury.

Last Time We Met: Bruins 1 , Lightning 6

– To say “it wasn’t pretty” the last time these two squads met up would undoubtedly qualify for the understatement of the year award. Powered by four first period goals, and two tallies from Steven Stamkos –the second was good for his 50th of the campaign–, the Bolts slaughtered the B’s by a 6-1 score at the Tampa Bay Times Forum on March 13.

Prediction: After taking two of the three contests on their recent West Coast road trip, the B’s seem to have regained their swagger, winning four of their last five. With Sebastien Caron — a goaltender who hasn’t started an NHL game since January 16…..2007 — slated to get the start for the Bolts, and the team playing less than 24 hours after their 5-3 victory in Philly on Monday I’d expect the B’s to exact a bit of revenge against Tampa on Tuesday.

Lightning  2 , Bruins 6

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The Bolts are in fifth (last) place in the Southeast Division and trail the division leading Florida Panthers by twelve points. Tampa Bay is in 13th place in the 15 team Eastern Conference, seven points out of a playoff spot and two points from the conference cellar. Only the New York Islanders and the Montreal Canadiens trail the Bolts.

After 71 games, forward Steven Stamkos leads the team and the NHL in goals with 50. He leads the Bolts and is second in the league in points with 84. Martin St. Louis is tops in assists with 41. Forward Teddy Purcell leads the team in rating with a +9.

Defenseman Brett Clark is last in rating with a -24. Goalie Mathieu Garon has 23 wins, a 2.85 goals against average and a .901 save percentage.

Goalie Dustin Tokarski is 1-2-1 with a 2.79 goals against average and an .901 save percentage.

Defenseman Eric Brewer leads Tampa Bay in ice time, averaging 23:21 per game. Steven Stamkos leads in shots on goal with 251.

The Lightning have scored 199 goals (10th in the NHL) and allowed 240 goals (30th (last) in the 30 team NHL). The Bolts power play and the penalty kill remain sub-par. The power play success rate is 15.5% (23rd in the 30 team NHL) and the penalty kill is at 78.6% (26th in the NHL). The league average power play percentage is 17.4% and the average NHL team kills off 82.6% of their penalties successfully.

The Bolts have allowed eleven shorthanded goals, second most in the NHL.

Tampa Bay is 23rd in the league in faceoff percentage, winning 48.8% of their draws.

Box Scores

Game 69 – Tampa Bay Lightning 6 – Boston Bruins 1

Game 70 – Tampa Bay Lightning 1 – Toronto Maple Leafs 3

Game 71 – Tampa Bay Lightning 1– St. Louis Blues 3

Three Stars of the Week

Steven Stamkos – Two goals.

Martin St. Louis – One goal and one assist.

Brian Lee - Two assists.

Transactions

The Lightning announced the signing of 2011 first-round pick Vladislav Namestnikov to a three year, entry level contract.

The Lightning recalled forward Trevor Smith from Norfolk (AHL).

The Lightning have signed German League goaltender Sebastien Caron.

Injuries

Defenseman Mattias Ohlund remains on IR after having major knee surgery.

Forward Dana Tyrell is out for the year after having successful knee surgery.

Defenseman Marc-Andre Bergeron has chosen to undergo back surgery that may end his season.

Forward Vincent Lecavalier is out indefinitely with a broken hand. The Bolts are hoping to have him back in three to five days.

Goalie Mathieu Garon has a torn groin muscle and is out 3-4 weeks.

Defenseman Bruno Gervais is day-to-day with a shoulder injury.

Forward Nate Thompson is day-to-day with an upper body injury.

Bolt Notes

The Lightning’s slide into oblivion continues. Tampa Bay has now lost five of its last six games and is proving to be one of the worst teams in the Eastern Conference and the NHL. Although, still mathematically alive for a playoff spot, Tampa Bay is done.

Steven Stamkos became just the sixth player in NHL history to record multiple 50-goal seasons before the age of 23. The impressive list includes Mario Lemieux, Wayne Gretzky, Mike Bossy, Joe Nieuwendyk and Alex Ovechkin.

Sports Club Stats has the Lightning’s playoffs chances at 2.1%.

The Week Ahead

Tampa Bay hosts Buffalo on Monday, Edmonton on Thursday and the New York Islanders on Saturday.

Follow WB Philp on Twitter @LightningShout and “Like” Hockey Independent Lightning on Facebook.

To say that things got off to a “hot start” for the home team would undoubtedly be the hockey understatement of the year. Picking up three goals in the first 4:31 of the game, the Bolts effectively ended this game before it even began, as they were able to chase Marty Turco less than five minutes after puck drop.

The first Lightning goal was a questionable one, bouncing off the skate of Tom Pyatt and past Turco to give Tampa a 1-0 lead less than two minutes into the contest. Only thirty seconds later, former-Bruin Nate Thompson collected his ninth of the season after a defensive zone collapse by Boston. Former Boston College standout Ryan Shannon would add another when he beat Turco on a breakaway at the tail end of a power-play.

At the 15:38 mark, defenseman Victor Hedman blasted a slapshot past the newly inserted Tim Thomas to kick off the route in Tampa, making it a 4-0 game.

If there was one statistic that could sum up Boston’s effort in the first frame it’d be this one: the Bruins had half as many shots on goal (two) as the Lightning had goals (four). Yikes.

The second frame began much in the way the first did for a Bruins team that simply couldn’t find it’s skating legs on Tuesday. The phenom known as Steven Stamkos would tuck home his league leading 49^th tally of the season just past the three minute mark of the frame to give the Bolts an astounding 5-0 lead.

This would pave the way for head coach Claude Julien to bring Marty Turco back into the game with the result no longer in doubt.

Jordan Caron would get one back for the B’s early in the third when he deflected a Zdeno Chara wrist shot past Tokarski for his career-high seventh goal of the season.

At the 11:43 mark of the final frame, Stamkos would join elite company as he potted his league leading 50^th goal of the season, becoming only the sixth player in NHL history to perform the feat in multiple seasons before his 23^rd birthday. Truly an astonishing accomplishment for the 22-year-old Markham, Ontario native.

The 6-1 defeat is the B’s third consecutive loss and it drops their record to 16-17-2 since their New Year’s Eve Night defeat down in Dallas.

Ben’s Three Stars:

1) Victor Hedman (1 Goal/1 Assist)

2) Dustin Tokarski (33 Saves)

3) Steven Stamkos (2 Goals)

What’s Next?

– The B’s will have another showdown in the Sunshine State on Thursday, this time with the division-leading Panthers at the BankAtlantic Center. The Bolts will be home again on Thursday, when they host Phil Kessel and the struggling Toronto Maple Leafs.

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Records: Boston 40-25-3 (83 Points) , Tampa Bay 31-30-7 (69 Points)

Location: Tampa Bay Times Forum , Tampa Bay, Florida

Time: 7:30 P.M. (EST)

TV/Radio Info: NESN (Edwards, Brickley, Funayama) – 98.5 The Sports Hub (Goucher, Beers)

Last Game: Bruins 2 , Pittsburgh Penguins 5 ……. Carolina Hurricanes 4 , Lightning 2

Tonight’s Lineup (Subject To Change):

FORWARDS:

Lucic–Krejci–Seguin

Marchand–Bergeron–Caron

Rolston–Kelly–Paille

Whitfield–Campbell–Thornton

DEFENSE:

Chara–Boychuk

Seidenberg–Corvo

Ference–Zanon

GOALTENDER:

Turco

Thomas

Scratches– …… Mottau

Injuries:

Nathan Horton (Concussion) – Boston’s top right winger remains sidelined with a concussion he suffered back on January 21.

Rich Peverley (MCL) – Peverley will sit out another game as he continues to rehab his MCL injury.

Daniel Paille (Undisclosed) — The Bruins’ gritty fourth line forward is expected to be in the lineup tonight.

Tuukka Rask (Groin) — The B’s back-up ‘tender is slated to be out of commission until mid-April with a lower abdomen/groin strain.

Last Time We Met: Bruins 3 , Lightning 5

– Despite a two-goal outing from Nathan Horton, the B’s were beaten by the Bolts after a strong third period effort from multiple Tampa Bay role players. Dominic Moore and Tom Pyatt led the way for the Lightning as they up-ended the B’s 5-3.

Prediction: Starting his first game with the Black and Gold, I’d expect Marty Turco to come through with a strong performance to help get his team back on track. Look for David Krejci to continue the success that he normally enjoys in the sunny state of Florida.

Bruins 4 , Lightning 3

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The Bolts are in fourth place in the Southeast Division and trail the division leading Florida Panthers by eight points. Tampa Bay is in 11th place in the 15 team Eastern Conference, seven points out of a playoff spot.

After 68 games, forward Steven Stamkos leads the team and the NHL in goals with 48. He leads the Bolts and leads the league in points with 82. Martin St. Louis is tops in assists with 40. Forward Teddy Purcell leads the team in rating with a +8.

Defenseman Brett Clark is last in rating with a -26. Goalie Mathieu Garon has 23 wins, a 2.85 goals against average and a .901 save percentage.

Goalie Dustin Tokarski is 0-1-1 with a 2.93 goals against average and an .895 save percentage.

Defenseman Eric Brewer leads Tampa Bay in ice time, averaging 23:27 per game. Steven Stamkos leads in shots on goal with 239.

The Lightning have scored 184 goals (10th in the NHL) and allowed 221 goals (30th (last) in the 30 team NHL). The Bolts power play and the penalty kill suffered this week. The power play success rate is 15.84% (24th in the 30 team NHL) and the penalty kill is at 78.48% (25th in the NHL). The league average power play percentage is 17.45% and the average NHL team kills off 82.55% of their penalties successfully.

