While Lightning GM Steve Yzerman is believed to be active in trade discussions as they look to get themselves back into the playoff race, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman suggested to Sportsnet 960 in Calgary (audio link) that there’s a chance that they won’t be as big a participant on the trade market as some expect (transcription courtesy of Fan Rag’s Chris Nichols):
“One guy told me on the weekend that Tampa may not be as active as everyone thinks because Steve Yzerman could just say, ‘You know what? Our team isn’t good enough. Why would I start to make moves and trade stuff away when our team isn’t good enough.’ So I’m kind of wondering what Yzerman is thinking here.”
A popular pick to be a top threat in the Eastern Conference, Tampa Bay surprisingly finds themselves tied for dead last in the conference with Buffalo (although they’re only five points out of the final Atlantic playoff spot).
Injuries have a lot to do with their struggles. Top scorer Steven Stamkos remains out long-term as he recovers from meniscus surgery while forwards Ryan Callahan and Brayden Point are hurt now and have missed extended time this season. On top of that, goalie Ben Bishop as well as forwards Jonathan Drouin, Nikita Kucherov, J.T. Brown, and Ondrej Palat (among several others) have all missed at least five games at some point which has really put their depth to the test.
[Related: Lightning Depth Chart]
Goaltending, which was thought of as a strength for the Lightning heading into the season, has surprisingly been a concern for them. Bishop, the starter for the past few years, is expected to be gone as an unrestricted free agent next season in order to save some money on the cap while handing youngster Andrei Vasilevskiy a three year, $10.5MM extension in the summer with the expectation that he would take over as the starter. Bishop has posted a mediocre 2.78 GAA and a .905 SV%, his worst numbers as a number one while Vasilevskiy hasn’t fared much better, coming in with a 2.85 GAA and a .907 SV%.
While it’s fair to wonder if the uncertainty surrounding his future is playing a role in Bishop’s struggles, he has never really had long-term contract security wherever he has played as the longest deal he has had since his entry-level pact lasted just two years. However, this is the first time he has been slated to become a UFA so that extra pressure hasn’t been there before.
All of a sudden, Yzerman faces a situation where there are multiple holes that need to be filled. The goaltending hasn’t been good enough, the defense needs to be improved (and Tampa has been active in discussions to shore up that situation) while they’re routinely missing several forwards out of their lineup. Perhaps this just isn’t their year and that has Friedman wondering if they may be more inclined to stand pat at the deadline:
“I wonder if Yzerman is looking at all of this and saying, ‘This is not the year for me to start making trades that sacrifice the future because we just don’t have the team that’s good enough to win.’”
The Lightning have a strong core to work with (although they’ll have to re-sign the likes of Palat, Drouin, and Tyler Johnson to name a few this offseason). Yzerman has stated that he doesn’t want to take away from that core but rather add to it which would result in a less-than-typical non-selling situation for a non-playoff team.
As they’re only a handful of points out of the playoff race, a decision on whether to go for it or stand pat is still likely several weeks away. All of a sudden though, the Lightning are becoming a team to watch for in the weeks ahead.