Craig Ramsay fired

The Lightning has fired associate coach Craig Ramsay, according to a news release from the team.
“Over the course of this past season (2006-07) it became apparent to me, and to (head coach) John (Tortorella), that we still had some fundamental philosophical differences between our head coach and our associate coach on a number of issues,'' general manager Jay Feaster said in the release. "After having a series of meetings with various members of the organization, we have regretfully, yet necessarily, chosen to make a change in the coaching staff effective immediately.
"We thank Craig for his seven years of service to this franchise and for his hard work and dedication in helping us become Stanley Cup Champions. Rammer will always be a part of the Lightning family as a member of that Stanley Cup Championship team's success.''
Ramsay's primary responsibility was for defense and special teams, both of which struggled at times this year. No timetable has been set for filling the position.

Comments

[SarasotaBill]

Hey Bear, sorry I'm a little late here but I never gave credit to Feaster for signing St Louis. Please read my comments again. What I was talking about was that there are often mistakes made by teams as far as players go. Calgary dropped the ball on Marty. Dudley snatched him up and the rest is history.

I'm not so sure why there is such an infatuation with Dudley. I don't quite get it but I do believe in giving credit where credit is due. Let's look at his history with the team....

When he got here, Lecavalier, Richards, and Kubina has already been drafted by Espo. Things were starting to take shape. Dudley added several important pieces other than just Marty. he saw somwthing special in a d-man from Florida (much like how he saw something in st louis) and made a deal for him. Enter Dan Boyle. Another great move. Let's not forget the trade for Habby and the additions of Modin and Sarich.

Nobody could argue that Duds didn't make this team much better. He did! No doubt about it! But to suggest that all Feaster has done is "dine out" on Dudley's work is insane. When Feaster got here he felt there was a need for a "veteran presence." Enter Tim Taylor and Andy. Andy is nothing short of the best captain to wear a Lightning sweater. Over time, Feaster added Stillman, Feds, Pratt, Sydor, Roy, Luk, and others. They aren't here, we don't win a Cup! Not quite "dining out" on Dud's work.

Dud's made his mark on this team for sure, but the work needed to continue. Feaster didn't sit on his hands after taking this team over. Three different GM's, a few coaches, a few owners, and several scouts later, we have a Cup!

Duds made his impact, as the rest did, but he didn't build this team on his own. Far from it.

I could go into Dud's draft picks if I wanted but why? Oh, why not? Svitov as the 3rd overall pick? Alexeev as the 8th overall a year later? Shall I name the players picked after these guys? Naw.......... I'll be fair.

It takes 5 years or so to see what these 17 and 18 year old kids will amount to. Dud's picks have been just that. Duds! It's a less than a perfect ritual. Drafts are always looked at in retrospect. It'll take a couple of years before the Feaster blasters can comment with anything behind them.

Simple point is, more than a few people built the Cup team. Dudley did his part very nicely, but it didn't end there.

[Woodsy]

Okay, here is # 51, just an empty net goal. But I really did enjoy MM's post and that hopefully brought myself and everyone else back to reality. Yes, I am not a fan of Feaster,but I'm also happy I got to experience a game seven, SCF in my home building! Watching Andy raise the Cup still makes the hair on the back of my neck stand up.

As far as Fedetenko goes, you can take him or leave him. Yes he scored our 2 goals in game 7, the first a rebound on the powerplay that Andre Roy wouldn't have missed, the second (game winner) after Vinny undressed four Calgary players coming out of the corner. Oh yeah, and the secondary assist on that goal...Cory Stillman.

Luk Richardson...Luk may the force be with you. Last time I checked, or watched "Inside the Lightning" on Sunshine. Luk was busy cleaning the lovebugs off his custom chopper while the rest of our guys were still busy playing hockey.

SB makes some awesome points, as does Tim A. My eyes have been partially opened, but I still think Feaster earned way to much credit for the core players we have on our roster right now. I'm out.

[bear]

#50 He scores but F.T.B.S above did all the work pointing it out, I just Andreychuked the rebound.

Nice that you guys are up for 08.

Man pity the poor suckers though at camp Torturella with only 28 guys. Thats not much time between wind sprints.

[F.T.B.S.]

Wow! Are we going for fifty here in honor of Vince's 'goal' achievement?
I'll take an assist, someone else can have the goal... ;-)

I must digress and agree with the notion Larry Robinson wouldn't stand for a berating by Tortorella without a serious facewash and loosening of the neck ties. Not in this system. Heck, not in any system.

Forgive us Rammer, we may need YOU in a year or so with Sullivan assisting.
I love and respect the job Torts has done; but players quit on him already and the rift didn't help.
This is a fast, young man's game, and they have feelings nowadays. You can't have Coach barking at them when Mommy stroking the kids' hair and cooing in their ear would work more effectively. Right, Brad?
I think Testosterone-ella will clash with most associates. Sullivan sounds like Tortorella circa 1999, and would be better suited to backing up the calm strategist, Craig Ramsey.

