Now Gratton is out

The Lightning just can't catch a break with injuries this season. A day after announcing Michel Ouellet will be out four to six weeks with a separated shoulder, the team announced center Chris Gratton will be out two weeks with an unspecified hip injury, though Gratton said it was just wear and tear and was confident the two weeks should heal things up.

Consider who is out: Defenseman Dan Boyle (wrist), center Tim Taylor (hip), center Ryan Craig (knee), Ouellet and now Gratton.

The team entering Saturday's game with the Capitals already has lost 56 man games to injury or illness. If you do not include Rob DiMaio's 82 games from last season because of a preseason concussion, this season's 56 games is more than any Lightning season since 2002-03, when it lost 143.

What that means for tonight is that both Craig MacDonald, scratched for seven straight games, and Norfolk call-up Blair Jones will be in the lineup.

Johan Holmqvist, puled in his last two starts, will start in goal.

Comments

[Lisa]

I can't see trading Ranger or Lundin. they are good, cheap and will get better. Same with Obie, you don't trade him at this point. Young and cheap with a lot of upside.

The elite goalies are not being traded. We had a chance at a really good goalie in Bryzgalov, and for whatever reason, did not bite. Now, we just have to see what Ramo can do for us. Nothing out there that is worth trading away the only youth and best prospects that we have at this point.

[Mike13]

I got lost somewhere in your broken analysis there Rich. At least 1 thing confused me. Why would you trade Holmqvist and Lundin or Ranger for a young D. Aren't Lundin and Ranger (both of whom are 23 years old) young enough for ya?

Quite frankly, the summary of moves you mention seem like something the EA Sports NHL 2007 GM's might go for, but that just won't work in the real world.

[weezer]

Pretty half-assed analysis if you can call it that. The only thing that makes sense is that the Bolts may have to trade Holmer as part of the deal since Denis is practically untradeable (unless the Bolts take responsibility for some of the salary--not likely).

You've been reading too many blogs populated by Toronto, Montreal, and Ottawa fans. They all want Ranger.

You haven't said what we're getting in return for St. Louis, Ranger, and Holmquist. Sounds like nothing. Sounds like you're from Canada.

[Rich]

You guys are all nuts. St. Louis will go, oldest with high salary. the other two will be around for 8-10 more seasons, st. Louis, no more than 3 on a 4 year deal. Need goaltending and d-fense, will also send out one goalie, holmer, lower salary, to get another and possibly one young D, either Lundin or Ranger, good value. with one of them in the deal, may be able to keep holmer and get rid of dennis salary. Then trade a draft pick for some 3rd and 4th line help. nothing else left to get the help.

None of you see the bigger picture, this team is done as it is, youth D is the only way to get something such as goaltending in return. with high st. louis salary and at his age and size, high denis salary, who in right mind would take them for something that is going to be around for a long time without younger D as bait.

that is the only way a deal can get done.....

[Bill Berg]

You CANNOT play only the 1st line and part of 2nd line ALL the game! The players are not able to finish plats in last 1/2 of 3rd period as they are out of stamina, period, case closed. We are not even a Playoff team as we stand now. The BOLTS need 2nd 3rd and 4th line help or at least have TORTS play them at least 10 minutes per game so the team can finish the game. Not 9 seconds or 2-4 minutes, if they are that bad of players send them back to Minors and bring up someone else to try. Go BOLTS with what you have.

[Bill Berg]

You CANNOT play only the 1st line and part of 2nd line ALL the game! The players are not able to finish plats in last 1/2 of 3rd period as they are out of stamina, period, case closed. We are not even a Playoff team as we stand now. The BOLTS need 2nd 3rd and 4th line help or at least have TORTS play them at least 10 minutes per game so the team can finish the game. Not 9 seconds or 2-4 minutes, if they are that bad of players send them back to Minors and bring up someone else to try. Go BOLTS with what you have.

