What 2 watch 4

So let's continue the discussion from last weekend's story in the paper on the Lightning's burning questions heading into camp. My top 10 story lines are the goaltending, Vinny Lecavalier, Vinny Prospal, Ryan Craig, Andreas Karlsson, the rebuilt defense, Brad Richards' line, Chris Gratton and Dan Boyle.

The goaltending is easy. The way I see it, all the Lightning needs is average work from whoever is in net (and by average I mean a .900 save percentage) for the team to be a contender in the East. Vinny Prospal also is a given as is how Michel Ouellet and Jan Hlavac mesh with Richards. Gratton, well, he might be the most important acquisition of the summer given his goal-scoring ability and faceoff prowess. The defense will have to cope with the loss of Nolan Pratt and Cory Sarich and perhaps the addition of one new player (Dan Jancevski or Matt Smaby, perhaps?) who have little NHL experience. And Ryan Craig, left off the top four lines for now, at least, has to prove his balky right knee is sound and he can be a more consistent scorer.

So what else? Give me your list. What are the things you will be watching when training camp opens on Thursday at the Ice Sports Forum in Brandon. Why are they important? And do you see any solutions for your concerns or questions?

You know it's not all serious here. We let you know about the joyous occasions in the players' lives as well. So let's start with defenseman Dan Boyle, who got engaged on a summer trip to France to Amber Esposito, a hairdresser from Indian Rocks Beach he met in January 2002, the first week he was in town after being acquired from the Panthers. He said he needed a haircut and walked into the high-end Tampa salon in which she worked. They became friends and took them more than a year to start dating. And even after all this time, Boyle joked, "She can stand me.''

Babies also are coming. Right wing Marty St. Louis said he and wife Heather will have their third child, and third son, in January. Forward Ryan Craig said he and wife Jaydee will have their first child, a son, in December.

And just as a quick update, captain Tim Taylor is home from the hospital after last week's hip surgery and going through what wife Jodi called "pretty intense'' therapy. 

   

Comments

[mbab]

we got some deep thinkers in the group .....I read that comment and cratched my head hard....it raised a huge question mark about torts....where the heck has he been the past 2 years....you can blame rammer all you want but isn't torts where the puck stops???strange strange comment to say the least...maybe the flip side is torts was screaming for two years and ramsey wasn't listen....but, I think that is the easy way out....maybe sully can give torts some pointers on the offense too!!!!!

[SarasotaBill1]

Goldenbolt!!!

Thank you!! You just made my day!!

I love those words so much I have to copy and paste em just so I can read them again!

"On the Bolt show last night Tort's stated and I quote: I MET WITH SULLY TODAY AND HE SHOWED ME HOW HE WANTS THE 'D' TO STAND THE OPPOSING TEAM UP AT THE BLUE. OUR DEFENSE WAS SOFT LAST YEAR WE NEED TO PLAY AGGRESSIVE JUST LIKE THE 'O'."

I knew what I wanted to hear but I couldn't have scripted a better quote. I also find something in what Torts said very interesting. When he met with Sully, Sully told HIM how he wants the D to play. That tells me that Sully was given a few feet of leash to develop the defensive scheme. I like that! At the same time, it seems odd that this conversation took place the day before camp opens.

Hey......Who Cares!! All I know is that aggressive D is back in town!!

[Satch]

SB1 wink wink!!

I'm in!!!

[Lightning rod]

The one thing that I hope Gratton has more control of is his past tendency of making stupid "bone head" decisions; and ending up in the penalty box at critical times. From his statements, he appears to have matured; and I hope that he now has more control. We shall see.

[Lightning rod]

SB1 Wink! Wink!

[goldenbolt]

This just in and I'll put it in CAPS.

