Tampa Bay Lightning

Wait'll next year.

BUF-6
TB-2

Antero Niittymaki allowed 5 goals on 27 shots for the loss. Will he be back next year? I'm almost inclined to advocate completely changing the tandem in net for next season.

First Period
BUF 5:19, Pominville 19 (Roy, Lydman)(PP)
BUF 13:56, Myers 10 (Hecht)
BUF 16:23, Pominville 20 (Tallinder)

Second Period
BUF 9:25, Roy 19 (unassisted)(SH)

Third Period
TB 8:06, Downie 18 (Stamkos, St. Louis)
TB 17:22, Lecavalier 21 (Stamkos, Purcell)(PP)
BUF 18:14, Vanek 23 (Roy)(EN)
BUF 19:26, Pominville 21 (Connolly, Lydman)

The season is over, and I'd be shocked if either the coach or the GM survive the offseason. Who won the Olympic Break power struggle? Nobody. I could've told you that then, too. I would hope a guy like Mark Parrish, who probably won't be in the long term plans of the organization, would be returned to Norfolk to try and bolster their playoff chances. From here on out, it's time to start evaluating players for next season. Teddy Purcell and Paul Szczechura need to be under the microscope and I would think there needs to be a cup of coffee for a couple of young prospects in Norfolk like, perhaps, Dana Tyrell to see how close they are to the show for next year. The team also needs to decide if Niittymaki, Kurtis Foster, Andrej Meszaros, Matt Smaby, and Mike Lundin will be back next season. On that list, Niitty, Foster, and Lundin are going into free agency. The team also needs to decide what they're going to do with the enigmatic Paul Ranger. I wonder where Ryan Malone fits too after evaporating in the second half once removed from a line with Stamkos and St. Louis.

The good news is that a pretty good foundation has been laid. Steven Stamkos and Victor Hedman are studs. Martin St. Louis is Martin St. Louis. Vincent Lecavalier has redeemed himself after a subpar first half, in my mind, and ought to stick around. Steve Downie has been excellent and is two goals shy of 20 for the season. The team is just a few pieces away: a steady goaltender and some more veteran defensive depth. The problem is that, as Lightning fans well know, steady goaltenders don't grow on trees. That'll be the challenge of whoever will be running this team come the NHL Draft. That's another silver lining. I don't feel this is a team that necessarily ought to be picking in the top 5-10 of the draft, but if they have to miss the playoffs, they might as well cash in with either another talented young d-man or a winger.

Box score and extended statistics from NHL.com.

Two one goal losses and the season keeps slowly and painfully slipping away.

PHX-2
TB-1

Antero Niittymaki allowed 2 goals on 28 shots for the loss. Beats me. When he stinks the team scores in bunches. When he plays well, it all dries up. Go figure.

First Period
PHX 7:56, Fiddler 7 (Stempniak)
PHX 9:45, Lombardi 16 (Wolski, Doan)

Second Period
TB 16:07, Fedoruk 3 (Bochenski, Parrish)

Third Period
NO SCORING

This is another case where the Lightning will go back at season's end and probably kick themselves for that one little mistake (Matt Smaby) or that one missed scoring chance (Brandon Bochenski).

Box score and extended statistics from NHL.com.

The Pens get the benefit of the bounce.

PIT-2
TB-1

Antero Niittymaki allowed 2 goals on 39 shots for the loss. He certainly did everything he could to give the Lightning a chance to win and seems to be getting hot again. A hot Niitty is probably the only chance the Lightning have down the stretch.

First Period
NO SCORING

Second Period
TB 8:09, Lecavalier 20 (Fedoruk, Hedman)

Third Period
PIT 2:20, Dupuis 17 (Staal, Cooke)
PIT 5:17, Gonchar 10 (Crosby, Ponikarovsky)(PP)

The difference in the game was the goofy bounce Pittsburgh got on their first goal and the solid goaltending of Fleury in the first period. It makes you wonder though why this team could play poorly and lose in overtime against the worst team in the conference (Toronto) and then turn around and beat the best (Washington) and take the defending champs (Pittsburgh) to the brink. If they played with the same intensity they did in the first period of this game, they'd be sitting on 80-90 points in the standings already. That's frustrating in the near term, as this team's playoff chances are becoming slim. In the long term Lightning fans should take heart. A young team like this is going to figure that out, and have the chance to be an elite team when they do.

Congratulations to Vincent Lecavalier on his 10th straight 20 goal season. That's 10 straight seasons of excellence, no matter how you slice it.

Also, congratulations to Steven Stamkos for making Matt Cooke a stain on the ice during a third period power play. Now that's young leadership you can believe in.

Paul Szczechura had 2 penalty minutes, 2 shots, and 1 blocked shot in 13:01. He was also 56% on draws and almost had the first goal of the game on a 2-on-1 feed from Lecavalier that was turned aside by Fleury. I must apologize to Szczechura for missing that his last game against the Caps (3-12-10) marked his graduation from prospect status on Bolt Prospects. So, he got an extra night of coverage tonight so that we can extend congratulations to him on becoming a full-time NHLer with 41 and now 42 games played this season. He'll likely be the last graduate of the 2009/2010 class that included Downie, Hedman, and Wright already.

Box score and extended statistics from NHL.com.

The patient has a pulse.

TB-3
WSH-2

Antero Niittymaki allowed 2 goals on 30 shots for the victory. It's amazing what a difference goaltending makes, isn't it?

First Period
WSH 16:54, Fleischmann 20 (Ovechkin, Knuble)(PP)
TB 19:11, Bochenski 2 (Fedoruk, Lundin)

Second Period
TB 11:30, Walker 2 (Veilleux, Thompson)
TB 15:12, Lecavalier 19 (Walker, Purcell)

Third Period
WSH 11:09, Laich 21 (Green, Ovechkin)(PP)

Strange to see the rare game where the Lightning don't get a goal from the power play or #91, and it happens to be a big win.

Paul Szczechura had 2 penalty minutes, 2 shots, and 1 hit in 11:06. He was also 33% on draws.

Box score and extended statistics from NHL.com.