[Bill Berg]

You CANNOT play only the 1st line and part of 2nd line ALL the game! The players are not able to finish plats in last 1/2 of 3rd period as they are out of stamina, period, case closed. We are not even a Playoff team as we stand now. The BOLTS need 2nd 3rd and 4th line help or at least have TORTS play them at least 10 minutes per game so the team can finish the game. Not 9 seconds or 2-4 minutes, if they are that bad of players send them back to Minors and bring up someone else to try. Go BOLTS with what you have.

[leo]

Sorry, J.B, should have specified my point.
Phoenix is considerably better with Bryzgalov. They might be 4-6 in the last ten but they certainly wouldn't have won 5 or 6 straight when he first joined, agreed?
As for Detroit, there's no question they'll make the playoffs, regardless of how'll they do. Same can't be said for us, right now. Detroit is always competitive. At least, with Ottawa, we've known them to fold and players can use that as motivation, agreed?
Peace.

[Nils]

Agreed!!!

It's just that the rumors about Feaster working the phones is all over the Grade A hockey sites. He probably is preparing for when he actually can make moves.

[ajax]

Nils, I did say it was a hope. Your theory is much closer to the truth, but the truth is waying me down and it is Xmas. The blog is full of theories and remedies. Reality says we "all" might have differences but one thing for certain, we are a long way from being a top team. I have broken so many pairs of rose color glasses that this is my last pair. So excuse me for looking for that last ray of hope. But in the end, I know you are closer to the truth, I was just tire of typing the same bad news. I was there Saturday and we were outplayed in every phase of the game by the last place Washington Capitals. After Calgary I expected a huge effort, bodies flying etc etc. We could barely move the puck out of the zone. And Nils you are also veing very optimistic. This team will not move on anyone until managemant gets their big Xmas present: new owners! In the long run that is the present all of us fans need to: new owners.

[Nils]

I'm not enthralled with a quick first round exit, ajax. That would be 3 years running.

We are running third in a division that looks as if only the first place team will make it in. And is a .424 winning percentage "close to .500?" Depends on your point of view, I guess.

The one cause for hope to make the playoffs: Lightning have the best record in the Division against Division opponents.

You are right about Boyle. His PP effectiveness is incredible. He would relieve the young guys of all those minutes.

We still need outside help. Richards for Huet and Ryder would be great. It would also free up bucks for other acquisitions. Incidentally, Lightning one of four teams linked to interest in FA Cujo.

[ajax]

Things are different this year. Last year coach started whipping the horses with 25-30 games to go. This year it has been heavy minutes from day 1. They will have nothing left for the stretch. The past 3 years we have been virtually injury free. This year we have been bit, and although Gratton isn't a world beater he is alot better than the guys who take his minutes.
Last, you see no improvement after 30 odd games. Same mistakes night after night. The D is by far the worse we have seen in years here. Goalies still suspect. A roster of minor league forwards.
We have one hope left. Stay near .500 til Dan Boyle returns. His loss has been huge. Transition game suffers big time without him. Ranger. O'Brien and Kuba have to play huge minutes and are flat out to tired at end of game. PPlay gets a much needed right handed shot. Torts, hockey 101, you can't play a left wing down low on the left, how can he shoot/onetime it? All he can do is stop/pass the puck and this helps their D for a split second. Wake up Torts! His ability to move the puck up the ice is a glaring weakness right now. A "healthy" Dan Boyle will be huge. Key word, healthy. He will cure some of the ails. We still need some forwards and consistent goalies, but he should get us into the playoffs. I hope.

[JB]

While some of us were playing hockey as kids, apparently Dwight was studying for the SAT Verbals. That's cool man, but put the thesaurus away for a minute. Look guys I'm not trying to be a cheerleader here. I know its a tough time and no one wants to hear that crap. I just don't want to see the core get pissed away in a stupid trade (ie Huet or even Turco) and I certainly don't want to see the front office get cut over some panic in December. I just want to see a couple chess moves made and let these men handle there business on the ice.

The Detroit Red Wings have had a couple early exits in the playoffs the past few years as well, so get off their jock. They won't be as dominant in the next few years as these kids in the central division continue to step up (ie Kane, Toews, Leclaire, erik johnson etc.) and the Central division will actually become competitive and not just a Detroit stomping ground.