Tampa Bay is 21st in the league in faceoff percentage, winning 49.1% of their draws.

Box Scores

Game 66 – Tampa Bay Lightning 3 – Ottawa Senators 7

Game 67 – Tampa Bay Lightning 2 – Washington Capitals 3 OT

Game 68 – Tampa Bay Lightning 2 – Carolina Hurricanes 4

Three Stars of the Week

Ryan Malone – Two goals and an assist.

Teddy Purcell – One goal and two assists.

Tom Pyatt - Three assists.

Transactions

The Lightning recalled goalie Dustin Tokarski from Norfolk (AHL).

Injuries

Defenseman Mattias Ohlund remains on IR after having major knee surgery.

Forward Dana Tyrell is out for the year after having successful knee surgery.

Defenseman Marc-Andre Bergeron has chosen to undergo back surgery that may end his season.

Forward Vincent Lecavalier is out indefinitely with a broken hand. The Bolts are hoping to have him back in three to five days.

Goalie Mathieu Garon has a torn groin muscle and is out 3-4 weeks.

Defenseman Bruno Gervais is day-to-day with a shoulder injury.

Bolt Notes

While Dustin Tokarski may not yet be the Bolts goalie of the future, he is certainly the goalie of the present. Why not Dwayne Roloson?  Roli has given up 13 goals in his last two starts, while Tokarski has given up six in his only two NHL starts. Statistically, Roloson is dead last among NHL goalies with 20 starts this year. The organization has given up on the 42 year old netminder and given the net to the young, big game Tokarski. Coach Guy Boucher really has no other choice.

With just 14 games remaining, Sports Club Stats has the Lightning’s playoffs chances at 4.4%.

The Week Ahead

Tampa Bay hosts Boston on Tuesday, Toronto on Thursday and St. Louis on Saturday.

The Quarterdeck Log – Norfolk Admirals Week In Review

By Ken Peacock

About The Author

A man with an identity crisis. A full time fan of all things hockey and supporter of the AHL’s Norfolk Admirals, the Tampa Bay Lightning and the Washington Capitals. A fan of two NHL teams in the same division? Really? Yes, it can be done. It’s tough, but it can be done. I am also a full time husband, IT Professional, and a Norfolk Admirals Hockey Blogger at Vultures Row.

Weekly Log

Friday night the Admirals kicked off a run of three games in as many nights. First up for Norfolk were Michael Leighton and the Adirondack Phantoms. Tyler Johnson and Alex Picard provided all the offense for the night in the first period. Norfolk opened up the game with a Tyler Johnson goal at the nine minute mark. Alex Picard would score a minute and a half later to make it 2-0 Admirals. Tyler Johnson scored his second of the night at 19:30 to close out the first period. Adirondack finally got on the board in the second period. Denis Hamel scored the lone goal of the night at 13:19 with Radko Gudas in the penalty box. Jaroslav Janus was stellar in the net stopping 23 of the 24 shots he faced. With the 2-1 win the Admirals extended their win streak to 13 in a row.

Saturday the Admirals were going up against the Connecticut Whale. With Dustin Tokarski up with the Lightning it was the Jaroslav Janus show once again in goal. The Whale struck first with an even strength goal at 8:11 of the first period. The Norfolk offense finally got on the board at 12:17. Alex Hutchings fed a pass to Mike Angelidis who one-timed the puck past Connecticut netminder, Chad Johnson. The Admirals took a 2-1 lead early in the third period. Tyler Johnson won the draw in the right circle back to Mike Kostka. Kostka sent a slap shot past Johnson and into the net.  Tyler Johnson sealed the victory with an empty net goal at 19:18. The Admirals won 3-1 and the streak continued at 14.

A Sunday afternoon in Bridgeportwas the scene for a matchup with the Sound Tigers. The Admirals were playing their third game in three nights. Call ups and injuries forced Jon Cooper to patch the holes with some ECHL players. Jaroslav Janus got the nod once more in net. Norfolkstruck first fifteen minutes into the first with Trevor Smith’s 22^nd goal of the season. Smith intercepted a Sound Tiger pass in the low slot. Smith then backhanded the puck into the net past Kevin Poulin. Bridgeport tied the game, with a shorthanded goal at 1:17 of the second period. Mark Barberio scored a power play goal at 17:16 with an assist going to Cory Conacher. Two minutes later Richard Panik increased the lead to two with another power play goal at 19:28. Bridgeport would tie the game at three goals each in the final frame. Norfolk turned up the heat and controlled the remainder of the game. Mark Barberio scored his second of the night with a slap shot goal at 13:12. Pierre-Cedric Labrie would feed a pass to Richard Panik who sent a one-timer into the net at 15:52. Tyler Johnson closed out the scoring at 17:32. Richard Panik fed a long pass to Johnson who fired a shot past Poulin for the 6-3 Admiral victory. The winning streak is now at 15.

Cory Conacher (31G 37A 68Pts +6), Trevor Smith (22G 38A 60Pts +25), and Mark Barberio (11G 42A 53Pts +19) find themselves atop the team in scoring. Dustin Tokarski (27-11-0 2.34GAA) was recalled to Tampa Bay. Jaroslav Janus (15-8-2 2.75GAA) went 3-0. Pat Nagle (0-0-0) did not play.

For the Season the Admirals are 42-18-1-2 with 87 points. They are currently holding the top position in the AHL.Norfolkis currently on a 15-0-0-0 streak and is 10-0-0-0 in their last ten games.Norfolk’s magic number to clinch a playoff spot is 7.

Three Stars of the Week

Janus is the Admirals first star of the week

Jaroslav Janus – Three wins in three nights.

Tyler Johnson – Four goals.

The Admirals team – Riding a 15 game winning streak.

Transactions

Dustin Tokarski – Recalled by theTampaBayLightning (NHL).

Alex Hutchings – Recalled from theFloridaEverblades (ECHL).

Bryan Brutlag – Signed to PTO from the Gwinnett Gladiators (ECHL).

Casey Haines – Signed to PTO from theReading Royals (ECHL).

Pat Nagle – Recalled from theFloridaEverblades (ECHL).

Injuries

Richard Petiot – Knee – Out for the season.

An Observation from the Stands

What a week it was for the Admirals and their fans. There has been rumor and speculation that Tampa Baywill be moving the team toSyracusenext season. Even though nothing has been officially announced, the stories out of Syracusehave done nothing but feed the rumor mill. While this is probably more of a distraction for the fans, I still wonder if and how it will affect the players. Obviously it did not affect the team this week. With the winning streak now at 15 the Admirals are looking forward to their lone home game against the Penguins on Wednesday. I would like to see Conacher step up and get out of his scoring slump. The offense is rolling and Janus has stepped up to fill the void left by Tokarski in net. As Tyler Johnson would say, “Let’s go boys!..Fifteen is a fluke, sixteen is a streak!

The Week Ahead

Norfolk returns to Scope for a Wednesday night game against the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins. The Admirals then get back on the bus for a Friday and Sunday matchup against the Charlotte Checkers down in Charlotte, NC.

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Follow Ken Peacock on Twitter @VBKen.

Projected Standings: (Team–Projected Point Total–Point Differential From Last Season–Seed Differential From Last Season)

1) New York Rangers 115 Points –>+22 Points –> +7 Spots

2) Boston Bruins         102 Points –> -1 Point –> +1 Spot

3) Florida Panthers    93 Points –> +21 Points –> +12 Spots

4) Pittsburgh Penguins 106 Points –> EVEN –> EVEN

5) Philadelphia Flyers  102 Points –> -4 Points –> -3 Spots

6) New Jersey Devils 98 Points –> +17 Points –> +5 Spots

7) Ottawa Senators 94 Points –> +20 Points –> +6 Spots

8) Winnipeg Jets 88 Points –> +8 Points –> +4 Points

9) Washington Capitals 87 Points –> -20 Points –> -8 Spots

10) Buffalo Sabres 86 Points –> -10 Points –> -3 Spots

11) Tampa Bay Lightning 84 Points –> -19 Points –> -6 Spots

12) Toronto Maple Leafs 82 Points –> -3 Points –> -2 Spots

13) New York Islanders 81 Points –> +8 Points –> +1 Spot

14) Carolina Hurricanes 80 Points –> -11 Points –> -5 Spots

15) Montreal Canadiens 73 Points –> -23 Points –> -9 Spots

STATS:

–> Largest Points Improvement …..     New York Rangers (+22)

–> Largest Seeding Improvement …..  Florida Panthers (+12)

–> Worst Points Drop-Off           …..     Montreal Canadiens (-23)

–> Worst Seeding Drop-Off       …..      Montreal Canadiens (-9)

If Sidney Crosby (Above) makes a return to the Pittsburgh lineup, these number may change drastically.

–> Now, things can always change rapidly and a team could fall completely out of the playoff race or one could jump right into it by putting together a nice winning streak, making this system far from a perfect prediction tool.

–> Last season, it took 93 points from the New York Rangers to secure the eighth and final Eastern Conference playoff spot. This year it looks like 90 will once again be the magic number with one or two teams perhaps finishing below that mark and still sneaking into the dance.

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The Bolts are in fourth place in the Southeast Division and trail the division leading Florida Panthers by six points. Tampa Bay is in 10th place in the 15 team Eastern Conference, two points out of a playoff spot.

After 65 games, forward Steven Stamkos leads the team and the NHL in goals with 47. He leads the Bolts and leads the league in points with 80. Martin St. Louis is tops in assists with 39. Forward Teddy Purcell leads the team in rating with a +10.