John, please re-think that jive about 'joining the rush'. The lone defenseman can't defend when odd man rushes drop his breeches down around his skates. (I remember coming out of the seat at Fla's 3 on 0 rush too, as with many bonehead and lame clearing attempts.) More shorthanded practice will make attackers comfortable without both our blueliners pinching and helping out. And work on the forecheck for Chrissakes! The 'Tampa Bay Forechecking Maniacs' has a nice ring to it.

Here's a vote of 'No Confidence' for upper personnel decisions; i.e., Darren Rumble's report card is, well, yeesh. Go down the Falcons' roster and find ANYbody with a plus rating. Did Smaby arrive snarling, ready to clear the crease, block shots, kick ass and take names? Yeesh!

I hope for the best and appreciate the fact we have these issues, not the swamp we were in a scant 5 years ago.
Go Bolts!

[Another Joe]

Bring back Duds? No way. Duds was ready to trade away Vinny Lecavalier which is why he was fired. Jay told Vinny your staying and not getting traded. The best move anyone in Tampa has ever made. Feaster also brought in Feds and Sydor that helped us win the cup.

Yes there have been bad moves as well but we are a playoff team every year and I think the next two years we have a window to make another run.

Lets not forget the new CBA really hurt this team. No way we could resign all our guys after the lockout. The new free agency rules killed the bolts but i think we will start to recover. If we stayed under the old CBA and there was no lockout I would have loved to see our chances of repeating. most everyone would have been back.

[bear]

Uh Sarasota Bill, are you actually saying Feaster should get credit for signing Martin St Louis? Thats BS

Dudley signed him out of the East Coast League All Star game where he was playing after Calgary dumped him. Dudley also put together the team core.

All Feaster has done is dineout on Dudleys work

Unless of course you count Noreena, (2.78 GAA .904 SP in 55 games with Columbus) and Modin for Denis as praiseworthy or paying a -30 center who doesn't like to be hit almost 8 million a year.

Then there is Sean OBrien a 5/6 defenceman for a 1st rounder. That one gets a little more complicated too because his contract is up. Even though he's an RFA they are going to have to pay him a good chunk of their non existant cap space.

Pollyanna stuff..bring back Duds.

[SarasotaBill]

Thanks MM for the simple, yet so very true, dose of reality. I think we should all be happy we aren't Black Hawk or Blue Jacket fans. Sucks to be them the last several years.

Tim A. - I enjoyed your description of Hasek. A friend of mine described him (after his initial save) as a big ol grouper flopping on the boat deck with a big ol trebble hook firmly embedded in his jaw! Funny Stuff!

You also told me by a couple of things you said that you are no newcomer to the Bolts. Without being a longtime fan, you would never have made the comment to the effect of leaving a game several seasons ago and feeling like you got ripped off. Only those of us who experienced it would understand the comment. And the comment about Jersey and Philly fans tells me that you have spent some time at the rink. Those who haven't probably wouldn't make the distinction.

Happy Memorial Day Everyone!

[MM]

This is unreal. never have i seen 40 something posts on any subject here. here's my two cents.

the last four years,
four playoff appearances
two division championships
one conference championship
one stanley cup

that's a track record 20 some other teams would love to have and with recent news out of davidsons mouth it won't end soon. be happy with what we have people. including the gm

[Satch]

Sarasota Bill is off and running. The lemon you had with your Corona may have been sour but I'm wondering if there wasn't a little extra amphetamine mixed in there. Quite a roll!

I have to hand it to you. Right or wrong, you got guts. It wasn't long ago that you spoke out on coaching and, you are correct, you didn't call for his Ramer's head. You did point several fingers at him though. It was not well received. Although nobody directly challenged you about it, the silence after the comments was deafening. A few weeks later, here we are...................

As everyone was chastising Arty for being greedy and stupid, you suggested his, as you called him, "scumbag" agent might be the one at fault. Interesting theory. We'll never know.

Now it seems to be very popular to rag on Jay Feaster and you come to his defense. Of course that's nothing new, you've done it before.

Different points of view, maybe right, maybe wrong, often against the grain, but always entertaining.

On this Memorial Day Weekend, I salute the work you do! Your participation is appreciated!

A side note to Tim A.

I agree about the nasty personal attacks refering to the physical stature of any member of the Lightning brass. As uncalled for as the comment was, I did have to supress a mild chuckle. But I didn't say that did I? Let's leave personal attacks to the jersey and philly fans.

And on Feaster getting lazy. I don't really know if I would say that. I do feel that he put too much hope in a few players that simply didn't work out. Affy went into camp as a top 6 guy, for reasoning way beyond me, and he played himself down the lines, to a regular healthy scratch, to the waiver wire, and all the way to philly's 4th line. It was a bad call. There was also the disaster of turning the starters job to Grahame and running with him too long.

Mistakes were made for sure. But many good moves were made too. As SB was sticking feathers into Feasters hat he missed a couple and it surprised me. Looking to add veteran presence to a young team he brought in Taylor and Andy. Adding Andy was huge. He was the right guy at the right time. He was a very important part of the maturation of this team and the best you could ask for as a captain. In Feasters case, the good heavily outweighs the bad.