Yes, Torts gives players a lot of ice time but he also gives more rest days than any coach. And they are hockey players, they love ice time. A lot of the extra minutes are power play minutes which aren't as intense on the players except for maybe the power play quarterback.

Finally, the Phoenix Coyotoes are 4-6 in their last 10. Maybe thats a little better, but saying they are considerably better is a stretch.

Peace out.

[bear]

Bang on Dwight but what the hell Bolts all the way ..just ask JB

Me, I'm drinking the J&B

[dwight]

"My point is our chance would be as good as any."

No wonder you don't post here much, JB. You have a paucity of hockey knowledge made apparent about the several fallicies in your rambling post.

[weezer]

You didn't come up with one good answer for anything that was questioned. So you've traded your pom poms for a crying towel now that you played the gender card.

[leo]

I totally agree with you, JB, especially on the Huet angle, more I think about it, we NEED Richards more than MTL needs Huet, 7.8mil aside.
As for the parity angle, it works right up to the point where it doesn't. Look at Detroit, still contenders, always contenders. Why? Their recruiting is superb. The New NHL relies heavily on off-season crafting, which wasn't the case before. Teams are built in the summer. Look at Philly. (Though Biron will falter, mark my words.)
Impatience and suffering is NOT hate, there, I think you go too far.
Personally, as you all know, I'm extremely dissatisfied with this status quo.
This parity in the NHL won't be a comfort to me when I'll see my Bolts miss the playoffs.
Is it wrong for me, as a fan, to ask: Where are we going? and, Can we not do anything to improve?
Surely this isn't impossible. In ONE minor move, Pheonix got considerably better. Phoenix, ferpetesake!
We're better than Phoenix, aren't we?
Peace.

[hockey chic]

You know what JB you are right I am tired of all of this bickering back and forth so I am going to sit back and watch you all tear each other to shreads and I am not going to say a word.

The rose colored glasses are out of here. Peace to all and happy holidays. Last words from hockey chic on this blog is GO BOLTS! I am going to spend my time and energy on the ice. Have fun kids...

[JB]

Hate Hate Hate. Bunch of haters. This is not the same NHL as 03-04. 1 word: parity. "Evenly-matched" teams for all those who don't understand the word. Even Mike Babcock spoke about it because he knows that his first place red wings could drop in the first round if the right pieces aren't in place come April. Look at the Stanley Cup final directly after the lockout, 8th seed Oilers vs Hurricanes and it goes to a game 7. The very next year, these teams aren't even in the playoffs. That's crazy. The NHL is closer than ever. Any team can beat any team on any given night. Look at the Ottawa Senators, how does a team that "great" drop 7 games in a row? Come April, we may have a healthy Dan Boyle, Holmqvist could be on fire (he has showed flashes of brilliance), and we could have home ice for the first round considering we are only 6 pts out of the lead for the Southeast from a Carolina team that we have for some reason consistently dominated and has an extra game). My point is our chance would be as good as any.
Everyone here thinks they know the "big move" that is going to change everything for the team. Please. Stop living in the past. NHL aint like that anymore. These refs call 5 on 3s now like they are getting a commission for it. That evens things out. And Cristobal Huet? I am sorry but this guy reminds me too much of another French-speaking, 30 year old goalie, making 3 mil, who could "maybe work as a #1 goalie." Richards for him is a great trade...for Montreal.
Don't even get me started on firing Torts and Feaster. I don't want to have to sit here and list all the good things they have done. You all love "watching Vinny and Marty" so much. Well, why don't you remember who took a chance on Marty when no one else in the NHL wanted him, and who helped Vinny from a whiny, lazy, one-way player to the best in the NHL. Torts never babied Vinny or gave him the "C" like other coaches do with star kids.
I just want to see the Bolts win out the rest of the month so everyone is forced to put their socks in their cyber-mouths!