Defenseman Brett Clark is last in rating with a -23. Goalie Mathieu Garon has 23 wins, a 2.85 goals against average and a .901 save percentage.

Defenseman Eric Brewer leads Tampa Bay in ice time, averaging 23:30 per game. Steven Stamkos leads in shots on goal with 230.

The Lightning have scored 182 goals (10th in the NHL) and allowed 216 goals (30th (last) in the 30 team NHL). The Bolts power play improved this week, while the penalty kill suffered. The power play success rate is 15.02% (26th in the 30 team NHL) and the penalty kill is at 79.22% (25th in the NHL). The league average power play percentage is 17.57% and the average NHL team kills off 82.43% of their penalties successfully.

Tampa Bay is 22nd in the league in faceoff percentage, winning 49.0% of their draws.

Box Scores

Game 63 – Tampa Bay Lightning 2 – Montreal Canadiens 1

Game 64 – Tampa Bay Lightning 4 – New York Rangers 3 OT

Game 65 – Tampa Bay Lightning 4 – Carolina Hurricanes 3 OT

Three Stars of the Week

Teddy Purcell – Two goals and four assists.

Steven Stamkos - Four goals and an assist.

Martin St. Louis – Three assists.

Transactions

The Lightning acquired  defenseman Mike Commodore from Detroit for a conditional seventh round pick.

The Lightning acquired defenseman Keith Aulie from the Toronto Maple Leafs in exchange for forward Carter Ashton.

The Lightning acquired defenseman Brian Lee from the Ottawa Senators in exchange for defenseman Matt Gilroy.

The Lightning recalled forward Brandon Segal from Norfolk (AHL).

The Lightning reassigned defenseman Evan Oberg and forwards Mike Angelidis and Trevor Smith to Norfolk (AHL), recalled the trio and then reassigned them again.

The Lightning recalled forward Pierre-Cedric Labrie from Norfolk (AHL).

The Lightning signed Cory Conacher (AHL) to a two-year, two-way contract.

The Lightning signed forward Danick Gauthier (QMJHL) to a three-year contract.

Injuries

Defenseman Mattias Ohlund remains on IR after having major knee surgery.

Forward Dana Tyrell is out for the year after having successful knee surgery.

Defenseman Marc-Andre Bergeron is day-to-day with an upper body injury. He is contemplating season ending surgery.

Forward Vincent Lecavalier is out indefinitely with a broken hand. The Bolts are hoping to have him back in three to five days.

Defenseman Victor Hedman is day-to-day with an upper body injury but could return to practice on Monday.

Bolt Notes

The Bolts won three games this week, each one by one goal. The last two wins were both, two goal comebacks. Eight of Tampa Bay’s next nine games are at home.

Forward Teddy Purcell is riding a career best, nine game points streak. During that streak, Purcell has netted six goals and dished out 13 assists while playing on the Bolts top line.

Sports Club Stats has the Lightning’s playoffs chances at 20.2%.

The Week Ahead

Tampa Bay hosts Ottawa on Tuesday. They travel to Washington on Thursday and host Carolina on Saturday.

The Quarterdeck Log – Norfolk Admirals Week In Review

By Ken Peacock

About The Author

A man with an identity crisis. A full time fan of all things hockey and supporter of the AHL’s Norfolk Admirals, the Tampa Bay Lightning and the Washington Capitals. A fan of two NHL teams in the same division? Really? Yes, it can be done. It’s tough, but it can be done. I am also a full time husband, IT Professional, and a Norfolk Admirals Hockey Blogger at Vultures Row.

Weekly Log

The Admirals went into action this past Wednesday night riding a nine game winning streak. The Hershey Bears were making their final appearance of the season at Scope and were looking to put an end to Norfolk’s winning ways. The first period was a defensive battle as neither team could figure the goalies out. Cory Conacher broke the stalemate early in the second with an Admiral power play goal. Hershey answered back midway into the third on a Boyd Kane shot into an open Admiral net before Jaroslav Janus could get back into position. It would only take Norfolk two minutes to regain the lead as Tyler Johnson picked up a Bear turnover and fed it to Ondrej Palat. Palat skated through two Bear defenseman and sent a wrist shot past Braden Holtby for the go ahead goal.Norfolk shut down the Bears offense and the Admirals kept the streak alive with a 2-1 win.

The Springfield Falcons provided the opposition on Friday and Saturday night. The Admirals opened the scoring midway into the first period:  Mike Kostka sent a shot towards the net that ended up behind the goaltender. Michel Ouellet swept the puck into the net before Paul Dainton could reach back and cover it. Ouellet would combine with Alex Picard and Mike Angelidis for the Admirals second goal at 4:15 of the second period. Ouellet picked off a Falcon pass and centered the puck to Picard. Picard fired the puck on net and Mike Angelidis collected the rebound and deposited the puck into the net. Nine minutes later Ouellet would score his second of the night on a nice pass from Richard Panik for a power play goal at 12:48. Radko Gudas made it 4-0 as he deflected a Scott Jackson shot past Dainton at 18:33 of the second period. Springfield put an end to Dustin Tokarski’s shutout bid on a Matt Calvert goal twelve minutes into the final frame. Norfolk continued to put the pressure on and capitalized on the power play with a goal from Philip-Michael Devos at 18:52 to seal a 5-2 victory.

Tension from Friday’s game carried over into the Saturday night match. Both teams were on the ice for warm-ups and the smack talking started. The Springfield Falcons Greg Amadio went to center ice trying to get Pierre-Cedric Labrie’s attention. Labrie was more than happy to discuss matters with him and proceeded to pound Amadio. With no officials or coaches on the ice, both teams gathered and players grabbed dancing partners. Mike Angelidis and the Falcon captain were able to get things under control as the teams finished warm ups.Norfolk was pumped up and it showed. The Admirals opened up the first period and grabbed an early 3-0 lead with goals for Cory Conacher, Michel Ouellet, and a shorthanded goal from Tyler Johnson. Both teams went scoreless in the second period.Springfield finally got on the board in the third with a goal from Brent Regner at 8:15. Richard Panik restored the Admirals three-goal lead two minutes later. Panik deflected a Cory Conacher shot past the Falcon net-minder at 10:19. Tyler Johnson closed out the scoring at 11:00 of the third to give the Admirals a 5-1 victory and extend the Norfolk win streak at 12 games.

Cory Conacher (31G 35A 66Pts +7), Trevor Smith (21G 36A 57Pts +26), and Mark Barberio (9G 42A 51Pts +20) find themselves at the top for scoring. Conacher was rewarded for his exceptional play with a two year deal with the Lightning. Dustin Tokarski (27-11-0 2.34GAA) went 2-0 this week. Jaroslav Janus (12-8-2 2.89GAA) went 1-0.

For the season the Admirals are 39-18-1-2 with 81 points. They are currently holding the top position in the AHL. Norfolk is currently on a 12-0-0-0 streak and is 10-0-0-0 in their last ten games.

Three Stars of the Week

Normally I would have three individuals listed as the three stars. Michell Ouellet, and Cory Conacher have had great games this week, but the whole team deserves to be in this section. The last twelve games have been an outstanding team effort. The Admirals are playing the best hockey of the season, and the best hockey since Tampa Bay has been the parent club. This week they all get the number one star.

Transactions

Brandon Segal – Recalled by the Tampa Bay Lightning (NHL).

Mike Angelidis – Returned by the Tampa Bay Lightning (NHL).

Evan Oberg – Returned by the Tampa BayLightning (NHL).

Trevor Smith – Returned by the Tampa Bay Lightning (NHL).

Pierre-Cedric Labrie – Returned by the Tampa Bay Lightning (NHL).

Injuries

Richard Petiot – Knee – Out for the season.

An Observation from the Stands

A twelve game win streak is no easy task. I was not sure what type of team to expect this season. As the season progressed I saw glimpses of greatness followed up by questionable moves that resulted in losses. I thought it would be a long season. The Admirals have proven me wrong and pulled off a winning streak for the ages and are playing some of the best hockey I have seen here inNorfolk. I cannot wait to see this team in the playoffs. They have come together as a team and battled through injuries and call ups and they continue to win. Other teams have called our player “cocky”. There might be some truth to that, but it doesn’t matter. What matters is in the standings.Norfolkhas opened up some distance between themselves and division rivals Hershey and Wilkes-Barre/Scranton. There are sixteen games remaining in the regular season and then the real fun begins. This is the team to watch…..Keep it going boys.

The Week Ahead

Norfolk is on the road this week. They will be making stops in Adirondack on Friday, Connecticut on Saturday and Bridgeporton Sunday. The Admirals return home on Wednesday, March 14 against the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins.

The Rumor Mill

Could the Admirals exit Norfolk? Read it here!

Follow WB Philp on Twitter @LightningShout and “Like” Hockey Independent Lightning on Facebook.

Follow Ken Peacock on Twitter @VBKen.

The Lightning acquired defenseman Mike Commodore from the Detroit Red Wings in exchange for a conditional seventh round draft pick in 2013. 

Commodore is a Bolt

The 32 year old Commodore played only 17 games with the Red Wings accumulating two assists. He was a +3 while averaging 11:29 of ice time. After missing the first eight games of the season he has been a healthy scratch the rest of the way.

Commodore has played 471 career NHL games with the New Jersey Devils, Calgary Flames, Carolina Hurricanes, Ottawa Senators, Columbus Blue Jackets and Detroit Red Wings during an 11-year career.  He has scored 23 goals and accumulated 106 points. He won the Stanley Cup in 2006 with the Hurricanes.

