Tampa Bay Lightning hockey is finally back. On Monday, the Bolts took to the ice in their first pre-season game of the year. Jon Cooper’s squad kicked the year off the right way with a 2-1 win over the Carolina Hurricanes.
The Lightning lineup did not feature many NHL regulars. Rather, Cooper showcase a mix of players from training camp. While NHLers often go through the motions in camp, the others are hungry to prove themselves. Even if there’s not an immediate NHL spot available, maybe there’s one in the future.
Lilleberg Giveth, and Lilleberg Taketh Away
Emil Lilleberg had himself a noticeable, albeit uneven game. Lilleberg potted the Lightning’s first goal of the game. On the play, he pinched in to pick up a loose puck. The Swede beat the buzzer at the end of the first period on a nice shot from the slot.
Mitchell Chaffee and Conor Geekie made made nice plays to set up the goal. Chaffee hunted down a puck along the boards. Subsequently he won a puck battle and found a flying Geekie down the slot. Geekie made a cheeky move to his backhand before sending a pass into the high slot. He missing his initial target. However, the puck found its way to Lilleberg’s stick for the go-ahead goal.
Lilleberg getting on the scoreboard early, even if just in pre-season, is very good for the young defender. The 24 year old in 76 games had only 1 goal and 19 points. Getting on the scoresheet, even when it doesn’t matter, will hopefully boost his confidence.
On the other side of things, Lilleberg found himself inside the penalty box three times in the game. In fairness, it was a chippy game: 66 penalty minutes of penalties divided between the two clubs. Nevertheless, it is difficult to be effective on the ice when you spend six minutes in the box.
Johansson Steady in Net
That much time on the penalty kill calls for excellent penalty killers, and there was no one better this game than goaltender Jonas Johansson. Johansson started the game off strong and never slowed down. Stopping the Canes on some strong chances early and making some impressive athletic saves as the game continued, Johansson really looked like a more defined version of himself in this short sample size. Johansson stopped 29 of 30 shots against and helped the Lightning kill off 5 of 6 penalties.
The first goal to beat Johansson came midway through the period off of a very snazzy move from Kevin Labanc, but after review the goal was called back for off-side. Labanc seemingly took that personally as he set of Carolina’s first official goal later in the third on the powerplay, with a shot on net that was tipped short side past Johansson by Logan Stankoven.
Lightning Forwards Shine
On the offensive side of things, Mitchell Chaffee and Conor Geekie shined bright, as they each factored into both of Tampa’s goals. The Bolts’ second goal and ultimately game winner came from Chaffee with a good tip in front off of a shot from J.J Moser from the point. Both Geekie and Chaffee were noticeable all game, blending size, speed, and skill to get the puck into dangerous areas of the ice and finding each other in the offensive zone.
Chaffee notably is fighting for a more regular spot on this Tampa Bay roster, and more strong games like this during this pre-season will certainly help his cause. Geekie on the other hand is likely to start the season with the big club, and will be keen to try and work his way up. Getting off to strong starts early will be important for both these players with ambition to help the Lighting throughout the season.
The Lightning have six pre-season games remaining before we can begin the regular season, and although most of the lineup is set in stone, there may be some players who have the opportunity to turn some heads and either make this team, or advance their position on it. Two and a half weeks away from opening night feels like an eternity, but at least hockey is finally back.
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