[leo]

Yes, I am peeved off, Ted-agreer. Very peeved off. Is it malcontentness? If you like the word, use it. But no, it ain't!
It's being sick of mediocrity. It's pointing out that this team is stuck in a rut. A deep, black rut, with no sunrise in sight.
Unless you can't see the wee bit of humor in my postings, please don't accuse me of arrogance. The one thing I don't do is repeat myself,(I thought the 3rd person gag was funny) even if I bring up the same point(s). (As if I was the only one.)
But if you feel offended, here goes: rah-rah-rah, go lightning, we're the best, everything is going perfect and we're getting better every day, rah-rah-rah! Cool?
Thing is, no amount of HOPING (cause that's where we are) is gonna change the state of our team. A 500 team, IF we're lucky.
Malcontent, he says. You have no idea how much I love this team. I'm Hockey-Chic with a microscope,is all, savvy?
Leo as GM! Gimme that phone, I'll show you how it's done!
Is that arrogance, or facetiousness, Ted-agreer?
Peace.

[Casper]

Bear, the answer is: the FIRST GM that comes along takes Richie. He's not totally unloved out there, can't be. Selling point: It would've been 19-6 the other night if he were feeding Iginla regularly. Oddball question we wannabe GMs ask is, what does Calgary have that Montreal wants in order for us to get Huet + picks?

[hockey chic]

Weezer I am not sure where to start with you as it appears that if soemone does not agree with you there are from another planet.

Must have hit a nerve with you eh? Would you be one of the malcontents?

I do think that Ovie and Sid the kid have talent but no more than anyone else. They are in my (homer mind) overrated. I think ovie actually has more natural talent than the kid but I understand what the NHL is trying to do and that is make money and make the NHL more marketable. Cute guy and all.

I am not a homer as much as you would like to believe as I watch and follow the entire NHL as much as possible and oh my I even have centre ice. I know this is contrary to your mis-Understanding.

I guess cause I am not a guy you feel the need once again berate me. Go for it home slice. I can take it I am a big girl.

Alls I am saying is what the hell is going on with our team? I do not care what you think of me weezer I will say Go Bolts till my dyin day.

Go Bolts.... and weezer bite me

Casper which NHL GM takes Richards 8 mill a year cap hit??

I agree it is like stealing.

Zero return for him..has to be Vinny4 traded and thats the hard reality.

bear

[Casper]

Today I'm going to look for my black arm band; I think Tortorella secretly wants out of here. How else to explain the inexplicable? Head games to motivate are one clever thing, and he didn't invent it. But the refusal to balance the playing time for burnout avoidance, and continuing the rush-rush system has failed miserably and he must, must see that. By sticking to the jive @$$ mantra of playing time through merit, he is destroying the big guys, stunting the development of the supporting cast, and sliding his time in the Bay toward self destruction. You don't do this unconsciously or by accident without someone tapping you on the shoulder. But it persists.

There was a failure to adjust when we lost Khabibulin. Remember when we first got Khabby? It was toward the end of the '01-02 year, and Nick told the young racers, "Don't worry about this end of the ice, just get up there and take it to 'em." That ratified the rush system and in 2002-03 we were indeed off to the races with our stud in net. Fast forward to re-signing Marty St. Louis, not Nick (I would have too, Nick wanted to steal too much $$ whereas Marty burns and earns.) and the glaring hole was demonstrated by poor Johnny Grahame. NO FIX!!! Lots of rhetoric, smoke and mirrors, but NO FIX! And no adjustment to this system that abandons fundamental hockey. (Face it, Denis isn't 100% rotten, we do in fact leave his butt swinging in the breeze. Much.)

All this time I/we have busted chops on the defense, Grahame, Denis, etc. and so forth. The one constant has been grossly unbalanced minutes by the ones of highest talent and now they're getting pretty fried. I hate to say all this but, Coach seems to be coaching like a man who wants out.

