The First 15: Team Report

*Record: 6-4-5

*Position: 9^th in East; 1 point behind Boston (who have played 17 games already)

*Team Leaders:

Points (Tied): Steven Stamkos and Martin St. Louis (17 points in 15 games)

Goals:  Steven Stamkos (12 goals in 15 games)

Assists:  Martin St. Louis (14 assists in 15 games)

+/-:  Matt Walker (+7 through 15 games)

PIM:  Zenon Konopka (54 minutes in 15 games)

TOI:  Mattias Ohlund (An average of 24:25 minutes per game through 15 games)

*Team Rundown:

The Forwards – Good News

-Sensational Stamkos! This is the Stamkos that everyone was looking for last year!  Steve is quickly showing the team and fans why he was selected 1^st overall last year and has been the team’s best forward so far.  Ranked third in the league with 12 goals scored and first in the league with 6 power-play goals so far, Stamkos is on pace to have a marvellous season.  Let’s hope he can keep it up!

-Game-Winning-Goal Malone: Ryan Malone is of to a great start and is starting to prove why the team signed him to a 7-year, $31.5 Million contract last year.  With 4 game winning goals out of the team’s 6 wins thus far, Malone’s ability to score big goals is proving very valuable for the Lightning.

-Tanguay’s Finally Going! Alex Tanguay had a really slow start to the season with the Lightning but has really started to pick up his game recently.  He’s had 2 goals and 5 points in his last 4 games.

-Faceoff King: Zenon Konopka has been incredible in the faceoff circle so far, winning 64.4% of his draws.

The Forwards – Bad News

-Big Guns Not Scoring: Vincent Lecavalier and Martin St. Louis had a combined 59 goals last year and this year have a combined 5 goals in 15 games.  Tampa’s ‘big guns’ are going to have to put the puck in the back of the net on a more consistent basis if the Lightning want to do really well this year.

-Who’s in the Top 6? Even 15 games into the season, the Lightning are still having a tough time coming up with a definitive top 6.  This is not always a bad problem, but it may account for Lecavalier and St. Louis’ low goal totals.

-More Offence Please! With the exceptions of Lightning forwards Stamkos, St. Louis, Lecavalier, Malone and Tanguay, all other Tampa forwards have just 4 points or less in the first 15 games.  If the team wants to be a playoff contender, the bottom-six forwards are going to have to chip in more.

The Defense – Good News

-More Experience: With offseason additions like Ohlund and Walker, the Bolts added a tonne of experience and more grit to the blue line.  Matt Walker has been especially good defensively, boasting a team-leading +7.

-He’s Only 18? Lightning 2^nd overall pick, Victor Hedman, has shown a great deal of poise and maturity so far.  Playing him around 24 minutes per game, Coach Tocchet says the young defenseman has earned every minute of his playing time.

The Defense – Bad News

-Injuries? Defenseman Paul Ranger has yet to return to the team after being given leave from the team for ‘personal reasons.’  No new news has been announced concerning the defender who has not played for the team since October 22^nd.  Also, after being hit by Ottawa’s Chris Neil, Victor Hedman experienced a mild concussion, but is likely to play this Thursday’s game against Minnesota.

-Consistency: Some nights the Lightning appear to have a really good shutdown group on defense.  Other nights have been total blowouts.  The defense needs to find a consistency to their game before this team will be a real contender.

The Goalies

-Mike Smith: This time I’m giving the bad news first.  Smith has been shaky at best so far and has just 2 wins in 8 starts.  He HAS been hung out to dry some nights but simply has not been able to string together the truly solid play the Lightning believed he is capable of.

-Antero Niittymaki: He has been the Lightning’s saving grace.  With a league best .940 save percentage and an impressive 1.95 GAA, Niittymaki has been making the big saves that a goaltender needs to make to allow their team to succeed.  He has temporarily stolen the #1 job from Smith and doesn’t appear to be slowing down.

*Special Teams Rundown:

Power Play: 17.6% (22^nd in the league)

Penalty Kill: 76.9% (25^th in the league)

-I think it goes without saying that the Lightning need to work more on their special teams.  For the team to make the playoffs and be successful in the playoffs, both the PP and PK need to be much, much better.

*Injury/Transaction Report:

Injuries

-Forward Steven Stamkos (Wrist) is probable for Thursday’s game against the Wild.

-Defenseman Victor Hedman (Concussion) is questionable for Thursday’s game against the Wild.

-Defenseman Paul Ranger (Personal) is out indefinitely.

Transactions

-Forward Ryan Craig was recalled from AHL Norfolk.  (Nov. 5)

-Forward Drew Miller was lost on waivers to the Detroit Red Wings.  (Nov. 11)

-Forward Paul Szczechura was recalled from AHL Norfolk.  (Nov. 11)

*Team Forecast – Next 15 Games:

My prediction is that the Lightning go 8-5-2 through their next 15 games.  With Niittymaki’s solid play and hoping that St. Louis and Lecavalier will break out of their scoring slumps, I feel the Lightning will be pretty solid down the stretch.

*End Notes:

Thanks for reading!  Feel free to leave any questions, comments, or concerns that you might have in the comment section!  Also, feel free to follow me on twitter here:  http://twitter.com/mpalaz26