The Tampa Bay Lightning begin the 2025-26 season on Thursday night as they host the Ottawa Senators. The Bolts are looking to return to the Stanley Cup Finals, but winning a first-round series for a change would be a good start.
It has been three years since the Lightning won a playoff series, and last year, the Florida Panthers eliminated them in five games.
Because of their position in the standings, Florida could rest their star players down the stretch to ensure they were rested for the playoffs. On the other hand, the Lightning had to scratch and claw every night down the stretch to secure third place in the Atlantic Division. Once the playoffs arrived, the Lightning were gassed and started their summer vacation earlier than anticipated.
Despite the first-round exit, there were some highlights last season. Nikita Kucherov won his second consecutive scoring title with 37 goals and 121 points. Kucherov is the best regular-season player in the NHL, but when it’s money time, he suddenly disappears, as he has just one goal in his last 16 playoff games.
The Lightning’s power play finished fifth overall, but with the man advantage, they allowed 13 short-handed goals, tied for first in the NHL. Also, the Lightning were the only team with four players to score at least 35 goals: Braydon Point (40), Jake Guentzel (41), Nikita Kucherov (37), and Brandon Hagel (35).
The Lightning will be without forward Nick Paul, who will be out until sometime in November with an upper-body injury. Jack Finley will take the spot of Paul on the roster until he returns from his injury.
It’s still unbelievable that a team with that kind of offensive power would be eliminated in the first round of the playoffs.
The Lightning also improved defensively, reducing the amount of goals they allowed from 267 to 216. The Lightning finished fourth in goals against and were fifth in the league in allowing five-on-five goals. The Lightning’s goal differential was +75.
Victor Hedman had 66 points and was sixth in the league in goals scored by a defenseman. Hedman’s linemate, JJ Moser, will miss the first two games of the season as he serves a two-game suspension for his role in the fight-marred final pre-season game. Maxwell Crozier will replace Moser on the roster for the season’s first two games.
In goal, Andrei Vasilevskiy had a career-best GAA of 2.18. His .921 save percentage was his highest since the Stanley Cup season of 2022-21. In the playoffs, though, Vasilevskiy had some of his worst numbers of his career. His GAA blew up to 3.27, while his SV% dropped to .872.
The difference between the Lightning and other playoff teams is that, in the last few years, the Lightning have built its team for regular-season success, not playoff success. The Lightning have very few players who strike fear into the hearts of opponents when they play the Bolts.
The Lightning tried to address this during the off-season when they signed Scott Sabourin to a two-way contract. Sabourin skated in 68 games with San Jose of the AHL last season, accumulating 111 penalty minutes. He also added 10 goals and 25 points. In 532 games, Sabourin has accumulated 1,223 penalty minutes.
Just a week ago, the Lightning signed Curtis Douglas after the Utah Mammoth put him on waivers. Douglas has never played in an NHL game and will be on the opening night roster. In 261 career games, Douglas has accumulated 508 penalty minutes with 37 goals and 97 points.
Douglas had this to say after signing with the Lightning: “I bring a big physical aspect to the game. I think I can sort of impose my will on defenders and be a power forward that’s reliable, and you know what you’re getting from me every single night. I’m just trying to get energy for the team, play hard, and use my size and strength to my advantage.”
This type of player is sorely needed in the Lightning lineup. Last season, Douglas scored 10 goals with 21 assists and 117 penalty minutes, 15th in the AHL.
Undoubtedly, the Lightning will be competitive and a top 10 team in the NHL this season. They will also be a lot more physical with the addition of Douglas and Sabourin waiting in the wings at Syracuse to get called up on special occasions.
What counts is what the Lightning do in April when the Stanley Cup playoffs begin. The Lightning have the team and the talent to win a first round matchup, but it’s anyone’s guess whether this team can put it all together to win a playoff series.
Lightning depth chart:
Forwards
Jake Guentzel / Brayden Point / Nikita Kucherov
Brandon Hagel / Anthony Cirelli / Gage Goncalves
Conor Geekie / Nick Paul / Oliver Bjorkstrand
Pontus Holmberg / Yanni Gourde / Mitchell Chaffe
Defense
Victor Hedman / J.J. Moser
Ryan McDonagh / Erik Cernak
Emil Lilleberg / Darren Raddysh
Goalies
Andrei Vasilevskiy / Jonas Johansson
Power Play Unit 1
Jake Guentzel, Brayden Point, Nikita Kucherov, Victor Hedman, Brandon Hagel