Getting Commodore was an inexpensive move to help the Bolts get through the rest of this season. The 6’5″, 235 lbs Commodore is a pending unrestricted free agent with a $1 million contract, making the Lightning responsible for about $220,000.

The Lightning acquired defenseman Keith Aulie from the Toronto Maple Leafs in exchange for forward Carter Ashton.

Ashton dealt to Toronto

The 6’4″, 215 lbs. Aulie was originally selected 29th overall and is in his first season in the minors where he has scored 19 goals and 35 points in 56 games. The 22 year old was picked up in Toronto’s trade with Calgary that also netted Dion Phaneuf.

Aulie has a huge upside despite earning just two assists and a -2 rating in 17 NHL games. He is highly regarded for his stay at home defensive play. He had 41 hits and 28 blocked shots with the Leafs this season. The 2007 fourth round pick of the Calgary Flames has played in 23 AHL games with the Toronto Marlies, netting one assist and a -8 rating. In 57 NHL games over the last two seasons, Aulie has two goals, two assists and a -3 rating.

In 56 games with Norfolk (AHL) the 20 year old Carter Ashton was third on the team with 19 goals and fifth with 35 points.  The 6’3″, 215 lbs. winger represented Canada at 2011 world junior championships, where he scored one goal and two assists for the silver-medal winning team.

Aulie is a big man that can skate. He can develop into a solid stay at home blue liner, but will probably never develop into an offensive threat.

The Lightning acquired defenseman Brian Lee from the Ottawa Senators in exchange for defenseman Matt Gilroy.

Gilroy goes to Ottawa

The 27 year old Gilroy was playing his first season with the Lighting after skating the past two seasons with the New York Rangers. The 2009 Hobey Baker winner posted 17 points in 53 games while averaging 17:36 of ice time per game. Gilroy is in the final year of a contract that pays him $1million and will be an unrestricted free agant on July 1.

Lee was the Senators first round pick in 2005 and the ninth overall pick. He appeared in 35 games this season, overcoming a lower-body injury suffered in January. Lee had a goal and seven assists this year, averaging just over 13 minutes per game. The 24 year old Lee is an impending restricted free agent earning $875,000 a season.

Both Gilroy and Lee are underachievers, but Lee is younger and is an RFA not a UFA next season.

Mike Commodore and Brian Lee are expected to play for Tampa Bay tomorrow night versus Montreal.

*Carter Ashton and Matt Gilroy photographs courtesy of Linda Hamilton.

Follow WB Philp on Twitter @LightningShout and “Like” Hockey Independent Lightning on Facebook.

The Bolts are in fourth place in the Southeast Division and trail the division leading Florida Panthers by eight points. Tampa Bay is in 11th place in the 15 team Eastern Conference, six points out of a playoff spot.

After 62 games, forward Steven Stamkos leads the team and the NHL in goals with 43. He leads the Bolts and is second in the NHL in points with 75. Martin St. Louis is tops in assists with 36. Forward Teddy Purcell leads the team in rating with a +9.

Defenseman Brett Clark is last in rating with a -24. Goalie Mathieu Garon has 20 wins, a 2.90 goals against average and a .901 save percentage.

Defenseman Eric Brewer leads Tampa Bay in ice time, averaging 23:24 per game. Steven Stamkos leads in shots on goal with 219.

The Lightning have scored 172 goals (10th in the NHL) and allowed 209 goals (30th (last) in the 30 team NHL). The Bolts power play improved this week, while the penalty kill suffered. The power play success rate is 14.8% (25th in the 30 team NHL) and the penalty kill is at 79.0% (25th in the NHL). The league average power play percentage is 17.60% and the average NHL team kills off 82.40% of their penalties successfully.

Tampa Bay is 20th in the league in faceoff percentage, winning 49.2% of their draws.

Box Scores

Game 59 – Tampa Bay Lightning 3 – Anaheim Ducks 2

Game 60 – Tampa Bay Lightning 3 – Winnipeg Jets 4

Game 61 – Tampa Bay Lightning 1 – Pittsburgh Penguins 8

Game 62 – Tampa Bay Lightning 4 – New Jersey Devils 3

Three Stars of the Week

Purcell posts a ten point week

Teddy Purcell – Three goals and seven assists.

Steven Stamkos - Three goals and five assists.

Martin St. Louis – Four goals and two assists.

Transactions

The Lightning traded center Dominic Moore and a seventh round pick in 2012 to the San Jose Sharks in exchange for a second round pick in 2012 (acquired by the Sharks from the Minnesota Wild).

The Lightning traded defenseman Pavel Kubina to the Philadelphia Flyers in exchange for a second round pick in 2012 or 2013 (The Panthers hold the option on whether the second round pick can be used this year or in 2013), a fourth round pick in 2012 and minor league winger Jon Kalinski.

The Lightning recalled forward Trevor Smith from Norfolk (AHL).

The Lightning acquired a first-round pick in the 2012 draft and minor-league defenceman Sebastien Piche after exchanging forward Steve Downie for defenseman Kyle Quincey with the Colorado Avalanche. The Lightning then dealt Quincey to the Detroit Red Wings for a first-round pick and Piche.

The Lightning acquired forward Brandon Segal from the Chicago Blackhawks in exchange for future considerations.

The Lightning claimed forward Tim Wallace off waivers from the New York Islanders.

The Lightning recalled forward Mike Angelidis from Norfolk (AHL).

The Lightning recalled defenseman Evan Oberg from Norfolk (AHL) for the ninth time this season. He appeared in just his second game with Tampa Bay and finished with 11:25 of ice time and was a +2.

The Lightning acquired  defenseman Mike Commodore from Detroit for a conditional seventh round pick

Injuries

Defenseman Mattias Ohlund remains on IR after having major knee surgery.

Forward Dana Tyrell is out for the year after having successful knee surgery.

Defenseman Marc-Andre Bergeron is day-to-day with an upper body injury.

Forward Vincent Lecavalier is out indefinitely with a broken hand.

Defenseman Victor Hedman is day-to-day with an upper body injury, possibly a concussion.

Bolt Notes

Despite being depleted by injuries and trades, the Bolts have gone 11-5-2 in their last 18 games. In the past two weeks, Tampa Bay has traded three regular skaters for draft picks and prospects and lost forward Vincent Lecavalier and defenseman Victor Hedman to serious injuries.  Martin St. Louis has scored 20 or more goals in nine straight seasons. Teddy Purcell has points in six straight games and Steven Stamkos remains hot. The Bolts have scored five power play goals in the last four games.

GM Steve Yzerman’s to do list must start with getting a number one goalie. With Ottawa acquiring minor league backstop Ben Bishop from the Blues, the list of potentials grew shorter. Bishop was traded to the Senators for a 2013 second-round pick, a price the Lightning weren’t willing to pay according to Yzerman.  The Bolts GM said he spoke to the Blues about Bishop but was not willing to give up a second-round draft pick for him.

It is thought that Tampa Bay is interested in the Kings Jonathan Bernier and the Canucks Cory Schneider. A deal for these highly rated netminders won’t happen until the summer.

Yzerman said there has been some interest in potential unrestricted free agents, including defensemen Bruno Gervais, Brett Clark and Matt Gilroy, goaltender Dwayne Roloson, and forwards Adam Hall and Ryan Shannon. There has been no mention of Ryan Malone being dangled. Yzerman finds him an attractive keeper as his salary drops from $5.5 million to $3 million next season.

What to do with rookie forward Brett Connolly? The Lightning has until the end of Monday to send Connolly to Tri-City of the junior Western League making him eligible for their playoffs. ”There’s an argument for both sides,” Yzerman stated. “He plays the final games and gets a lot of ice time, obviously, the NHL is a better league than junior hockey. The tempo is higher, the players are stronger. He’s going to benefit on that if he plays.” The Bolts GM added, ”I don’t know that he really struggled. He hasn’t played a whole lot. The coaches were going with veteran guys, trying to win. It’s hard to have an impact when you play five minutes.”

The Bolts are on the lookout for a top four defenseman also. Preferably a right handed puck mover…the Holy Grail of NHL GM’s everywhere.

Steve Yzerman said yesterday, ”We’ve made our major moves here and we’ll see what is up over the next 27 hours or so. We’ll obviously work the phone and see what’s out there. As far as acquiring players, real impact players, that’s more likely to be done at the draft.”

Sports Club Stats has the Lightning’s playoffs chances at 5.4%.

The Week Ahead

Tampa Bay hosts Montreal on Tuesday and the New York Rangers on Friday.They travel to Carolina on Saturday.

*Teddy Purcell photograph courtesy of Linda Hamilton.

The Quarterdeck Log – Norfolk Admirals Week In Review

By Ken Peacock

About The Author

A man with an identity crisis. A full time fan of all things hockey and supporter of the AHL’s Norfolk Admirals, the Tampa Bay Lightning and the Washington Capitals. A fan of two NHL teams in the same division? Really? Yes, it can be done. It’s tough, but it can be done. I am also a full time husband, IT Professional, and a Norfolk Admirals Hockey Blogger at Vultures Row.

Weekly Log

The Admirals week started this past Friday for the first of three games in three nights on the road. Binghamton provided the opposition for game one. The Admirals were riding a six game winning streak and looking to add another win. The Senators struck at 1:34 of the first period and again five minutes later with a goal from former Admiral, Rob Klinkhammer. The potent Norfolk offense was absent for the first period. Brandon Segal who was recently acquired from the Rockford Ice Hogs opened the scoring for Norfolk, fifteen seconds into the second period. Both teams then shut each other down and the Senators went into the locker room holding a 2-1 lead. Evan Oberg would score on the power play to even the score at two apiece at the 6:27 mark of the third. With both teams going back and forth it looked like this game would go to overtime. Tyler Johnson took the puck into the offensive zone with less than a minute remaining. Johnson fired a shot in on Senators goalie Mike McKenna. McKenna knocked the puck aside, but Pierre-Cedric Labrie picked up the rebound and knocked it in for the Admirals third goal and sealed Norfolk’s seventh win in a row.