[Casper]

I've thoroughly had it with Richards long ago. His leadership element is, I believe, at the root of the 'Torts Tune Out'.
The locker room took an ambivalent tack when Andreychuk left and I wonder who was the most influential---it certainly wasn't Tool Man. The insane money is like stealing, or saying, "Well, if they're dumb enough to offer it, I'm dumb enough to take it." I don't care if he scores 100 points a year, it's stealing, plain and simple. Those are Gretzky bucks being thrown at him, and he's no Ron Francis. Heck, he's not even a healthy Brian Bradley (wear a different number!).
Brad's the guy that has to go. The best way he can help this club is to be swapped for a stud in net with multiple picks, to be used or flipped for D-men. If we can't get thus for him, where is the argument that he's worth all that $$$ ?

[weezer]

You really see the world differently, that is, unrealistically. How about adding "talent" and "coaching" to grit and perseverance. I guess it's apparent to everyone to you it's not going to "get done" without radical surgery.

And who are the malcontents that don't want to see the Bolts win aside from one poster who identified him/herself as a Canadians fan??????????

P.S. Crosby and Ovechkin are not overrated. You really are a homer in the worst sense and can't appreciate the great skills of our opponents.

[hockey chic]

Okay guys and gals I have had a nights sleep or shall we say tossing and turning to dream of sugar plums or shall we say wins in my head.

The best part of this blog is that we can say what we think and feel and maybe it helps and at least it is cheaper than therapy.

Maybe the guys cannot play 30 minutes a night and keep this up. Maybe coach needs to pull some guys up from the farm club and see what happens. I really do not know and thank god it is not my problem/job to solve.

I will tell you this I am a little tired of trying to pump the team up only to see a mediocre performance at best

Who the heck cares if Ovie is on the ice? He along with Sid the kid the light of NHL hockey's future and so over rated can take a leap as far as I care. I want to win and I want my team the Bolts to win. Keep talking about the rose colored glasses all you want.

There is not one fan on this blog who does not want the Bolts to win other than the malcontents that occasionally visit our home site.

I am not sure why the team cannot find motivation and keep it. We need a string of wins, not one here and there. So we have a few guys out let’s pull together as a team and do it for god’s sake. That is one trait that the Stanley cup team had that this team cannot seem to find is grit, perseverance and tenacity. We need to send a letter to Santa and ask for it for our team.

Come on guys, I still have the pom poms in hand and my hockey stick so watch what you say about me.
Grant it they are a little faded and pissed off as I am but they are still there. I am still coming to the games and rooting on the team and I still have hope that we can pull together and get a winning season.

Let’s get er done fellas. You can do it.....Go Bolts.

[wiggy]

I see according to this morning's paper that the MacLean-Sherrin-Burton group has reared its ugly head again. Franchise Destroyer MacLean is like the tar baby...you can't get rid of him. Mercifully, this group does not nearly have the financial resources as Koules-Berg.

There's not a chance this franchise will be going to Las Vegas. There will be an NBA team there before there will be an NHL team. And, because of sports, betting, neither is very likely. Besides, LV already has the Wranglers, an ECHL team they are happy with.

Would rather see aggressive, interested owners from out of town than a couple of in-town shysters and a carpetbagging hockey pariah.

[I now agree with Ted]

leo, you don't sound like a GM. You sound like a pissed off fan who keeps repeating himself. The third person doesn't help either. It smacks of arrogance.

[leo]