On the Bolt show last night Tort's stated and I quote: I MET WITH SULLY TODAY AND HE SHOWED ME HOW HE WANTS THE 'D' TO STAND THE OPPOSING TEAM UP AT THE BLUE. OUR DEFENSE WAS SOFT LAST YEAR WE NEED TO PLAY AGGRESSIVE JUST LIKE THE 'O'. Man if that happens we have just improved a whole bunch........ And he also mentioned the same style for the Penalty kill. No more backing away from the blue line for the easy entry. Can't wait c ya all Saturday.

godenbolt

[Phantom]

Geez I hope I'm wrong about Gratton. If so, I'll be the first to admit it and take my own hard face wash, then entertain the line of wet gloves.

I still remember the spot on the back of my neck where the hair stood and cold chill started when reading we still want to have the same impressive offence. You know what that means...same shoddy defence and goalie-groupers flopping around.

We'll be all right if we stay reasonably healthy.
Let's get on with it already! Go Bolts!

[mbab]

i love all the comments about the past "d" and why this and why that??those 6 guys have to be more assertive on a constant basis....that one area of our team will have to change and I feel everything else will benefit if they play tighter and tougher....good teams stand up the blue line like they are protecting their children....the deeper teams went in the playoffs the more it was awesome to watch how their defense never ever let teams skate unattended into the offensive zone....ottawa completely shut buffalo off the blueline and the sabre offense came to a grinding halt..this is the number one thing we must correct this year...if your defense caves in, it starts a very bad domino effect...the forwards have to come deep to help...which prevents any kind of transition game...we were guilty of this alot last year....hopefully it will all be corrected with some new blood from both coaching and a couple new players....I HOPE.....unlike the bucs...i am optimistic for our bolts....i will throw my hat into the ring for gratton.....i hated when we played him and those are the kinda guys you want on your team....go bolts go....an old hockey adage is control the blue line control the game.... we will have to wait and see......and it is almsot HERE!!!!!!

[SarasotaBill1]

I guess everything has pretty much been covered here. The 2 biggest issues I see are secondary scoring and defense.

A more balanced attack will not only create problems for other teams, it will allow the trinity to get a breather from time to time. Forwards playing 25 - 28 minutes is insane. Last year there wasn't much of a choice. Hopefully Ouellet and/or Hlavac will hit with Richards. One of them has to or we will have the same issues as last year.

Although a Phantom by any name will disagree, I think adding Grats was a great move. He brings a combination of grit and skill that our 3rd line hasn't seen in some time. That can only help.

Defense is a combination of questions. Who becomes the #6 guy? I happen to think our top 5, from a skill point of view, are better than what most people here think. We may not be stacked on D like the Ducks but who else really is? Boyle is Boyle. Let's hope this team finds a way to keep him. The other 4 are, at the very least, talented and skilled enough to provide more than solid D. I know..........didn't look that way last season. My opinion of that has not changed.

The style of D play was what didn't work. Passive, collapsing D that allowed opposing forwards easy access into our zone and a lot of free ice to move around in while the Dmen took their positions a little up and out from the posts. If this team plays D as aggressively as it plays in the offensive zone, we'll see a huge difference. I think L Rod had the best question about Sully and the D.

In the past when I questioned the coaching (Rammer) I also stated that I wasn't 100% sure if this style was his influence or just a part of the total "team" concept. I still don't know for sure. One thing I do know.... that question will be answered for all very soon. If the style doesn't change, in my mind, it's still a coaching issue and shame on me for pointing at the wrong coach. As I understand it, Sully will now coach D and PK. I'm anxious to see what he has up his sleeve.

Speaking of Sully, where has he been? Unless I missed something, he hasn't been heard from since he was hired. I'd be interested to hear his thoughts on players, team D concept, etc. I've got an old friend who's son played for Sully a couple of years ago. I was told that he's tough, demanding, yet he remembers being a player. His opinion was that Sully has found the delicate balance of being tough and demanding while remaining a "players" coach. On top of it all, they like playing for him. That's good news!

All those goals we coughed up last year were not just because of D play. Play of the D certainly didn't help but I can't let the goalies off the hook here. In a perfect world you would have strong defensive play and a top goalie. Last year Tampa had neither. Not even close. One of these clowns has to start stopping some pucks. I also like the denis comment about flopping around. I've seen his imitation of a freshly landed mackeral flopping around the bottom of the boat with the hook still in his chops. I can't defend his poor play last year but a lot of the loose pucks he was scrambling for should have been cleared by the D.