Saturday night the Admirals found themselves in the hometown of Hershey Chocolate and the Bears. Hershey is currently in third place behind the Admirals and was looking to pick up a key two points in the division race. All-Star defenseman Mark Barberio, got the ball rolling just two minutes and twenty-one seconds into the game. Barberio skated in on Braden Holtby and let a wrist shot go that trickled past two Bears and over the glove of Holtby for an Admiral goal. Michel Ouellet added another goal at 15:58. Hershey answered back a minute later to end the period at 2-1. Hershey evened the score sixteen seconds into the second period. Chris Bourque fired a shot thru the screen and beat Admirals net minder, Jaroslav Janus. Brandon Segal scored just over a minute later to put the Admirals ahead. Kyle Greentree of the Bears scored on the power play at 13:19 to even the score once more. Brandon Segal would get his second of the night in the final five minutes of the second period. The Admirals skated into the offensive zone on their third power play of the night; Segal deflected a shot by Barberio, through the legs of Holtby and into the net to give Norfolk the 4-3 lead at 16:35 of the second period. Neither team was able to score in the third.Norfolk got on the bus with their eighth win in a row.

Sunday the Admirals were in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton for their third game in as many nights against their division rival Penguins. Ben Street opened the scoring midway through the second period, but Mark Barberio evened things up at the 17:02 mark of the second. Former Penguin J.P. Cote would put the Admirals ahead at 4:44 of the third. Alex Picard of the Penguins scored at 9:50, but it was Carter Ashton who put the Admirals ahead for good at 17:56. Ashton’s goal sealed the 3-2 victory and the Admirals record setting ninth win in a row.

Cory Conacher (29G 34A 63Pts +7), and Mark Barberio (9G 36A 48Pts +20) find themselves at the top of the Ad’s scoring list. Tyler Johnson (18G 21A 39Pts -2) has moved ahead of Carter Ashton (19G 16A 35Pts +8). Dustin Tokarski (25-11-0 2.39GAA) went 2-0 this week. Jaroslav Janus (11-8-2 2.98GAA) went 1-0.

For the Season the Admirals are 36-18-1-2 with 75 points. They are currently holding the top position in the East Division, and the Eastern Conference. The Admirals are also tied in points with the Oklahoma City Barons for the top position in the AHL. Norfolk is currently on a 9-0-0-0 streak and is 9-1-0-0 in their last ten games.

Three Stars of the Week

Brandon Segal – Three goals and an assist.

Mark Barberio – Two goals and an assist.

Alexandre Picard –Three assists.

Transactions

Brandon Segal – Assigned by the Tampa Bay Lightning (NHL).

Matt Fornataro – Traded to the Rockford Ice Hogs (AHL).

Mike Angelidis – Recalled by the Tampa Bay Lightning (NHL).

Evan Oberg – Recalled by the Tampa BayLightning (NHL).

Trevor Smith – Recalled by the Tampa Bay Lightning (NHL).

Injuries

Richard Petiot – Undisclosed – Day-to-day

An Observation from the Stands

With the trade deadline looming I was a bit worried that the Admirals might lose key players. The first trade that occurred was Matt Fornataro being traded to the Rockford Ice Hogs in exchange for Rockford’s captain, Brandon Segal. Segal is not an unfamiliar face to Norfolk. He was an Admiral from 2007 to 2009. I believe Norfolk got the better part of the deal as Segal has scored three goals in his first two games back with Norfolk. The Admirals look to be in playoff form and they keep moving forward. The last few weeks are going to be very important. Every point is important and the conference title is not out of the question. Hold on folks, we are in for a great ride.

The Week Ahead

The Hershey Bears return to Norfolk this Wednesday for their final appearance of the regular season.  The Springfield Falcons will be the opposition for Norfolk at Scope on Friday and Saturday.

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Wallace, a 6’1”, 207 lbs. right wing, played in 31 games with the New York Islanders this season, accumulating one assist and six penalty minutes. He also played in 24 games with the Bridgeport Sound Tigers of the American Hockey League, scoring nine goals and 20 points.

He has played in 55 career NHL games with the Pittsburgh Penguins and Islanders over four seasons and recorded his only assist this season against the Lightning on December 6.

The 27 year-old,Anchorage, Alaska native has played 328 career AHL games with the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins and Sound Tigers, posting 84 goals and 157 points. He’s appeared in 55 career Calder Cup playoff games, scoring four goals and dishing out 13 assists.

This is probably a depth move by the Bolts because of a thin roster due to Vincent Lecavalier’s injury. It is pure speculation on my part, but it is also possible that this move could coincide with sending rookie Brett Connolly back to his junior team or the trade of another forward.

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Steve Downie traded to Colorado

The Tampa Bay Lightning have traded forward and fan favorite Steve Downie. GM Steve Yzerman continues to stockpile draft picks and prepare for the future.

Here is the press release from the Lightning:

The Tampa Bay Lightning have acquired a first-round pick in the 2012 NHL Entry Draft as well as defenseman Sebastien Piche in a three-team trade today, Vice President and General Manager Steve Yzerman announced. The Lightning traded forward Steve Downie to the Colorado Avalanche in exchange for defenseman Kyle Quincey. Tampa Bay then sent Quincey to the Detroit Red Wings in exchange for their first-round pick and Piche.

The Lightning now have two first-round picks in 2012 along with a maximum of four and a minimum of three selections in the second round. 

Piche, 6-foot, 202 pounds, has played in 42 career AHL games with the Grand Rapids Griffins, recording five points (0-5-5). This season he has played in 22 games, notching three assists. Piche signed with the Red Wings as a free agent on April 12, 2009. 

Piche has been assigned to the Florida Everblades of the ECHL.

Although Downie was a fan favorite and found his game here in Tampa, it was a stroke of genius by Yzerman to get a first round pick and a puck moving defensman prospect for him.

Tampa Bay also traded AHL forward Matt Fornataro to the Chicago Blackhawks for former Bolt Brandon Segal. Segal, a 6-foot-2, 209 pound forward, played in 53 games with the Rockford IceHogs of the American Hockey League this season, scoring 13 goals and 25 points, to go along with 63 penalty minutes. Segal ranks fourth on the IceHogs in goals and is seventh in points.

*Steve Downie photograph courtesy of Susan Ferlita.

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The Bolts are in fourth place in the Southeast Division and trail the division leading Florida Panthers by seven points. Tampa Bay is in 11th place in the 15 team Eastern Conference, six points out of a playoff spot.

After 58 games, forward Steven Stamkos leads the team and the NHL in goals with 40. He leads the Bolts and is third in the NHL in points with 67. Martin St. Louis is tops in assists with 34. Forward Teddy Purcell leads the team in rating with a +8.

Defenseman Brett Clark is last in rating with a -20. Steve Downie has accumulated 121 penalty minutes (5th in the NHL). Goalie Mathieu Garon has 18 wins, a 2.84 goals against average and a .903 save percentage.

Defenseman Eric Brewer leads Tampa Bay in ice time, averaging 23:19 per game. Steven Stamkos leads in shots on goal with 205.

The Lightning have scored 161 goals (10th in the NHL) and allowed 192 goals (30th (last) in the 30 team NHL). The Bolts special teams remain bad. The power play success rate is 13.4% (29th in the 30 team NHL) and the penalty kill is at 80.3% (25th in the NHL). The league average power play percentage is 17.36% and the average NHL team kills off 82.04% of their penalties successfully.

Tampa Bay is 23rd in the league in faceoff percentage, winning just 49.2% of their draws.

Box Scores

Game 56 – Tampa Bay Lightning 0 – Ottawa Senators 4

Game 57 – Tampa Bay Lightning 6 – San Jose Sharks 5 OT

Game 58 – Tampa Bay Lightning 2 – Washington Capitals 1

Three Stars of the Week

Steven Stamkos - Three goals and two assists.

Teddy Purcell – One goal and two assists.

Victor Hedman - Three assists.

Transactions

The Lightning traded center Dominic Moore and a seventh round pick in 2012 to the San Jose Sharks in exchange for a second round pick in 2012 (acquired by the Sharks from the Minnesota Wild).

The Lightning traded defenseman Pavel Kubina to the Philadelphia Flyers in exchange for a second round pick in 2012 or 2013 (The Panthers hold the option on whether the second round pick can be used this year or in 2013), a fourth round pick in 2012 and minor league winger Jon Kalinski.

Injuries

Defenseman Mattias Ohlund remains on IR and will have major knee surgery on Thursday. The complicated surgery is a last gasp effort to save Ohlund’s career.

Forward Dana Tyrell is out for the year after having successful knee surgery.

Defenseman Marc-Andre Bergeron is day-to-day with an upper body injury.

Bolt Notes

Stamkos on fire!

Steven Stamkos is on a tear. Over the last 29 games, he has 24 goals, 13 assists, 37 points and seven game winning goals. The 22-year old center became the first Tampa Bay player to have three consecutive seasons of at least 40 goals. Stamkos had a career-high 51 goals in the 2009-10 season and scored 45 times last season. He has three goals and two assists in his last two games.

