In the offseason, they made some upgrades with the signings of Dan Girardi and Chris Kunitz. The Bolts also managed to re-sign its own restricted free agents to contacts. Tampa Bay made a splash when they traded forward Jonathan Drouin to the Montreal Canadiens in exchange for defenseman Mikhail Sergachev. Sergachev was given every opportunity to make the team in the preseason, and that is exactly what he did.
The key to the Bolts rebounding this season is the goaltending. Andrei Vasilevskiy is the undisputed number one goaltender for the team this year. The biggest question is going to be will he be able to handle the pressure that is going to be on him to help lead this team back to the postseason. Vasilevskiy is going to need to be good this season because the defense will give up its chances against. The goalie will need to make the easy save and he has shown the ability to make the spectacular save. Peter Budaj will be in the back up role and he will need to be ready when he gets the call off the bench or to give Vasilevskiy a game off.
The x-factor to the Bolts season is going to be the health of Steven Stamkos. Yes, the Lightning are deep enough that they could battle and make the playoffs if Stamkos should get hurt, but there is no Drouin to help Kucherov pick up the slack this year. Stamkos has been hurt the past few seasons, and just needs to get through this one as healthy as he can. The center is an integral part of the offense especially the power play since he has a great shot that can beat any goalie.
The surprise player is going to be defenseman Mikhail Sergachev. Sergachev made the team out of camp and preseason, and I think he is going to stick around for the entire season. He can move the puck and skate, which is something that the defense could use in the lineup. Sergachev is slated to be in the top four to start the season so Jon Cooper is giving him every chance to succeed, and he even is giving him power play time. I wouldn't be surprised if he is playing in all situations by the end of the season since he is a solid all around defenseman, who has a good hockey IQ.
Tyler Johnson needs a bounce back season after last season where he struggled to produce. He should bounce back since he is playing with Alex Killorn on a line. Johnson will also spend some time on the second power play unit. Yanni Gourde should have a break out season this year for the Bolts. He had six goals in the 20 games that he played with Tampa Bay last season. If he can play a full season on the third line with Brayden Point and Ondrej Palat plus get some time on the power play then there is a good chance that he scores at least 15 goals, maybe more. Jon Cooper is under pressure to lead this team back to the playoffs and go deep into the postseason.
The offense is a balanced one and has guys that can produce on every line. They have the talent and the ability to put the puck in the back of the net. Some of the kids may be a little on the younger side, but they have game experience from last year. Vladislav Namestnikov-Steven Stamkos- Nikita Kucherov could be a very dangerous top line since every one has the ability to score and dish the puck to his line mates. If the lines aren't producing then Cooper has the luxury of being able to switch some guys up since they have all played throughout the lineup.
The defense is loaded with veterans and guys that have been around the block. I'm not so sure about the idea of putting Dan Girardi on the top pairing, but that could be because Jake Dotchin sat out most of the preseason for violating a team rule. Victor Hedman is going to have another great season because he can move the puck, quarterback the power play and get the puck through to the front of the net for some deflection chances. The Bolts are going to have its struggles on defense this season, but hopefully the goalies can bail them out when that happens.
The Lightning will get back to the playoffs this year even having to contend with an Eastern Conference. The veteran team knows how to win and will find a way to get back to the postseason, and possibly have a deep run.
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