All Entries Tagged With: "NHL 2009 Season"
Tick-Tocc…Is The Clock Running Out On The Bolts’ Coach?
Tampa Bay Lightning fans and bloggers alike are a fickle lot. After the circus antics of the new Hollywood cowboy ownership group and the Barry Melrose fiasco, many were screaming for “stability!” The Lightning decided to pass the coaching mantel to Rick Tocchet and they came out of the gate this season inspiring hope with [...]
Not quite the Night to Remember for Bruins
A visiting team entering an opponent’s house on a ceremonial night is in for an emotional contest. Last night, the Bruin’s encountered a century’s worth of fight in an energized Habs team and crowd. Distractions–and Edwardisms–were aplenty, as the Bruins had to wait just a little bit longer for the drop of the puck then [...]
Vinny Steals The Dough
Hey Lightning fans! Let’s play a rousing game of “Who am I?” I have scored just six goals in my last 34 games. I am on pace to score only 16 goals this season, despite leading my team in shots on goal. I have almost as many penalty minutes as points this season. I was [...]
NHL Quarter Season Hardware Distribution (Part 3)
I hope everyone enjoyed their Thanksgiving holiday or their regularly scheduled Thursday and Friday plus the weekend for the Canadian fans. Now it is time to finish what I started last week with Part 3 of the NHL Award ceremony, should the season suddenly end today(You can view those blogs her for PART ONE and [...]
NHL Quarter Season Hardware Distribution Part 2
On Monday I started to look at which players would win themselves some shiny new hardware for their trophy room if the season was ending today. Part one included a look at the Hart Memorial Trophy, which is awarded to the player adjudged most valuable to his team, and the Norris Trophy, given to the [...]
He’s Back…Vinny Leads The Way
Okay. I’m back and so are the amazing vanishing Lightning stars. Coach Rick Tocchet had to go all the way to the Arizona desert to find his three lost souls. Last night versus the Coyotes, captain Vincent Lecavalier escaped from the NHL witness protection program and scored twice and added an assist. Alex Tanguay netted [...]
When there’s a light (what light)
First signs of life against Buffalo, and now news that Krejci is close to returning. Add a double dose of Thornton fisticuffs, and the 4-2 complete win game against the Sabres may have been more than just a win (finally), but a return to some good ole Hub Hockey. If ever the spoked-B looks flat, [...]
Despite National Perception, Tocchet Is Safe
In a thought provoking post, Kevin Schultz of FANHOUSE has singled out Tampa Bay Lightning coach Rick Tocchet as his number one coach to be pink-slipped this season. “The lame thing about NHL coaches this season is that there’s no one you can point at and yell ‘DEAD MAN WALKING!’ A lot of thought-to-be-crappy teams [...]
People Don’t Buy From Clowns
Miami real estate mogul Jeff Greene will not pursue buying the Tampa Bay Lightning. Greene, who was looking to partner with Lightning owner Oren Koules said, “After careful due diligence and a thorough analysis of the terms and economics of the deal, we have determined that this investment does not meet our criteria. At Florida [...]
NHL Missing Player Report Filed
Endangered Missing Player Report If you believe you have any information regarding this case that will be helpful in this investigation please contact: Hockey Independent: Lightning Blogger WB Philp Vincent Lecavalier Classification: Endangered Missing NHL Player Alias / Nickname: Vinny, V4 Date of Birth: April 21, 1980 Date Missing: [...]
The Life of an NHL trade; Savard out…
Here comes Daniel Paille. And the Providence-bound Craig Weller, too, and out the front door goes grinding forward Chuck Kobasew, who’ll be punching the shift clock now for the Minnesota Wild. The murmuring I hear is the amateur capologists and trade junkies telling me that a pair of draft picks–Boston’s third-round choice in 2010 and [...]
Lightning Get Naked!
What do you do if you’re an NHL team that is reeling after two horrible losses in a row? Why, of course…you get naked! Tampa Bay Lightning players Ryan Malone and Jeff Halpern rounded up the boys after practice was complete on Tuesday and played a game of…wait for it… “Naked Shootout.” Malone decided to [...]
After a Texas Two Step, Have the Bruins hit their Marc?
The Boston sports scene has been staggering as of late—closers have done the wrong kind of closing, quarterbacks have gathered a little moss (and can’t seem to hit Moss), and the Bruins’ spoked wheel looks a little flat early on. Well, last night, their first road test of the season, the boys in Black and [...]
Early Estimations: Bolts Under The Magnifying Glass
It’s not time to panic or lose hope, but they’ve given us no real reason to think playoffs. The Tampa Bay Lightning is 1-1-2 in the first four games of the 2009-10 season. Here are my impressions of the Bolts’ early season performance. Goalie Mike Smith is not right. He has been solid…even amazing at [...]
Shootout Drought
The Tampa Bay Lightning are ridiculously inept in shootouts. Tuomo Ruutu netted the goal to clinch the shootout victory for the Carolina Hurricanes after former Bolt Jussi Jokinen scored his team’s only goal in regulation as the ‘Canes won 2-1 Tuesday night, extending the Lightning’s RBC Center losing streak to seven games. Carolina’s Sergei Samsonov [...]
Time Out! I’ve Seen This Before!
The Tampa Bay Lightning defense stood around and watched Thrashers forwards Ilya Kovalchuk and Rich Peverley skate all over the ice and score at will. Both players beat Lightning goalie Mike Smith twice, leading the Atlanta Thrashers to a 6-3 win over the Bolts in the season opener. Atlanta goalie Ondrej Pavelec resoundingly outplayed Smith [...]
Lies, Damnable Lies, and Predictions
I loathe love…it prediction time. So let’s take a look at the experts, and see what a fair shake the Bruins get: We’ll start with the creme de la creme–The Hockey News. THN has the Big Bad Bruins pegged for first in the Eastern Conference. Its a good assessment, one which astutely references the impact [...]
Hockey Bay USA Season Preview And Prediction
2008-09 Recap: Dismal The Lightning finished 2008-09 last in the Southeast Division and 14th in the Eastern Conference with a poor 24-40-18 record and 66 points. They had four players that netted 20 or more goals and six players in total that had double-digit goals. Martin St. Louis (30 goals. 50 assists and 80 points) [...]
Bolts Cut Roster: Who’s In-Who’s Out
Once the scrimmage with Norfolk was completed last night, the Turk visited eleven Lightning players. After clearing waivers, forwards Martins Karsums and Blair Jones were assigned to AHL Norfolk. Goaltenders Dustin Tokarski, Riku Helenius and Jaroslav Janus (unsigned), defensemen Vladimir Mihalik and Ty Wishart, and forwards Juraj Simek, Paul Szczechura and Dana Tyrell were also [...]
Are You A Bolts Believer?
In Hockey Bay, it seems there are two types of fans. You’re either with the team or you are against them. Black and white…err blue. There’s no fence to sit on. Each of these fanatics views the Bolts world quite differently. Preseason impressions from the Lightning optimists: The fans that expect a positive outcome: The [...]