The Lightning are looking to their future by selling off Dominic Moore and Pavel Kubina for draft picks. According to ESPN.com’s Pierre Lebrun, “Moore’s agent, Larry Kelly, did have some talks about an extension with Yzerman over the past few weeks, but they never were able to bridge the gap. So Moore was dealt yet again — joining his ninth team since the lockout.”

A quick note on the Kubina trade:  The Bolts had asked the veteran defenseman to submit a list of teams that he would agree to be traded to. That list was never submitted as Yzerman approached Kubina about the Philadelphia offer and he accepted it.

GM Steve Yzerman and the Lightning may not be a seller yet. The Bolts next few games will determine that. Moore and Kubina were players that the Lightning were not going to sign for next year and were attractive to other teams. Trading them away in exchange for draft picks and potential assets was an intelligent move. The Bolts now have seven, first and second round draft picks over the next two years.

There are 24 games remaining to be played and the Bolts are six points out of the playoffs with three teams to jump over (Jets, Capitals and Maple Leafs). Two other teams (Islanders and Canadiens) are tied with them. Thirteen of those games are at home and ten are against teams the Bolts are tied with or need to jump in the standings, including the final five games.

According to Sports Club Stats, Tampa Bay has a 5.2% chance of making the playoffs.

The Week Ahead

Tampa Bay hosts Anaheim on Tuesday. travels to Winnipeg on Thursday, Pittsburgh on Saturday and New Jersey on Sunday.

The Quarterdeck Log – Norfolk Admirals Week In Review

By Ken Peacock

About The Author

A man with an identity crisis. A full time fan of all things hockey and supporter of the AHL’s Norfolk Admirals, the Tampa Bay Lightning and the Washington Capitals. A fan of two NHL teams in the same division? Really? Yes, it can be done. It’s tough, but it can be done. I am also a full time husband, IT Professional, and a Norfolk Admirals Hockey Blogger at Vultures Row.

Weekly Log

The Admirals faced the division leading Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins in their barn this past Wednesday night. The Penguins have always been a tough foe for the Admirals. Fortunately, this season the Admirals have won every road games versus the Penguins. The game went scoreless for the first period, but a couple of early fights set the tone for the rest of the game. Radko Gudas got the ball rolling, scoring shorthanded just 59 seconds into the second period. Ondrej Palat added another goal at 17:51. Both teams fought a back and forth battle in the third period, but Pierre-Cedric Labrie scored at the thirteen minute mark to put the Admirals up 3-0. Tyler Johnson hammered the nail in the coffin a minute and a half later to seal the 4-0 win. Dustin Tokarski went home with another shutout.

The Admirals were at home on Friday and Saturday night, facing former head coach Trent Yawney and the Syracuse Crunch. It was a special night for Admiral’s fans as Stanley Cup winner Aaron Downey (Detroit Red Wings) and Chris Phelps were inducted into the Admirals Hall of Fame. The game was a memorable team effort. Mike Kostka scored shorthanded at 2:43 of the first period. Syracuse would even things up at 5:07 of the second. The Crunch moved ahead at the 9:37 mark. Trevor Smith and Alex Picard each netted  power play goals to give the Admirals a 3-2 lead. Cory Conacher scored early in the third period, but the two goal buffer was erased on a Crunch goal just thirteen seconds later. Trevor Smith scored another Admiral power play goal at the twelve minute mark. Pierre-Cedric Labrie added the seventh and final Admiral goal a minute later. Syracuse managed to score one more goal on Tokarski, but Norfolk took the first game of the series, 7-4 over the Crunch.

Both teams were back in action Saturday Night. The Admiral Fans packed the house for Norfolk’s second sellout of the season. Syracuse provided the only scoring for the first two periods. This was definitely not the high scoring match that was expected. Syracuse added another goal halfway through the third. Mark Barberio scored a goal at 7:16 to cut the Admiral’s deficit to one. Ondrej Palat knocked in a power play goal to even things up at two each at 9:02. Both teams could not find the back of the net for the remainder of the period and the game went to overtime. After five minutes of scoreless overtime hockey, the game went to a shootout. After eight rounds of the shootout Jaroslav Janus made the save on Syracuse’s ninth round shooter. Michel Ouelette, who was recovering from an injury, put the puck into the back of the Syracuse net giving the Admirals a 3-2 win and sole possession of first place in the East Division.

Cory Conacher (29G 31A 60Pts +5), Trevor Smith (21G 36A 57Pts +26), and Mark Barberio (7G 38A 45Pts +19) find themselves at the top in scoring. Conacher now leads the AHL with 29 goals. Dustin Tokarski (23-11-0 2.41 GAA) went 2-0 this week. Jaroslav Janus (10-8-2 2.98 GAA) went 1-1.

For the season the Admirals are 33-18-1-2 with 69 points. They are currently holding the top position in the East Division. Norfolk is on a 6-0-0-0 streak and are 7-3-0-0 in their last ten games.

Three Stars of the Week

Kostka is the Ad's first star of the week

Mike Kostka – One goal and three assists.

Tyler Johnson – Two goals and three assists.

Mark Barberio – One goal and three assists.

Transactions

Jon Kalinski – Assigned byTampaBayLightning (NHL).

Injuries

Richard Petiot – Undisclosed – Day-to-day

An Observation from the Stands

The Admirals had another great week that resulted in them claiming sole possession of first place in the division. Wednesday saw a match up of Norfolk’s Alex Picard versus the Penguins’ Alex Picard and a shutout victory for goalie Dustin Tokarski. Friday night’s matchup saw the special teams clicking and a great offensive performance. Saturday night Norfolk had the house rocking. Syracuse wanted payback for the beating they took the night before, but the Admirals were not going to give them that satisfaction. Dustin Tokarski is on a roll and looking better every day. Janus stood tall and took home the victory in the shootout. Mike Kostka had his best performance since arriving from San Antonio. Kostka definitely deserves this week’s number one star. The Admirals are looking better every day.

The Week Ahead

The Admirals find themselves on the road with three games in three nights this week. They will be in Binghamton on Friday night, followed by Hershey and Wilkes-Barre/Scranton on Saturday and Sunday.

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Kubina moves on

The Tampa Bay Lightning have traded veteran defenseman Pavel Kubina to the Philadelphia Flyers for a second round pick in 2012 0r 2013, a fourth round pick in 2013 and minor league winger Jon Kalinski. The Lightning now has four second round picks in next years draft.

The Czech defenseman scored seven goals and had 34 points in his second tour of duty with the Lightning covering the past two seasons. He somehow managed to have a rating of +3 in that time, despite Tampa Bay’s cellar dwelling defense.

On Thursday, prior to the morning skate, Kubina was held off the ice and was asked for a list of teams he would be willing to be traded to, all but assuring that he had played his last game as a Bolt.

He was part of the Bolts 2004 Stanley Cup winning team and returned as a free agent in 2010-11. He will be an unrestricted free agent and carries a cap hit of $3.85 million.

*Pavel Kubina photograph courtesy of Susan Ferlita.

Down two of their top-six forwards for what looks like an extended period of time, the Boston Bruins have found themselves in an interesting situation as the February 27 trade deadline approaches. As this year’s trading deadline drew closer, hockey pundits in the Hub rightfully suggested that the Bruins simply needed to add a couple of depth pieces to their Stanley Cup champion core. However, without Horton and Peverley, the B’s lineup looks like an absolute mess. Check for yourself this evening when the team takes on the Jets from Winnipeg at 8 PM.

Under these new found circumstances, I’ve thrown together a few trade ideas that one could assume Chiarelli has at least thought about since hearing of the severity of the knee injury to his prized acquisition from one year ago. Keep in mind that these are IDEAS, and if the Boston lineup was at full strength, none of these would even become a consideration.

1.) —–> To Boston: Rick Nash, Curtis Sanford

—–> To Columbus: Tuukka Rask, Dougie Hamilton, Jordan Caron, 1st Round Pick, 3rd Round Pick

– Let’s start with the obvious elephant in the room. Columbus captain Rick Nash is available to be had for the first time in his nine-year NHL career. The list of team’s who’d like to have big no. 61 in one of their sweaters? It’s 30-teams long. However, the list of team’s he’d accept a deal to? Reportedly only 5-teams long. Luckily for Boston, rumors have it that the Hub of Hockey is indeed on Nash’s brief list of acceptable locations. The 6’4″ Brampton, Ontario native is a prototypical power-forward with 40-50 goal potential, IF put in the right situation. The 27-year-old Nash would instantly become the premier forward in the Boston arsenal, and could be paired with budding star Tyler Seguin for this, and many years to come.

2.) —–> To Boston: Patrick Kane

—–> To Chicago: Tim Thomas

  — There is no questioning the on-ice talents of Patrick Kane. Despite all the questions of character and judgements of what he does when he is away from the rink, Patrick Kane remains one of the most skilled forwards in the entire National Hockey League. He is a United States Olympian. He scored the game winner in a clinching game 6 of the 2010 Stanley Cup Final. He’s scored at least 20 goals in each of his four full seasons with Chicago. Kane would provide an instant lift to a struggling Boston offense and would, like Nash, instantly become the most powerful offensive force in the B’s lineup. While it would be excruciatingly difficult to give up the defending Vezina trophy winner, a 23-year old proven all-star with a reasonable cap hit would be one heck of a return for an aging netminder. The reason this makes sense for the ‘Hawks is not only the fact that they have enough depth at forward to survive without Kane, but that their goaltending, as currently constituted is far from strong enough to take them deep into the playoffs.