[Tim A]

Good points on Feaster. I've been very critical of him this year due to the Denis and Modin deal and the failure to add another scorer at the trade deadline. But all in all he has done a fairly good job in the past and he does recognize talent pretty well. He may have gotten a little lazy the last two years and come to rely on some questionable oppinions from some of his scouts. But as Sarasota Bill says, "these guys are human and make mistakes, they aren't perfect." Its all just part of the game and the GM's play in it too. You have to admit times are much better now than they were 10 years ago when the franchise was sucking and it looked pretty bleak for the team as well as the fans. I used to come home after a game and feel like I was ripped off. Davidson bought the team and then Dudley came in and did a pretty good job but even he drafted Nikita Alexeev #1 who in my oppinion should have been a #7 or #8, this was an awful draft pick. With what Feaster took over he has done a good job, I know that there are quite a few teams out that would be ready to snatch him up if he got the axe here. Who would you rather have in here as GM, LARRY PLEAU, DOUG MACLEAN, JACQUES MARTIN? I don't think so. So the next time we want to lower the boom on Feaster, just think who might replace him. And one other thing...its OK to ridicule the job that one of our players, coaches or front office guys do or don't do, because its all in fun and oppinion and thats what blogging is all good for, but I don't think its worthy of a true NHL fan, especially Lightning fans, to personally attack our coaches and GM with belittling remarks about their physical stature. That is something that I would expect from a New Jersey or Philly fan after about their normal 20 to 30 Natural Ices out of the can.

[SarasotaBill]

Woodsy, Glad to hear from you.

Look............I like Cory Stillman. I don't think any sane person could suggest Tampa would not have been better off if he had been on our roster the last 2 seasons. It just didn't work. He was offered a deal worth 3 mil a year and rejected it. He, and/or his agent, chose to enter into arbitration where he was ultimately awarded 3.9 mil. At that point Feaster has only 2 choices. Pay the 3.9 or turn him loose. He turned him loose. An argument could be made that he should have paid the 3.9 but you have to look at the environment at that time. Feaster was facing the very real possibility of a salary cap (with no idea what it might be) and had other players to sign as well. He had a tough business decision to make and he made it. In hindsight it was the right decision from a business point of view. Think about it........

In 05/06 this team was maxed as far as the cap was concerned. Had Feaster signed Stillman for 3.9 he would have had to dump a couple of other guys to keep under the cap limit. As much as I would have liked Cory to still be part of this team, it turned out to be the correct business decision. To tell you the truth, the entire thing worked out bad for both sides. Had Stillman signed here for the 3 mil he was offered, we would have likely been a better team and Cory would have made more money than what he ultimately got. Bad thing for Cory was, after the cap numbers were announced, teams chose not to sign a lot of their roster players and other teams chose to buy guys out which flooded the free agent market. His bidding power just went down. He ended up signing with Carolina for 1.75 mil, over a mil less than he was offered here. I made the comment he signed an awful contract. He did. Not because he is now the most underpaid top 6 forward in the league, but because he signed for 3 yrs at that price. Had he signed for a year or maybe 2, he could have hit the market and likely gotten offers in the 4 to 5 mil range. But hey, hindsight is pretty clear isn't it?

It's apparent you are not a Feaster Fan. But let me say this and I will then shut up!

Heading into the draft on 03, Feaster acquired Stillman for, if I remember correctly, a 4th round pick. An absolute steal. He then went and made a deal with philly sending them the 4th overall pick in the draft (a deal which he took a tremendous amount of heat for early on) for a guy we often referred to as Feds, and a couple of later round picks. One of those picks was sent to Dallas for a defensman we called Luk! In a couple of days Feaster added Stillman, Feds, and Luk to a pretty good core of current players. Later that same year he added Sydor for a late round draft pick. All 4 of those guys played huge parts in our championship year. Great moves in my book. Oh.....one more thing. Philly took a d-man with the 4th pick in the draft that Feaster traded to them. He's fighting for playing time as a 6th or 7th d-man on what was the worst team in the league last year.

Feaster has, in my opinion, made some great deals. O'Brien was acquired for a minor league goalie, who seemed to no longer be in the Bolts future, and a first round pick. In return we also got a 3rd rounder. Bottom line is, all the Bolts did was move from a late first round pick to an early 3rd round pick in a fairly weak draft, and they got O'Brien to boot. In my opinion, that's a steal. Ward for what.....a 4th rounder? Nice acquisition. Cheap too. But what sticks in most peoples craw lately is the Denis deal. Make no mistake, that deal flat out sucked. It hurt the Lightning at both ends of the rink. Big Time!!! But look at the entire picture. Not every deal is going to work out. I wonder how Calgary feels about waiving Marty St Louis and allowing Tampa to snag him for the huge amount of $1. GM's are human like the rest of us and mistakes are made. I wonder how Boston likes that Thornton deal now? All in all, I think Jay has done a very solid job.

Too bad his legacy is only measured in the awful Denis deal.

[bear]

Woodsy:
"Let's not forget who let a 20-30 goal scorer in Modin go so we could acquire our "savior" in Marc Denis...Feaster"

As bad as losing Modin was, people seem to gloss over the fact that Feaster also threw a goalie back to Columbus in that "deal".

Fredrik Noreena!!

Last year in the NHL he started over 50 games with Columbus with a 2.78 GAA and .904 save percentage.

That trade killed us and no one talks about the Noreena part.

