Battle-tested Lightning once again peaking into an Eastern Conference force

When the Tampa Bay Lightning started the season in October, they wanted to rewind to April, May and June when they were playing the most exciting hockey many of them had ever experienced.

They wanted to flash back to the postseason, living on the edge, pushing themselves to the limit in the hope of winning the championship they fell short of capturing. They wanted to feel the exhilaration of the playoffs, not think about the grind of an 82-game regular-season.

“We wanted to play playoff games again. We didn’t handle that as well as we could have,” Lightning coach Jon Cooper told Paste BN Sports. “We took the regular season for granted. And then right when we realized we have to straighten up here, we got hurt. Everybody got hurt. That changed everything. All of a sudden we were in scramble mode.”

In hindsight, Cooper believes injuries benefited the Lightning  because it helped his players regain their focus, forcing them to recall how they could overcome adversity on a nightly basis.

Despite an 18-16-4 record through December, the Lightning are second in the Eastern Conference with 85 points and a 40-24-5 record.

A case can be made that they are a better all-around team than they were at this time last season.

For one, they have improved defensively. Last season they ranked 12th in goals-against per game. This year they are fourth. Goaltender Ben Bishop is more experienced, and has posted a 2.06 goals-against average and .926 save percentage. This group has learned how to win, going through the process in the playoffs and then digging deep this season to survive their early struggles.

“I would say we are more prepared for the playoffs,” Tampa Bay defenseman Victor Hedman said. “Last season was an unbelievable experience for us. We rose to the occasion when we had to. it was a great final, a close race, and that was something that we took into this year."

The Lightning entered the 2015 playoffs as the top offensive team in the league, but quickly learned that offense isn't as important to playoff success as relentless defensive play.

“Defense has become a little bit more of a mindset for our team,” Cooper said. “We know why we won in  the playoffs (last season) and it wasn’t because we outscored teams. We were out-defending teams, trusting that we had enough dynamic players in our locker room to win 1-0 and 2-1 games. We learned that in the playoffs."

Cooper admits that the Lightning were a “little bit of a track meet” team. Not so anymore.

“When we proved to ourselves that we can win defensively, it has kind of stuck to us now,” Cooper said.

But don’t be misled into believing the Lightning can't generate offense. Even though their goal scoring is down to eighth, they did score 45 goals in 14 games during February. That’s the kind of offensive show they put on last season.

Cooper said it has been wrongly assumed that the Lightning’s scoring is down because they are concentrating on defense.

“We thought the scoring would come naturally, just like we thought we could breeze through the regular season again,” Cooper said. “We weren’t committed enough to score goals and since Christmas we’ve done a better of being committed enough to score goals.”

It didn’t help that Tyler Johnson couldn’t train properly in the offseason because of a broken wrist. He has had three multiple-point games in the past two weeks.  “He is back being his old self, a threat every time he is out there,” Hedman said.

Also Ondej Palat was injured for a lengthy period, disrupting the Triplets Line (that also included Nikita Kurcherov), which was dominant last spring. Now Palat and Johnson are healthy, even rested, heading toward the playoffs

And another issue has been that  captain Steven Stamkos remains unsigned past this season.

“As I look back, I don’t think (speculation about Stamkos’ future) had any impact on our team,” Cooper said. “But I think it had a little bit of effect on him. It’s hard not to think about it when you are in the last year of your contract. But the impressive thing is he is still up there leading our team in scoring and he’s still doing everything to help us win. But when (general manager) Steve Yzerman said he wasn’t going anywhere (before the trade deadline) that took a big weight off his shoulders.”

The Washington Capitals are the team to beat in the Eastern Conference, but the Lightning, based on their experience and skill, have to be considered No. 2, even if they don’t win the Atlantic Division.

“We have scoring now throughout the lineup, and everyone is paying the price defensively," Hedman said. "I think we are playing the way we want to playing heading into the playoffs."

The key will be Bishop because he has been sharp enough to project as a playoff difference-maker. The Lightning seem to have as much faith in Bishop as the Capitals have in Braden Holtby.

“He has been unbelievable playing the puck, and with the playoff run he made with us, his confidence has taken off,” Cooper said. “He believes he is going to win every game and that he’s going to give up two goals or less. Usually, he does that."

The other crucial element is Hedman. He was among the most impressive players in last year’s playoffs. He was noticeable on both ends of the rink. This season he has been like his team: slow to start and now accelerating.

“There are a couple of guys on our team that if they aren’t playing well, it affects our whole team and he’s one of those guys,” Cooper said. “The emergence of his game over the past 20-plus games really reflects how we are playing as a team.”

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