3.) —–> To Boston: Martin St. Louis, Pavel Kubina, Ryan Shannon, Mathieu Garon, 2nd Round Pick

—–> To Tampa Bay: Tuukka Rask, Joe Corvo, Jordan Caron, Jared Knight

  — Now, this deal is perhaps the most far-fetched of the three, based purely on the number of moving parts involved. However, a deal like this could make a lot of sense for both squads. In St. Louis, the B’s will fill the vacancy left by Nathan Horton up on the top-line with a proven NHL playmaker, not to mention the chemistry that could be sparked with former Vermont University teammate Tim Thomas. In Kubina and Shannon, Boston would get two valuable depth players who both will become unrestricted free agents on July 1. Garon, Tampa’s current back-up goalie would come to Boston merely as throw in, being that the Bolts would likely not want to carry three ‘tenders with the addition of Rask. The young Finnish backstop would provide the Lightning with something they’ve been missing for quite a while: a young, dependable goaltender of the future. Corvo, whose two million dollar cap-hit will come of the books on July 1, was put in the deal to free up space for the incoming additions. In Caron, Tampa would get another young, gritty player who is extremely versatile with the ability to play in all three zones of the ice, as well as kill penalties. Jared Knight, a former second round selection by the B’s could immediately step in next season for the Bolts, alongside London Knights teammate Vladimir Namestnikov, Tampa’s prized prospect who was taken in the first round of last year’s Entry Draft.

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Moore traded to Sharks

The Tampa Bay Lightning are sellers now and have traded center Dominic Moore and a seventh round pick in 2012 to the San Jose Sharks in exchange for a second round pick in 2012 (acquired by the Sharks from the Minnesota Wild). The Bolts now have three draft picks in the second round of this years draft.

Kevin Allen of USA Today says, “Center Dominic Moore is the style of player every team is looking for heading into the postseason. He’s a gritty grinder who can forecheck aggressively, be a stingy defensive presence and chip in important goals. The Sharks are hoping that Moore will be a piece that moves them closer to getting the job done in the playoffs. He was an integral part of Tampa Bay‘s playoff success last season. The Lightning are trading him only because they weren’t able to re-sign him. He will be an unrestricted free agent this summer.”

General Manager Steve Yzerman said, “”He’s been a great player for us, a great citizen, a leader. But we felt like a second round pick was very valuable to us.”

Moore, 31, had four goals, 15 assists and 48 penalty minutes in 56 games this season after scoring a career-high 18 goals last year. The Sharks will be his ninth NHL team; he has 67 goals, 112 assists and 179 points in 507 NHL games.

Moore also had three goals and 11 points in 18 playoff games last season.

The Bolts also held defenseman Pavel Kubina out of tonight’s game and have asked him to provide a list of teams he would agree to be traded to.

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The Bolts are in fourth place in the Southeast Division and trail the division leading Florida Panthers by eleven points. Tampa Bay is in 12th place in the 15 team Eastern Conference, eight points out of a playoff spot.

After 55 games, forward Steven Stamkos leads the team and the NHL in goals with 37. He leads the Bolts and is second in the NHL in points with 62. Martin St. Louis is tops in assists with 34. Marc-Andre Bergeron leads the team in rating with a +8.

Defenseman Brett Clark is last in rating with a -18. Steve Downie has accumulated 121 penalty minutes. Goalie Mathieu Garon has 17 wins, a 2.85 goals against average and a .902 save percentage.

Defenseman Eric Brewer leads Tampa Bay in ice time, averaging 23:13 per game. Steven Stamkos leads in shots on goal with 194.

The Lightning have scored 153 goals (9th in the NHL) and allowed 182 goals (30th (last) in the 30 team NHL). The Bolts special teams are far from average. The power play success rate is 13.5% (28th in the NHL) and the penalty kill is at 80.6% (25th in the NHL). The league average power play percentage is 17.37% and the average NHL team kills off 82.63% of their penalties successfully.

Tampa Bay is 20th in the league in faceoff percentage, winning just 49.2% of their draws.

Box Scores

Game 52 – Tampa Bay Lightning 1 – Los Angeles Kings 3

Game 53 – Tampa Bay Lightning 3 – New York Rangers 4 OT

Game 54 – Tampa Bay Lightning 2 – Buffalo Sabres 1

Game 55 – Tampa Bay Lightning 2 – Pittsburgh Penguins 4

Three Stars of the Week

Steven Stamkos - Two goals and two assists.

Teddy Purcell – Five assists.

Steve Downie – Three goals.

Transactions

The Lightning recalled and reassigned defenseman Evan Oberg to Norfolk (AHL).

Injuries

Defenseman Mattias Ohlund remains on IR after undergoing surgery on both knees. Ohlund is most likely out for the year.

Forward Dana Tyrell is out for the year after having successful knee surgery.

Defenseman Marc-Andre Bergeron is day-to-day with an upper body injury.

Forward Ryan Malone is day-to-day with an upper body injury.

Defenseman Matt Gilroy is day-to-day with an upper body injury.

Bolt Notes

The Bolts have been playing well, losing just two of their last 11 games, but they were thoroughly embarrassed by the Penguins on Sunday. The 7-2-2 run is simply too little – too late for the Lightning. Tampa Bay is eight points out of a playoff spot and eleven points away from a division championship. 54 points are still out there to be won with 27 games left. The Bolts are still closer to the Eastern Conference cellar than they are to a playoff spot. It looks like the Lightning are sellers and not buyers.

The Week Ahead

Tampa Bay hosts Ottawa on Tuesday. San Jose on Thursday and Washington on Saturday.

The Quarterdeck Log – Norfolk Admirals Week In Review

By Ken Peacock

About The Author

A man with an identity crisis. A full time fan of all things hockey and supporter of the AHL’s Norfolk Admirals, the Tampa Bay Lightning and the Washington Capitals. A fan of two NHL teams in the same division? Really? Yes, it can be done. It’s tough, but it can be done. I am also a full time husband, IT Professional, and a Norfolk Admirals Hockey Blogger at Vultures Row.

Weekly Log

First up for the Admirals this week was a Friday and Saturday night series against former Admiral Michael Leighton and the Adirondack Phantoms. This was a low scoring affair with only two penalties being called. The Admirals put pressure on the Phantoms all night, but Leighton did not let anything past him. Philip-Michael Devos finally beat Leighton with a nice shot over the glove of Leighton at 3:35 of the second period. This was Devos’ fourth goal since joining the Admirals from the ECHL Florida Everblades. Cory Conacher had the assist.  Both goalies, Dustin Tokarski and Leighton were brick walls the entire game. In the closing minutes the Phantoms pulled Leighton in favor of the extra attacker. Pierre-Cedric Labrie added the insurance with an empty net goal to seal the Admirals 2-0 shutout.

The same two teams went at it on Saturday night, but it wasn’t the same type of game. Pierre-Cedric Labrie started the night with a fight that would set the tone for the rest of the game.  Richard Panik got the scoring rolling with a goal at 2:48 of the first period. Mike Kostka scored on the power play at 5:07 as Mark Barberio picked up his first assist of the night. The Phantoms were called for elbowing Cory Conacher, who immediately made them pay with a goal at 5:07. Barberio got the assist. Three minutes later, Conacher added another goal. He picked up a rebound and buried it past Leighton at 8:20 for his league leading 27^th goal of the season. The Phantoms got on the board at 4:23 of the second period. Mike Angelidis would then pick up his 11^th goal of the season at 3:31 of the third period. The Phantoms answered back 31 seconds later to cut the lead to 5-2. Trevor Smith would score with less than six minutes remaining, but the Phantoms struck once more. The Admirals and Dustin Tokarski shut the Phantoms offense down and Tyler Johnson added one more goal at 17:36 for good measure.Norfolk won 7-3 and swept the 2 game series.

Sunday marked the Admirals third game in as many nights. This time the opponent was the Charlotte Checkers.  Jaroslav Janus would shine in this road tilt. Evan Oberg opened up the scoring in the final minute of the first period. There was a scramble in front of the net, the puck bounced out and Oberg skated in and shot it in the net. Less than two minutes later Cory Conacher made it 2-0 Admirals.Norfolk andCharlotte would remain scoreless for the second and most of the third period.Charlotte ruined Janus’ shutout bid in the final minute.Charlotte pulled their goalie looking for the chance to even things up, but Pierre-Cedric Labrie shot the puck from center ice to the net to seal a 3-1Norfolk win.

Cory Conacher (28G 29A 57Pts +6), Trevor Smith (19G 34A 53Pts +23), and Mark Barberio (6G 35A 41Pts +19) find themselves at op the Admirals scoring list. Conacher now leads the AHL with 28 goals. Dustin Tokarski (21-11-0 2.43GAA) went 2-0 this week. Jaroslav Janus (9-8-2 3.05GAA) went 1-1.

For the Season the Admirals are 30-18-1-2 with 63 points. They are currently 2 points behind the East Division leading Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins.Norfolkis currently on a 3-0-0-0 streak and is 6-4-0-0 in their last ten games.

Three Stars of the Week

Cory Conacher – Three goals and two assists.

Dustin Tokarski – A shutout, two wins and 39 saves on 42 shots.

Pierre-Cedric Labrie – Two goals and an assist.

Transactions

Evan Oberg – Recalled from and returned to the Norfolk Admirals (AHL).

Injuries

Richard Petiot – Undisclosed – Day-to-day

Michel Ouellet – Undisclosed – Day-to-day

An Observation from the Stands

It was a great weekend for the Admirals. They picked up all six points and are closing in on the Penguins for the division lead. Goalie Dustin Tokarski played great in both of his games and his partner Jaroslav Janus did well down inCharlotte. Cory Conacher’s play was the highlight of the weekend. He just does not quit. The Phantoms were going after him physically, but he would not back down. After receiving a nasty elbow, which resulted in the offending Phantom being ejected, he came back and scored two in a row. The past two week we have seen some great performances from the team. If this is what the playoffs are going to look like the April playoffs should be interesting.