Through it all, the Bolts made the playoffs for the 4th straight year and for that I am grateful. Let's go for 5! With a little help here, a little help there, who knows what can happen?

Let's Play Hockey!!

Oh, that reminds me. Not only is the NHL getting ready to start up for another season, fantasy hockey is also ready to go. I was thinking that a league of us armchair GM's might be fun. If someone like myself was willing to create a league for others to play in, I guess all I'd have to do is create a yahoo ID with the name I used to post this message. Interested players would then be able to contact me, including our host, to express their interest. wink, wink.

Of course I would never do anything that our host and his employer would frown upon. I was just sayin........

[mbab]

danny boyle sucking wind at the end of the last two playoff games summed up the whole year for me....the guy is a gifted skater and he was on the ice every other shift late in the game.....he was EXHAUSTED...let's hope we get more "team" this year and less whipping the four studs to death....he played 32 minutes the last game....and yes I remember him barely being able to stand as the horn sounded.....he was in the same bent over position as vinny and marty......love danny boyle...love em!!!

[Mike13]

I want to see what kind of shape the following KEY guys are in:

Kuba - Looked very good in his first year with the Bolts. Will he be in better shape this year?

O'Brien - What and how much did he learn in the 2nd half of the season with the Bolts? Did he apply himself this summer to getting better?

Boyle - The guy is a warrior, but very often, I saw him sucking wind last year. With this being a contract year, did he work hard during the hot months to put himself in a position to really earn a huge pay raise?

Ranger - Again. Is he in better shape? He has looked good the last 2 years in Brandon. Looking for more of the same, steady improvement.

Vinny4 - Did he let off the gas and enjoy a hard earned stellar year? Let's hope not.

Denis - He said he worked hard and is ready to prove himself. Alright. Sounds good. Let's see if he's got the game to back it up.

Holmqvist - Did he shore up that short side issue? If so, he's ready to go. If not. Let's hope Denis is ready.

[goldenbolt]

The scramble (Denis) and frozen comment for Holmer sums up the goalie tandem. Holmer has a chance to improve but only time will tell. Yes, Rod my ticks are in as well... can't wait hoping to catch practice over the weekend.....

'D' and Goaltending - will decide the year for the Bolts. 20 games in we should know baring late season injuries.

[mbab]

LROD...i loved the comment about denis scrambling in front of the net....i can't tell you how many times we were either at the game or watching it with a group of guys and we are all yelling......denis just grab the damn puck!!!!as you can see i agree 110% with that part of your blog....nervous nelly???...anyway let the games begin!!!go bolts

Let's hope special teams improve this season,how many game did the lightning lose because they coundnt score on a power play.The season they won the cup they went on the ice with confidence on the power play and they got a goal.
I cant wait for the season to start!

[Lightning rod]

With Rammer gone, will the defensive system change is my biggest question. It's obvious that Homer's weakness is that he needs time to set-up for a shot. He's fine if gets in position, when he doesn't he has let in a number of pretty soft goals. Denis's main weakness is scrambling for the puck in the crease. He really has a hard time finding and covering the puck in a scramble, and his form goes to hel_ in a hand basket. If the defense can give Homer the time to set-up (a second or 2), and clear the front of the net for Denis (just 20% to 25% better), they both could be at .900, without much improvement on their part. If Denis improves on his own, so much the better. I think Homer is on tract to be a good NHL goalie; and he has only upside potential.

The real issues are will Tort's let Sullivan change the defensive system, to better deal with the weaknesses of the 2 goalie's; and do we have the defensemen that can do it? Only time will tell.

On the offensive side, I really like the acquisitions, and the way the team is taking shape.

Got my season ticket packages, so let's play hockey.

[F.T.B.S.]

All good and valid points mentioned above, especially coaching.