[Tim A]

absolutely agree with Sarasota Bill on this one. Too many fans out there are taking their knowledge of Hockey from Big Dog and Bobby Taylor. I as well will puke if I here this cliché' mentioned again.

With the talent and speed in today's game and the velocity with which the forwards in the NHL shoot the puck, teams have to rely on defensemen to knock the forwards off the puck ALA Niedermeyer, Pronger, Volchenkov and Lindstrom. These are special players that provide goaltenders the extra time and space to adjust and get the desired angle to neutralize shots from the slot and keep the opponents out of the crease. The last two years the Bolts have allowed everyone to camp out in the crease and to rule the slot. Just look at what the Bolt's defense allowed Nathan Horton to do from the slot (he owned us.) If the Bolts don't correct this problem, Nathan Horton will make the Hall of Fame just off his numbers against the Bolts.

Goaltending should be nothing more than an extension of the defense and the last resort when all else fails.
Ray Emery is nothing special but his numbers are indicative of a great defensive scheme, the same goes for Dominick Hasek. If Hasek would have started for the Bolts this year he would have looked like a towel in a dryer with all the acrobatics he performs to stop a puck.

Wasting money on more goaltending is far from the right answer right now. Let Holmqvist show us what he's got first, especially now that he feels more comfortable with the Bolts and has a good one year contract. I have a feeling he has the ability to become a special player if he is provided the opportunity. He's been successful at every level that he has ever played in and has a World Championship with Sweden to his credit. I agree with Feaster on this one when he said that, "he is just one more piece to the puzzle."

[Woodsy]

And while were talking about pulling the wool over eyes...that's exactly what Feaster has done to Lightning Fans. Signing a goaltender in Marc Denis who has played sub-par (3.00 lifetime GAA) in his career at best and has absolutely no playoff experience in the NHL. Compare those numbers to a Hasek or Brodeur. (2.20 lifetime GAA) Denis was supposed to bring Stanley back to Tampa? I don't think so.

[Woodsy]

Sarasota Bill,
My point here is that Feaster has allowed too many good players to leave here and replaced them with duds. Maybe Stillman's agent is to blame for him not still being in Tampa, I'm not sure. But when a guy scores 80 points and is a plus 18 for you in the regular season then you should do your best to keep him around. Stillman went on to win another Cup in Carolina and by the way scored three game winners in the post season. I'm not saying that he would have changed our postseason result this year, but the depth sure would have helped.

At least I agree with you on two things...
1. GOALTENDING is the only way that the Bolts will ever win another championship, period the end. It doesn't matter how many goals your top guns score, if you don't have goaltending in the postseason, you are done.

2. Sour lemons in Corona are really, really bad.

[SarasotaBill]

One last thing.............sheesh, I need to get away from this keyboard and get a life.

If I hear one more person use the overused, baseless, and flat out stupid, cliche "your best penalty killer is your goalie" I think I'm gonna puke. All That tells me is that the person who says something like that tells me that their knowledge of hockey comes all the way from one, or maybe 2, intermission commentators or local talk radio. It's the easiest expression for someone to use who can't explain defensive hockey with any sort of clarity. It's an easy cliche to lean on and at the same time very telling of the sayer.

When someone comes here and insults a good many knowledgeable people with that comment, it just P!$$&$ me off.

OK, so maybe the lemon I had with my Corona at happy hour was a little sour tonight. Or maybe the second, or 3rd or..........nevermind. I'm out for now!!

Go Bolts!!!!!!!

[SarasotaBill]

Thank you F.T.B.S for the kind words, and I'm pretty sure Torts doesn't read comments from all of us armchair GM's. There are many knowledgeable hockey fans here but the key word there is "fans." If we were so smart, we would be sitting in Feaster's chair. But we are not. We are just happy that Damian and the SPT gives us an opportunity to voice our opinions here.

As much as I love to read the opinions of other fans, agreeing or disagreeing, I get annoyed by people who try to throw out BS as fact. Stay with me for a minute. I have strongly disagreed with many a post here but nevertheless I enjoy the passion behind the opinion. I can easily live with that. An opinion is what it is..........let's not get into the opinion thing. We all have them and we have the right to them. Damian and the SPT allows us to write them. What a great world!!

On the other hand, some of the things I see here disturb the crap out of me. People who arbitrarily toss out so called facts with absolutely no basis in fact.

Case in point.....................

; .; ; .; ; .; ; .; ; .; ; .; ; .; ; .; ;True, Stillman was awarded 3.9 mil in arbitration but he never asked the Lightning to re-sign him for that number. He wanted a modest increase and that was definitely a do-able number for Feaster, only because he wanted to stay here in Tampa. I only know this because he coached my son's hockey team. What he signed for with the Canes was a modest increase.
Posted by: Woodsy | May 25, 2007 at 10:40 AM

Lets deal in facts, not fantasy, for a moment. Listen close Woodsy, you might learn something!

