But you still have to build something players want to come back to. Tampa Bay may have some helpful advantages, like core players taking less of a cap hit while not sacrificing too much money, thanks to the fact Florida has no state income tax. Being as consistent as the Lightning have been, save for the elusive Cup, might be even harder. Much of that core was built by Yzerman or just before he came in during the 2010 offseason, but BriseBois has put his stamp on this team, filling gaps that have been exposed in past postseason failures.īuilding Stanley Cup-winning teams is hard. The core has carried a lot of the load, with injured captain Steven Stamkos not yet suiting up for a single game. This postseason is unlike any in the history of the game, but the Lightning have looked locked in, beating the Columbus Blue Jackets and Boston Bruins through two rounds. But for whatever reason, the franchise hasn't won it all during this stint of regular-season dominance. Tampa Bay has been close, going to the Stanley Cup Final in 2015, and this year marks its fourth Eastern Conference final in the Cooper era. They've been compared to the San Jose Sharks and the pre-Stanley Cup Washington Capitals for not being able to get it done in the postseason, even though they have the second-most playoff wins in the NHL since 2013-14 with 46, including this postseason. They have scored 1,797 goals - 57 more than the next-closest team over that span - for an average of 3.20 per game while also allowing the fourth-fewest goals per game at 2.64.ĭespite that regular-season success, the NHL's ultimate prize has eluded this era of the Lightning. Since Jon Cooper's first full season as the head coach in 2013-14, the Lightning have led the NHL with 343 regular-season wins and a. From a Steve Yzerman-engineered rebuild to the team's continuation under Julien BriseBois - who has the top job after years as a loyal lieutenant - the Lightning have fielded one of the most, if not the most, complete rosters in the game. How the Tampa Bay Lightning built a perennial contender, player by playerįor nearly a decade, the Tampa Bay Lightning have been among the most consistently entertaining and successful teams in the NHL. You have reached a degraded version of because you're using an unsupported version of Internet Explorer.įor a complete experience, please upgrade or use a supported browser
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