Beyond our spotty but sparkling talent, the one thing that kept us buoyant in March and April is the low incidence of injuries.
Our training camp is a bear, and with good reason. A fit club is a healthy club.

I hope we continue the grind (sorry guys...) so that when other clubs are sucking wind early in '08, we can still take/give the smash and deliver the flash.

Go Bolts!

[mbab]

if the defense steps up the goalies will be c+ to b-...the goalie always gets to much credit and to much blame....put a body on some guys along the boards....win more possession battles.....and clean house on the penalty kill....the goalie will look like an all-star if they can get any of the above this year....it has been lacking for two years....when a team gives up 4 or more goals like 33 times last year it is never...never all the goalies fault....the 3rd line and 4th line have to play meaningfull minutes....period!!!...and torts has to find away to not panick and run the stars into the ground again.....if the top 4 get right into 26-28 minutes a game you can bet we will have a very so-so year....i hope gratton helps...ouellet looks like a player....i think i read an article where he only played like 14+ minutes a game for pittsburgh and had 19 goals.....that would sure put a smile on brad richards face.....and i watched all his replays on nhl.com and he scored almost all of them right smack in front of the net....sweet hands......bye bye craig????anyway i can not wait......the anticipation is killing me.... what happen to pratt???sure could be some cheap insurance...and last but not least...put on us on a level playing field.......come on new owners.....spend spend spend!!!!...go bolts!!!!!

[goldenbolt]

Top two lines will be fine. I hope that the 3rd line steps up and can play an average of 10 - 12 minutes a game. This will make the top two lines that much tougher. Grats,tarnasky, Ward. should just fine and insert some real jam into the lineup.

The two ????? marks are the same as last year. Inept 'D' and a Holy Cow Goaltending tandem. To expect them to improve from 850 save percentage to .900 is a real stretch but that is what is needed to improve the team's standing in the league. We will have a lot of answers in the first 20 games that is what I give them to put the pieces together.

Hope and another 6 mil could get us another shot at the cup.

Da Bolt

[Brent]

Looking forward to...

10. HOCKEY SEASON! Football is too hot and playslast 15 seconds and they rest for 3 minutes each play.
9. Cigars on the drive to the rink.
8. Mike Clay and the Simpson's wave file when they do the weather before the game.
7. Pee Wee hockey at intermission!
6. The AFS Club burning their pizzas and the slow replenishment of empty food trays.
5. New sound system so you can really hear intermission songs -- especially "The Good Ole Hockey Game"!
4. The horrible opening (and lack thereof) to get fans excited... will "Let's Play Hockey!" ever catch on... let alone fans saying it on cue???
3. Bring back the Thunderbug from 2 seasons ago that could skate and excited the crowd a bit more.
2. Hopefully goaltending will turn around this season and Denis will rule in the crease!!!
1. SE Championship and really persisting in the playoffs! GO BOLTS!!!

[Nan]

I am glad to hear that Tim T. is home and working hard on the rehab. Congratulations to Danny, Marty and Ryan. All great news to hear!

I think the forwards are looking good this year. Looks like that top line may be hot with Prospal working so hard over the summer. I have two major concerns - defense and goaltending.

Losing Sarich and Pratt leave a big hole in an already weak Defense. You can only play Boyle and Kuba so much, the others have to step up. The solution or help on this may be Coach Sully. Will he hurt or help that group? My bet is that he will help.

My other main concern is the goaltending. If the goaltending does not improve this year, I would have to ask what is Jeff Reese still doing there? Actually, I was already wondering this.

I think the key here is the coaching. We have a bunch of new guys that need to learn the system. How well and how fast will that happen? Torts is a great coach, let's see how well Sully and Reese do their jobs.

Hockey season is almost here! Yes!

[josh]

I think we also need to think about:

special teams, esp. PowerPlay

Coaching. It seems there was a problem with Rammer last year, lets see how his replacement works with Torts

Trades. We may see Dan Boyle moved at the deadline if the team is struggling and if they cant get a contract extension done that will fit under the cap.

Schedule. Last years was admittedly tough, we can see if the easier sched this year equals a few more wins.