After we won the Cup in 04, Stillman was, according to the CBA rules at the time, a "restricted free agent." Simply meaning he could not peddle himself to any team in the league without another team having to pay a large price to Tampa if they were to sign him. He was however, eligible for arbitration. Just so you know Woodsy, negotiation ends when the two sides go to arbitration. An "independent arbitrator" hears both sides of the story and makes an "award." The team then has the opportunity to accept the award or decline. If they accept, they must sign the player for whatever the award amount is. Nothing less, nothing more. It's the rules. If they decline, the player is then awarded "unrestricted" status and can negotiate with whomever and the declining team (in this case tampa) gets no compensation. Stillman was awarded 3.9 mil and Feaster, facing a yet unknown salary cap, declined to accept the offer making Stillman an unrestricted free agent. Still with me?

Don't take my word for this, look at the archives. It's all there. The lightning had offers on the table ranging from 2.5 mil a year to 3.0 mil a year with the difference being the years of the contract. Look it up jack, it's all there for the world to see. Once it was apparent that Stillman and/or his agent made it clear that the amount wasn't enough, Feaster pulled the offers off the table awaiting the arbitration hearing which is customary. Stillman was awarded "unrestricted" status and could negotiate with anyone. How did that work out for him? Stillman remained unsigned during the lockout and when the smoke cleared, he found himself in a tough position. Teams were dumping salary all over the place and he was a player without a home. He signed an awful contract as far as I'm concerned. Great for Carolina, sucks for him. This guy is worth every penny of the 3 mil offered by the Lightning. Playing now for 1.75 mil is his, and his own agents doing.

And by the way...............Stillman just wanted a "modest raise" and he got it with Carolina? Look again, he signed not only for less than what the Lightning offered him by a million, he signed for less than what he made in 03/04.

Woodsy, your comments are as welcome here as everyone else's, just don't try to pull the wool over eyes that see more than you do. You WILL be called on it!

[Satch]

Benjamin, Benjamin, Benjamin!

Let's see what you said.......

"But when you have Sarich letting a center sit behind a net waiting for a player to break open for a point blank shot that is not the coach."

How sure are you of that? If a coach instructs his players to "maintain position" and not aggressively play defense, is it the players fault for listening to the coach? I think that is the point here. Did these guys forget everything they have learned all their careers and all of the sudden get stupid? Or.....was there a coaching issue?

That is what is in question here and I think a great case has been made for it being a coaching issue. If Sarich goes behind the net and gives up his post, will he sit for a few games for not following instructions?

These guys have been playing as coached. Nothing else to say about it!

[Benjamin]

I think better blue liners are the reason for poor play on defense and most of the pk. The goaltender has to move from one side of the crease to the other with quickness and Denis showed none of that last year. But when you have Sarich letting a center sit behind a net waiting for a player to break open for a point blank shot that is not the coach.
I am sure with a new asistant and a new goaly coach this team will make improvements on defese and make teams pay for entering the zone.

[F.T.B.S. ;-)]

Ah, Bill you're the best. Very well put and right on point.

For his own sanity preservation, I'm sure Torts doesn't read this sludge from all of us. But I sincerely hope he can see what is going on and the players don't lie down on him, instead of other club's shots..

[SarasotaBill]

WOW!! This subject has brought everyone out of their chairs. Cool!!!!

Let me first clear the air on something here. Satch, with all due respect, I NEVER called for Rammer's head. I did however, question coaching. I mentioned Rammer by name and made comments to the effect that there was a real problem with defensive coaching and since Rammer was, as we know it, in charge of the D and PK it fell on him. Ultimately all coaching responsibility, good or bad, falls on the head of the "Head Coach." At the same time, if the head coach doesn't get what he wants out of his assistants, can he be held responsible? Of course he can! He's the head coach after all. If he can't control his players, his assistants, and whomever, he has to face the music. By all reported stories, he and Rammer didn't see eye to eye and when that happens, the "associate" coach is the one who gets whacked. In this case, I think it is a step in the right direction.

Nobody can tell me that our D and PK was up to par. Nobody. Try if you want, but you have no solid ground to stand on. It ain't there. Look.........I wish Rammer the best and he will find a new job in this league. Let's be happy for what he contributed while he was here and bid him a happy adios. It was move that was, in my opinion, necessary and overdue. Let's talk about the D for a minute. Cory Sarich is not the most fleet footed d-man on the team however his strength is his physical play. How many hits did you see him throw in the last couple of years? He is clearly the best open ice hitter on the team and maybe the best open ice hitter ever to wear the Lightning jersey, but if you saw him play the last couple of years you would never know it. Early in the year we saw Kuba playing some pretty good D and was taking the body with some regularity. Then the physical play seemed to disappear. Shane O'Brien shows up here with a rep as a hard hitter who likes physical play. My thought was, bout time!! Finally, someone who will hit back there. Feaster's comments after acquiring Shane were that he had the skills to carry the puck out of the zone which is something the team likes but he also plays a very physical game that he felt was lacking on this team. Quickly he picked up the "jump into the play" theory. Just as quickly, he picked up the Lightning defensive play and became nothing more than another poke checking fool just like the rest of them. What happened? I think it's clear. He was playing as coached and he was being coached to play a type of game that didn't allow him to play to his strength as a physical D man. There's a problem there.