The Week Ahead

The Admirals open up the week Wednesday night in W-B/Scranton against the Penguins. They will then return to Scope for two games against the Syracuse Crunch.

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The Bolts are in fourth place in the Southeast Division and trail the division leading Florida Panthers by eight points. Tampa Bay is in 11th place in the 15 team Eastern Conference, eight points out of a playoff spot.

After 51 games, forward Steven Stamkos leads the team and the NHL in goals with 34. He leads the Bolts in and is third in the NHL in points with 57. Martin St. Louis is tops in assists with 33. Marc-Andre Bergeron leads the team in rating with a +8.

Forward Steve Downie is last in rating with a -16 and has accumulated 119 penalty minutes. Goalie Mathieu Garon has 16 wins, a 2.88 goals against average and a .901 save percentage.

Defenseman Eric Brewer leads Tampa Bay in ice time, averaging 23:19 per game. Steven Stamkos leads in shots on goal with 181.

The Lightning have scored 145 goals (10th in the NHL) and allowed 170 goals (30th (last) in the 30 team NHL). The Bolts special teams are far from average. The power play success rate is 13.7% (26th in the NHL) and the penalty kill is at 80.6% (24th in the NHL). The league average power play percentage is 17.3% and the average NHL team kills off 82.7% of their penalties successfully.

Tampa Bay is 21st in the league in faceoff percentage, winning just 49.3% of their draws.

Box Scores

Game 49 – Tampa Bay Lightning 4 – Washington Capitals 3 OT

Game 50 – Tampa Bay Lightning 1 – Winnipeg Jets 2 OT

Game 51 – Tampa Bay Lightning 6 – Florida Panthers 3

Three Stars of the Week

Martin St. Louis – Four goals and two assists.

Steven Stamkos – Two goals and three assists.

Vincent Lecavalier – One goal and three assists.

Transactions

The Lightning recalled and then reassigned Pierre-Cedric Labrie to Norfolk (AHL).

Injuries

Defenseman Mattias Ohlund remains on IR after undergoing surgery on both knees. Ohlund has had a major setback and his return this year is questionable.

Forward Adam Hall is out with an upper body injury and may return next week.

Forward Dana Tyrell is out for the year after having successful knee surgery.

Defenseman Marc-Andre Bergeron is day-to-day with an upper body injury.

Forward Ryan Malone is day-to-day with an upper body injury.

Bolt Notes

The Bolts are eight points out of a playoff spot and eight points away from a division championship. 62 points are still out there to be won with 31 games left. For the Lightning to get into the postseason tournament, they will probably need to get 44 of those remaining 62 possible points. There are eight more games against divisional foes and the Bolts need to win all of those to have a chance. Realistically, Tampa Bay needs to win the division to make the playoffs. Possible? Yes. Probable? No.

The next handful of games will tell GM Steve Yzerman whether or not he  is a buyer or seller. If he is a seller, look for impending unrestricted free agents Dominic Moore, Ryan Shannon, Adam Hall, Pavel Kubina, Brett Clark, Matt Gilroy, Dwayne Roloson and Bruno Gervais to be offered up to the rest of the NHL.

The Week Ahead

Tampa Bay hosts Los Angeles on Tuesday. They travel to the New York Rangers on Thursday, Buffalo on Saturday and Pittsburgh on Sunday.

The Quarterdeck Log – Norfolk Admirals Week In Review

By Ken Peacock

About The Author

A man with an identity crisis. A full time fan of all things hockey and supporter of the AHL’s Norfolk Admirals, the Tampa Bay Lightning and the Washington Capitals. A fan of two NHL teams in the same division? Really? Yes, it can be done. It’s tough, but it can be done. I am also a full time husband, IT Professional, and a Norfolk Admirals Hockey Blogger at Vultures Row.

Weekly Log

After the All-Star break, Norfolk found itself in Adirondack for a Friday night game against former Admiral Michael Leighton and the Phantoms. The Phantoms claimed an early one goal lead as Leighton baffled the Admirals offense. Adirondack would score once more in the second. Norfolk’s Carter Ashton finally put the Admirals on the board midway through the second period. Unfortunately, Leighton and the Phantoms would shut down the Admirals offense for the rest of the night. The Phantoms would add another goal for insurance and send Norfolk on to Springfield with a 3-1 loss.

Saturday, Springfield goalie Manny Legace was hoping to celebrate his 40^th birthday with a win. Norfolk jumped out to a two goal lead with goals from Evan Oberg and Richard Panik. Springfield struck back with a goal five minutes into the second period. The Admirals Trevor Smith scored twice to make it 4-1. Manny Legace was pulled in favor of backup goalie, Paul Dainton. Dainton was put to the test and surrendered goals to Mark Barberio and Jeff DImmen. Norfolk and Springfield both went scoreless in the third and the Admirals retired for the night with the 6-1 win.

Super Bowl Sunday was not so super for the Admirals. After a goal filled game the previous night, the Admiral fans were hoping to see more of the same offensive power on Sunday afternoon. Unfortunately they would be disappointed. Springfield grabbed the early lead, 1-0 after the first period. The Admirals owned the second period as Pierre-Cedric Labrie and Michel Ouelett each scored. Disaster struck in the third as the offense was shut down and the defense mailed the remainder of the game in.Springfield struck three times and took home a 4-2 win.

Cory Conacher (25G 26A 51Pts +4), Trevor Smith (18G 32A 50Pts +21) and Mark Barberio (6G 33A 39Pts +16) find themselves at the top of the Ad’s scoring list. Conacher was unusually quiet this weekend with just two assists. Goaltender Dustin Tokarski (19-11-0 2.50GAA) went 1-1 this week while Jaroslav Janus (8-8-2 3.16GAA) went 0-1.

For the Season the Admirals are 27-18-1-2 with 57 points. They are currently six points behind the East Division leading Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins. Norfolk is currently on a 0-1-0-0 streak and is 5-5-0-0 in their last ten games.

Three Stars of the Week

Trevor Smith – Two goals and three assists.

Evan Oberg – One goal and three assists.

Pierre-Cedric Labrie – One goal and two assists.

Transactions

Pierre-Cedric Labrie – Returned to the Norfolk Admirals (AHL).

Injuries

Richard Petiot – Undisclosed – Day-to-day

Alexandre Picard – Undisclosed – Day-to-day

An Observation from the Stands

The second half of the season is in full swing. Norfolk finds itself in fifth place in the division. The Admirals need every point that they can get. This road swing was brutal as they gave up four out of a possible six points and fell three more points behind the Penguins. It does not look like the Penguins or the Hershey Bears are going to make this any easier for Norfolk. Adirondack will be in town this weekend and the Admirals need to play every game like it’s a playoff game. They played like that at home against the Bears, but it seems that they play down to their competition. It is high time that the Admirals snap out of it and play each game like it is their last!

The Week Ahead

The Admirals play a weekend series at home against the Adirondack Phantoms this Friday and Saturday night.

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5.) Tommy Cross (D) #4 Boston College (Boston Bruins)

 – The captain of the Boston College Eagles, senior defenseman Tommy Cross will be playing in his final BeanPot tournament this month after spending four seasons under legendary coach Jerry York in Chestnut Hill. Taken in the second round of the 2007 Entry draft by the Boston Bruins, Cross is a card-carrying veteran of the B’s summer development camp. The 6’3″ blueliner is strong in his own end and often shows great puck-handling abilities. If he can avoid the injury bug, it wouldn’t be farfetched to suggest that Cross could project as a Dan Girardi-type player in the NHL.

4.) Alex Killorn (F) #19 Harvard (Tampa Bay Lightning)

– Also taken in the 2007 Entry Draft, Killorn was selected 77th overall (3rd Round) by the Tampa Bay Lightning. The 6’2″ senior has always been skilled with the puck and been able to put the puck in the net, but he biggest knock against the Montreal native has been his deficiencies in his own end of the ice. From all reports, Killorn has done nothing but impress during their annual summer development camps and is expected to compete for a roster spot with the big club next season.

3.) Kevin Hayes (C) #12 Boston College (Chicago Blackhawks)

 – Spending much of his freshman season on the shelf after suffering an early-season knee injury, Hayes has truly emerged as an offensive force this season, contributing 19 points (5G/14A) in 27 games played thus far. Hayes was taken in the first round of the 2010 draft because of his rare combination of size and speed. The Dorchester, MA native plays more of a finesse type game and his best asset is his uncanny awareness in the offensive zone.

2.) Adam Clendening (D) #5 Boston University (Chicago Blackhawks)

– The undersized, offensive defenseman from Niagara Falls, NY may be the most exciting player to watch in this entire tournament. Leading the charge on the Terrier blueline, Clendening has posted two goals and added twenty assists in only 23 games this season. Taken early in the second round of the 2011 Entry Draft, Clendening has proven that he has the talent to make a serious bid for a roster spot in Chicago sooner rather than later.

1.) Chris Kreider (F) #19 Boston College (New York Rangers)

– Taken with the 19th overall selection in the 2009 draft, the offensively gifted Kreider has done it all at Boston College and could be playing in his final BeanPot tournament this year. A prototypical power forward with speed, Kreider has reportedly contemplated forgoing his senior season for a chance to go pro with the Rangers next fall. The 6’3″ Boxford, MA native has scored 16 goals and added 14 assists in 27 games this year.

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