BREAKING NEWS: Tampa Bay Lightning leaning on stars for late-season resurgence
Following their back-to-back Stanley Cup victories in 2020 and 2021, experiencing a defeat in the final against the Colorado Avalanche in 2022 and an early exit in the first round last season, the Tampa Bay Lightning appeared to be on the brink of missing the playoffs just a month ago.
After posting a lackluster 5-6-1 record in February, the Lightning seemed far from a playoff-caliber team.
However, a remarkable March turnaround saw Tampa Bay go 9-1-1, securing the first wild-card position in the Eastern Conference with 95 points (44-27-7) and four games remaining in the regular season. If the playoffs started today, the Lightning would face the Boston Bruins.
The team’s impressive performance in March was spearheaded by Nikita Kucherov, Andrei Vasilevskiy, Brayden Point, Steven Stamkos, and Victor Hedman.
Kucherov currently leads the league in scoring with a career-best 139 points (43 goals and 96 assists) and is a frontrunner for the Hart Trophy as the league’s MVP. He holds a significant 53-point lead over Tampa Bay’s next top scorer, Point, who has contributed 86 points (44 goals and 42 assists).
Kuch setting up Pointer for this beaut. 🤌
Best in the business right here. pic.twitter.com/0VJSUi4BUr
— Tampa Bay Lightning (@TBLightning) April 4, 2024
Even Kucherov stepped up his game in March, tallying 26 points across 13 games.
According to ESPN.com, Hedman praised the Russian forward as “the smartest player in hockey.”
As for Vasilevskiy, he had a slow start to the season due to offseason hip surgery but has now hit his stride.
The Vezina Trophy winner from 2019 has recorded a 9-2-1 record, along with a .918 save percentage and a 2.33 goals-against average since the start of March.
Point accumulated 12 points in 12 games by the end of last month, while Stamkos notched 17 points in 13 games and Hedman contributed 12 points in 12 games.
A common saying in hockey is that “Your best players have to be your best players” to succeed in the playoffs.
As the postseason commences on April 20, Tampa Bay’s key players are all performing exceptionally well.