We won the Cup with a couple of guys (Cully and Kubina) who regularly took the body. The next couple of seasons the physical play went away and it's not that those guys aren't here anymore. We have guys capable and willing to play the body but they are coached to "play the puck first, not the man." On offense, the guys are told to get in the offensive zone and knock people off the puck and gain control of the thing. Why would you not play the same way in your own zone? Passive defensive play has hurt this team, big time.

Some here seem to think Torts should have been the one to go. On what grounds? When he took over the PP it was anemic at best. Ranking near the bottom of the league just like the PK. He turned it around while the PK, under Rammer's direction, continued to suck as did d play. To me it seems very clear where the weak link was. End of story!!

There is still a question in my mind about the "team concept." Was Rammer guilty of adding his own touches to the PK and/or D play or is it the "team concept" that is at fault? That will only become clear in October when the team hits the ice for another season. If I see the same type "poke check em to death" defense, I'll be the first one to call for Tort's head. You don't win that way in the NHL. Never have, never will. If we see D men all of the sudden starts knocking people off the puck then I guess we know where the style of play came from. Until then, we will wait and wonder.

[Bolts-Canucks Fan]

I am not fully aware of the ramifications in Ramsey's firing, but after 2 seasons the Bolts are ousted in the first round, something had to be done. We're the 04 Cup champs and there's no excuse that this team cannot make another Cup run in 08. Dave Andreychuk would be a great replacement. The guys respond to him and he has tons of playing experience that will serve him well as a coach. Maybe bring in recently retired Brian Leetch to better prepare the Bolts' defense. There are my thoughts and thanks for reading. Go Sens!

[Dave...]

When someone screams at you and calls you out, you have two options. Step up or sit back. Unfortunately, as Torts keeps up his screaming and humiliation, one reaches a point where you don't give a damn anymore and sit back.

Torts needed a scape goat. No doubt Torts was setting his plan in motion way before the play offs with Jay.

The wrong man went.

[Woodsy]

Bud, I enjoyed your post too. Your insight into the Lightning was very informative. Thanks for your brillance.

[Woodsy]

True, Stillman was awarded 3.9 mil in arbitration but he never asked the Lightning to re-sign him for that number. He wanted a modest increase and that was definitely a do-able number for Feaster, only because he wanted to stay here in Tampa. I only know this because he coached my son's hockey team. What he signed for with the Canes was a modest increase.

[Mike13]

Hey ted, I happen to know quite a bit about hockey and I don't appreciate the high and mighty attitude.

Besides, I'm not a Tortorella fan and I think that he is ridiculously hard on his staff and players. Aside from conditioning, I'm not sure what else he's really bringing to the table. He is particularly bad on his netminders. That said, I maintain that letting go of Ramsay is a good first step to a possible overhaul of something besides our support players. Who knows maybe Torts and Feaster are the next to go. That wouldn't necessarily be a bad thing.

Boyle is an average defensive NHLer but he has FANTASTIC offensive capabilities. I happen to like Boyle a lot. What he needs is a partner that can cover for him when he pinches and help defend against the odd man rushes.

Woodsy, the only reason we didn't re-sign Stillman is because he was awarded $3.9 million in arbitration and the Bolts let him walk. Instead they opted for Prospal at $1.9 million. Stillman later signed with the 'Canes for $1.75-mil. Go figure.

[Mike13]

Hey ted, I happen to know quite a bit about hockey and I don't appreciate the high and mighty attitude.

Besides, I'm not a Tortorella fan and I think that he is ridiculously hard on his staff and players. Aside from conditioning, I'm not sure what else he's really bringing to the table. He is particularly bad on his netminders. That said, I maintain that letting go of Ramsay is a good first step to a possible overhaul of something besides our support players. Who knows maybe Torts and Feaster are the next to go. That wouldn't necessarily be a bad thing.

Boyle is an average defensive NHLer but he has FANTASTIC offensive capabilities. I happen to like Boyle a lot. What he needs is a partner that can cover for him when he pinches and help defend against the odd man rushes.

Woodsy, the only reason we didn't re-sign Stillman is because he was awarded $3.9 million in arbitration and the Bolts let him walk. Instead they opted for Prospal at $1.9 million. Stillman later signed with the 'Canes for $1.75-mil. Go figure.

[Bud]

Personal Insults,,Wow Try to Grow up some,then try to post again.

[Woodsy]

I have only two words for Jay Feaster: JENNY CRAIG

Dude, lose the life preserver under your chin, the celebration from 2004 is over.

Let's not forget who failed to re-sign Stillman after our Cup year...Feaster (and by the way, Stillman came back after the lockout and won another Cup with the Canes.)

Let's not forget who had to bring Prospal back into our lineup...Feaster (Prospal was an absolute disaster this year.)

Let's not forget who let a 20-30 goal scorer in Modin go so we could acquire our "savior" in Marc Denis...Feaster (Denis would have trouble making my son's squirt travel hockey team.)

You think that Larry Robinson would stand on the same bench as Tortorella's assistant? Are you crazy? A more likely scenario would be to make Larry Robinson the head coach and give Tortorella the assistant job.

What else does Feaster have hiding under his chin?

