The Tampa Bay Lightning’s home opener was partially successful.
Blue Carpet and Fan Festivities Mark the Home Opener
On October 9, the franchise organized a Blue Carpet event to allow fans to greet the team and get autographs and selfies with their favorite players, who arrived early to walk like Hollywood stars.
As usual, all pre-game partying was at Ford Thunder Alley, which featured a live band, a photo zone with a GlamBot, a kids’ zone with balloon twisters and face-painting artists, and a mobile TV studio set with a hockey net. Pat Maroon and Braydon Coburn were not only performing expert duties on the Lightning TV broadcast but also interviewing fans and shooting pucks. This organization knows how to entertain and works hard on community outreach.
Moreover, the Bolts team store dropped a new season collection.
Curtis Douglas Makes a Statement in Unlikely NHL Debut
Going into a new season also means more transactions. On October 7, Julien BriseBois, the Lightning Vice President and General Manager, made a bold move, claiming off the waivers from the Utah Mammoth a 6-foot-9 minor leaguer, Curtis Douglas. He appeared in 261 AHL career (97 points) games with three different organizations and 247 OHL contests (168 points) with two franchises. What stands out is his penalty minutes record: 508 in the AHL and 217 in the OHL. Douglas, who was drafted by the Dallas Stars (106 overall) in 2018, had never had a chance in the NHL until he arrived in Tampa.
His family and friends had a hard time booking flights from Toronto at the last minute. After all, it was the Canadian Thanksgiving. Douglas’ NHL debut was remarkable for a few reasons, including a heavyweight fight with Kurtis MacDermid during his first-ever NHL shift. It set the mood for both teams. The 25-year-old rookie logged one shot, 11 shifts, and 5:09 ice time.
Opening Night Collapse: Bolts Let Lead Slip Away Against Ottawa
Nine goals on October 9 sound like a solid number. But details weren’t that positive for the home team. The Lightning were comfortably leading 3-1 in the first period, only to lose their focus at the start of the second – Ottawa’s blueliner Zub scored 42 seconds out of the locker room. It wasn’t a wake-up call; the Bolts allowed three more goals before it was too late. Nikita Kucherov found his invisible opportunity around the crease at 19:46 in the third. An extra attacker (instead of Vasilevskiy in the net) didn’t save the day. The Bolts simply didn’t block or shoot enough, gave away too many pucks, and won only 45.4% of the faceoffs. The Tampa Bay Lightning finished the game just one goal short, 4-5.
Saturday Shake-Up Fails to Spark Comeback Against Devils
Saturday was another chance to rebound with Jon Cooper shaking up the roster. Victor Hedman was paired with Max Crozier, and Darren Raddysh with Emil Lilleberg. There were minor changes in the third and fourth lines with Jack Finley skating into his first game of the season.
When you’re a new guy trying to break into the NHL, it’s crucial to impress. But it must be done with the right attitude. Finley got his two penalty minutes for roughing at 3:41. Unfortunately, it transitioned into more troubles for the Lightning, who were down 3-0 after the first period. The New Jersey Devils outshot the home team 16-2. The home team spent most of the starting period with just one shot. Jake Guentzel made another attempt at a goal in less than 35 seconds before the first intermission. He was under pressure and had no space or time to handle a puck more effectively. For most of the first 20 minutes, the Bolts couldn’t get out of their zone or further than a neutral zone. Their second-period winning faceoff percentage was the lowest—36.3%. The scoring came from unexpected angles: Gourde and McDonagh in the second period and Raddysh in the third period.
During 18 shifts, Brayden Point recorded one assist and won four faceoffs out of 17. No shots. Those are surprisingly low numbers for a 10-season veteran. But overall, in the first two games, he scored four points and recorded a plus/minus of -3. Anthony Cirelli won 22 faceoffs out of 38 in two games. It’s the best record on the team, so far.
Somehow, the scenario turned into another disaster on Saturday. The Lightning fell 5-3 to the Devils and wrapped a short homestead. It was so quiet at times that it felt like a theater, not a hockey game. Fans didn’t know how to react or what to do. It’s not an ideal start to the season, especially compared to the rivals from South Florida. The Panthers, without Barkov and Tkachuk, are leading the Eastern Conference with three straight wins.
It’s too early to panic, but the first week of the season showed that it will be a challenging one. Over the summer, the roster hasn’t strengthened.
The Tampa Bay Lightning will face the Boston Bruins, Washington Capitals, and Detroit Red Wings next week.