If it seems like panic has crept in for the Tampa Bay Lightning after falling into a two-game hole to the upstart New York Rangers in the Eastern Conference final, my bet is that type of talk remains on the outside of their inner circle.
That doubt is more on social media and on betting platforms. They have yet to prove to any of us that we should count them out. The answer is within that inner-sanctum — the players, coaches and management — for a group that never plays desperate. They will take charge with urgency.
However, unlike a binary switch that just goes on or off, the Lightning in this series have been more like a dimmer switch — not completely off, not all the way turned up — and now is the time to brighten up their game.
Here are five ways they can flip the script as they return home to Amalie Arena:
1. Bring back the championship swagger
Sometimes, teams that have won the previous season — or in this case, multiple times in a short period of time — seem to lack the necessary urgency. I think they’re usually guilty of waiting too long to ramp up the urgency, until it’s too late. Instead of just writing “puck management” here without context, the Lightning can find their championship swagger with better puck fundamentals, passing and receiving, finding more open space as well as quicker and more efficient decisions, especially in transition. The lack of Lightning odd-man rushes for over the first two games of the series prove that swagger is missing. An example of a quick-up and working the puck around is their second goal in Game 2 by Nick Paul. In a matter of seven seconds, the puck moved from Mikhail Sergachev to Nikita Kucherov to Corey Perry to Paul and in the back of the net.
2. Dominate the 'transition zone'
This is the area I refer to from tops of circles in the defensive zone to the tops of circles in the offensive zone. All of a team’s speed and almost every odd-man rush comes from this area. The Lightning are typically relentless in back-checking situations, or when they establish their neutral-zone forecheck in either a 1-1-3 or 1-3-1 format, and it stifles their opponents. If they can get this re-established, it will help cut down on their defensive-zone time and allow their breakouts and their own offensive transition to gain momentum. The Rangers’ entries have been way too successful with possession. Tampa Bay must deflect them to the outside dots, force them to overhandle or turnover pucks. That disruption will result in a greater number of counters.
3. Have a shooter's mentality
This might sound weird since Tampa Bay has led in the playoffs in most shooting categories, including attempts and on-net, from all the important areas. Although at times, their double-clutch and lack of one-timers, plus the extra pass, has made Igor Shesterkin’s workload a little easier. Now some might say, “Volume never beats quality,” in response to that. However, Tampa has led in not just volume, but also in the quality areas, so that is not up for debate. One area the Lightning can take from their opponent is scoring chances that have come from passes across the “royal road” and executed with a quick release. That’s how the Rangers dominated Game 1. Cute won’t cut it.
4. Net presence
I will never discount the brilliance of Shesterkin. However, the Lightning typically have a forward anchored at the net, which is great for screens, deflections, recovering rebounds and goalmouth scoring. They just haven’t been as strong and consistent with that presence in this series. The reality is, Shesterkin has been allowed to set up at the top of his crease and hasn’t been forced to retreat further back. The Lightning not only have to “take away his eyes” so to speak, but have to limit his ability to see the release point. That can be huge and is kryptonite for most goalies — even a Superman saver like Shesterkin. The more Tampa forwards can get back to screening, including two of them at times, the more blue paint you will see in front of the Hart Trophy finalist. The other important part to the net presence is Shesterkin’s freedom to release from the front of the net to pick up rims from the point or corners. Better pressure will open up the possibility for more “trap goals,” which Tampa is well known for. New York’s defense has done a really good job of anticipating these plays and disrupting this offensive strategy.
5. Bottle up the last eight minutes
I don’t believe momentum carries over from one game to the next in a playoff series. However, if the Lightning can reflect and visualize whatever it was that seemed to give them a sense of the urgency in those last eight minutes of Game 2, they will be in fine shape. It was obvious they played up-tempo in their valiant push to knot the game. That might have given us a glimpse of what’s to come, for those who are saying the Lightning are out of gas. You can never count them out until they’re actually out — and they’ve proved many wrong already over the last three runs.
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