[ted]

If some of you new more about hockey you would no your best penalty killer has got to be your goalie and the goaltending sucked. Maybe the defense quit on torts because if your boss yelled at you all day you wouldn't want to work for him either and thats all torts did he looked like an idiot. I also agree with ed about the d being better than people give it credit for example Boyle and Kuba with there stats and if i remember correctly Boyle was nothing until Ramsay turned him into a player but you obviously missed that and Ranger has turned into a serious player under Ramsay to a key part of the future of this team. To many people blame the d because they listen to torts blame them all the time as he beat them all down mentally. He was like a broken record. As far as Feaster the team that won the cup was a team that was built by Rick Dudley and Feaster has been ruining it ever since. He should step down because he really know's nothing about hockey. I hope your not looking for a rookie to come in because there's none good enough in the minors because of him and his staff from poor drafting. Some of you have said they should bring in new d-men maybe Ramsay did what he could with what he had. Ramsay was a man with class and will be truly missed as he is one of the most respected men in hockey.

[Satch]

Ah.....ED? Raammer was indeed in charge of special teams for the last 2 years. This last year, and only this last year, Torts took over the PP unit because he was less than happy about the results. Last I looked, our PP was somewhere around 8th or 9th in the league this season. A great improvement over the previous season and even greater improvement over our ranking earlier this season when Rammer was running things. The guy coached his way into the bottom of the league with the PK. The only reason the PP got better was because Torts took over. Meanwhile, the PK and D play continued to suck. Get the picture yet?

And hey, If Rammer has no responsibility as far as special teams or D, why is he here? What's his job? To stroke the players egos among other things?

I wish Rammer the best. He's a great human being but sometimes marriages break up. It happens. It's a positive step.

[Ed]

Hey Mike 13 way to go you proved Greg's point exactly. Ramsay was not incharge of special teams for last 2 years. You proved why Tortorella should go!

[Tim A]

I could't agree more with Mike 13. Also the notion that Jeff Reese should be fired? I don't know about that one. After all he has had some success with the cards he was dealt. If the d-fense is better, the goaltending and special teams will be better. The d-fense has been broke. It seemed like it was a hybrid of the old Boston Bruins and the Phildelphia scheme that I wasn't to fond of, in fact they had no identity with the exeption of Dan Boyle scoring allot of goals by pinching. Bottom line it didn't work, made the goal tending look bad and was responsible for the highest amount of odd-man rusheds that I've ever seen in professional hockey. I'll never forget with 30 seconds into one of the Panther games a 3 on none. In all my days of watching Hockey I never saw one like that so early in a game. I said then that Ramsey has definitely lost his edge. I looked over to Bench and saw what I thought I was going to see, Torts going mid-evil on his d-coach. Ramsey did what he always did answered back in a calm manner and then retook his stoic posture behind his players. I believe throughout the season that there was a rift between the two coaches and at some point of the season, Ramsey quit on torts for a short time. I then think they patched things up just long enough to get a decent run in January and February and got enough wins to get them back into the hunt.

When there is turmoil on a team or in a job and drama becomes the norm, I know that things can become miserable for everyone around including the troops. The players tried their best to not let all of this bother them but I know it had to filter down. I think now that management has taken steps to see that it doesn't take place again next season could produce some good results, provided the d-fense is there.

[Mike13]

Here's some stats for ya':

2006-07 PK: 78.4% (27th)
2006-07 Playoffs PK: 75.0% (15th)
2006-07 SHGA: 11 (22nd)

2005-06 PK: 81.6% (18th)
2005-06 Playoffs PK: 66.7% (16th)
2005-06 SHGA: 11 (18th)

2003-04 PK: 84.9% (10th)
2003-04 Playoffs PK: 85.5% (10th)
2003-04 SHGA: 4 (3rd)

[Mike13]

Hey Greg, goes to show you how much you've been paying attention for the last 2 years.

The PP has been extremely bad when we needed it to be good. Granted, it was hot when we needed it to be hot. Let's also not forget that our beloved Bolts ranked about 23rd or so in short-handed goals against and gave up far too scoring chances when up a man (or two).

The PK has been extremely bad...period. When we needed it to come through, far too often did it fail, miserably. Especially when Richie was in the box.

The defense was pretty much a joke, defensively speaking. The defense left the goal tending out to dry far too many times to give any netminder a chance.

I don't disagree with the notion that Tortorella needs to go -or that Feaster should be long gone. But this is a good first step. It tells me that maybe the team isn't so afraid after all of making the right decisions.

You would think that since the golie is the main key to a good penalty kill, perhaps Reese should be on the chopping block. Better yet maybe Freaster should be fired for providing such amateur goal tending for the team to work with. There's plenty of blame to be passed around here, and it's not fair that one person is taking the fall for everyone else.

[Tim A]

I'm not saying that the "philosophy" of the Bolts for the last 2 seasons was a great thing. But I'm not going to advocate playing a boring fruitless trap either. I'm also saying that the Bolts have failed to achieve what they did in 2004 and someone had to be held accountable, I'm sorry it had to be Ramsey. Torts, though he is not sqeakie clean from all the issues here, he is a great head coach and the Bolts have prospered under his leadership. We at least owe him one more chance to repeat as the Stanley Cup Champions. His "philosophy" has been good enough to provide us with 4 straight play-off appearances and next year will most likely give us 5. If his "philosophy" doesn't work out, then fire Torts, Feaster and Cambell. I believe the lightning are way to close to great success again, and at this juncture we shouldn't throw out the baby with the bath water.

I think everyone is failing to look at the states. If you actually stop and look for yourself and forget about what the newspapers are saying you will see that Boyler and Kuba are combined for the most goals from a defencive pair. I haven't even begone to get started about Ranger who was on the Young Guns team! Have we forgotton that the golies were average at best? Our 1st string golie Denis who was Feister's pick up was replaced with the 2nd string because he couldn't stop a beach ball. This is not to take anything away from Homer because he stepped up and became a valued asset. He gave up Modin who was a 20-30 goal scorer and one of the better penalty killers in the league for a golie who didn't even dress in the play-offs. With this said why is Craig Ramsay being fired? I have but only one reason because Ramsay has more hockey knowlege and experience in his pinky finger than Tortorella and Feaster combined. That must really be intimidating!

[Kevin]

Is Jeff Reese, goaltending coach, safe in his job? It seems to me he has had less success in his role than Ramsey.

[Amy]

We love Rammer!!

Tim. A defensive coach can't do anything about a head coach who only wants an offensive game. Torts got lucky again. I agree with the above comments about people who really know hockey will snatch up Ramsey. Philosophy is the issue and it's time for the Philosophy to go!

[Tim A]

Something had to done about the weak defensive play and special teams. All through the last two seasons the Lightning's defense was non-existant and the penaly kill sucked. Ramsey is a good man and no-one will ever forget his contribution to the 2004 Cup run. However, everyone could see the pinching lazy play of the bolts and poor clearing skills possessed by the Bolts's D and special teams were absolutely killing them.

I wish Ramsey only the best for him and his family and I hope he can get an opportunity to redeem himself with another team.

I currently disagree with the notion to fire coach Tortorella. It has been his ability to coach and to motivate that has put the Lightning into the play-offs for 4 straight seasons. This isn't to say that Torts isn't on notice, because I believe that most of the Lightning's front office are on notice but as they say S#%^ rolls down hill. It just happend to land on Ramsey this time.

With all that being said, now is time to find a new defensive model and several players that can make it work. There are several veteran defensmen that can handle the challenge and Bolts need to go out and get them.

[Bill]

Maybe they should have tried Ramsay's philosophy instead of Feister and Tortorella's they might have made it deeper in the play-offs. Ramsay actually played in the NHL. I can't say that for the head coach or the GM! Lets face it Tortorella's time is well past due. If you want to fire Ramsay than Tortorella should have gone too.

[Joe]

All of a sudden, Craig Ramsey is the one who apparently got caught with his hands in the "stupid pill" jar. He used to be praised by Torts and the overnourished Big Jay for his smarts, his loyalty, and his dedication to the team. Craig is an experienced, successful former NHL player; a former NHL head coach; and, highly regarded hockey guy in general. John and Jay (both of whom sadly lack in Ramsey's type of hockey background) must feel uncomfortable with him around because the Rammer probably reached the level of frustration where he needed to point out that the king was wearing no clothes (with contrary irony, some NHL folks think of Feaster as an "empty suit").

Ramsey's job lies at the alter of the sins of his superiors in the Lightning organization. Here's the proof of the pudding: just wait and see how long it takes for the Rammer to connect with another team, no matter how ungenerous has former employer's comments might be.

Non-hockey-people-Lightning-execs and decision-makers (Davidson, Wilson, Campbell, and Feaster) have chosen their designated fall guy for the team's two years of gross underachievements. Certainly, far be it from them to take responsibility for dramatic failures to meet reasonable objectives. And, fortunately for them, as a man of very high character, Craig Ramsey will not likely speak out about their lack of stewardship (or lack thereof).

This is all about extremely pathetic managerial shabbiness. Clearly, the tail has been pinned on the wrong donkey!

[Ed]

We love you rammer. You are the best thing that has happened to this team. We will miss you. Not to worry though some other team that truley knows the game of hockey will pick him up and then they will be kicking our butts! To bad they fired the wrong guy. Tortorella, you should have been First.

[Steve]

Tortorrella is the problem here not Ramsay. I think the organization is making a huge mistake. Last time I checked it was Tortorella that was sreaming like an idiot on the bench and making terrible remarks about his players to the press not Ramsay. Well good luck next year because without Ramsay the team has no chance.

[Greg]

Goes to show what Mike 13 knows Rammer hasn't had the power play for the last 2 years. I think we all know the wrong guy was fired. How many more times can tortorella find someone else to blame it on. The team is only as good as its leader. Tortorells it's time for you to go!!!

[Satch]

I'm surprised Sarasota Bill isn't all over this one. He's been calling for Ramer's head for some time. He didn't make any friends doing it here but turns out he is not the only one who thought that way.

Now...........who steps in? F.T.B.S. says Larry Robinson. How sweet would that be?

[Another Joe]

I agree it was time for a little shake up. I like Ramsay and he was good for us at the right time, but now its time for a change up. Its that simple.

GO BOLTS!

[Another Joe]

I agree it was time for a little shake up. I like Ramsay and he was good for us at the right time, but now its time for a change up. Its that simple.

GO BOLTS!