So here we are.
With Leo as GM.
Leo who's been telling you all this time, this is it, this is what we got, this is our team.
Leo who LOVES his rose-colored glasses.
Leo who agrees with Bear that in order to win, you must expect to bleed. It's not a question of want but a question of need. We NEED goaltending, defense and prospects. Vinny can get us that.
Leo who agrees with Another Joe who says, show me the kids, where are the kids, I want to see some kids. I add: not some old-*ss, cheapo second-raters.
Leo who yells: BUILD!, you weaklings! You half-packers who dare to sell us ideas of contention when they are non-existent! This is MY TEAM?! Where are we GOING?!
Leo who shouts: I want to WIN! Anything less is failure in this league, anything less is total surrender, anything less and we WILL move to Vegas, and then, it's not WE anymore. We, will have been LEFT BEHIND.
Leo who asks: are we getting better or worse?
Leo who knows you all know the answer just as much as he does but are unwilling to admit it to yourselves.
Leo states again, while we're being bitten now, wait and see what happens when we get chomped. 1 year, 3 months, 2 weeks.
"No one's being traded or going anywhere, the place will empty out, no one will care, they'll lose money, we'll lose credibility,we'll never score, might as well sell franchise, we can't, we can't, we can't, heart of the team, community, loves it here, will take rebate, bla, bla, bla.." Leo says that's loser-talk, folks. That is being AFRAID.
Leo is gonna "keep it real" with y'all and admit he's afraid, too.
Leo who now prays with you that we can get Huet for Richards.
Because that's what he's reduced to.
Leo who will not hesitate to refer to himself in 3rd person to argue his point.
Peace.

[Alabaster Cat]

Hey Ajax: Yes the Bolts were outhit, outscored, outworked, outcoached, and outshot against the league's weakest team on Lightning home ice while thousands of screaming fans were trying to encourage them. And yes, it has become progressively observable that Vinny, Marty and Brad have flagged in the later stages of the game. And, yes, Richards, Lukowich and Hlavac are among the league's bottom feeders in the +/- category.

Thanks for stating most of the things that I was going to say. I just figured that I'd repeat all that for emphasis. It was a painful game to watch for a Bolts fan.

Chris Gratton has taken a great deal of abuse in these spaces for what some perceive as ineffective play, but he is out there trying to win in every shift and with every hit. Aside from being an outstanding faceoff guy, he plays hurt and he takes his lumps (sometimes by standing up for his teammates). It really annoys me to see him put down in some of these posted comments. The guys who do not take penalties because they avoid the corners and make no impact on the ice ought to be criticized, not Chris Gratton.

Finally this...I'd sooner Ajax was GM,
but definitely, absolutely and unequivically NOT David or Nan.

[ajax]

Two nights after one of the most embarrassing home losses in years, they come out and get completely outplayed by the last place Washington Capitals. Outshot, out hustled, out hit and surely out coached. The most troublesome thing for me, was their total inability to get the puck out of the defensive zone. Without a chip or a 50ft pass they simply can not move the buck forward. It is hockey 101 and they simply can not do it.
Did anyone else notice the Big 3 barely able to move at about the 8:00 minute mark of the third period?
Chief Taylor commented how he thought a big thing was that Washington kept playing 4 lines through the whole game. His partner added, "How long can they keep playing these guys 30 minutes" and the Chief calmly added "they can't"
They are getting near rock bottom gang. We do have a flicker of hope though. Carolina in their last 10 losses have been outscored 48-14. Atlanta has lost 5 straight and I think are a bigger mess than us. I read an article about Kovalchuk, said he had 7 goals in last 11 games, but was a minus 11. What a headcase. My point, looking for hope somewhere, we might only need to be .500 to win our division. Is Florida the best team in our division? OUCH!
Everyone is the stands commented they just "have" to make a trade. This is where things got a bit out of sorts. Goalie, D or some offensive forwards. So many holes to fill and no bodies to fill em.
Blair Jones played 9 seconds tonight.
Last stat of the night, something to chew on.
726 NHL players
plus/minus
Brad Richards 720 Lukowich 725 Hlavac 715
The first goal of the night was a snapshot of so much failure lately.
Brad standing there in his "space" and an unattended Capital bangs home a goal from 5 feet, and Brad, standing 7 feet from the goal, bangs his stick on the ice and says "darn it"

[dwight]

Lightning now in sole possession of 12th place in conference with the teams in 13th and 14th having a game in hand. Anyone still wearing rose colored glasses must think farts smell like Chanel #5.

[MOrlee SAfer]

This team has no confidence and they get called for bad penalties then they take bad penalties and they have no defense or goaltending. All they have is one and a 1/2 decent lines and thats all. You can count them out because the dooshbag owners won't budge.

[hockeu ckic]

Okay this really has nothing to do with Oulett or Gratts but I just left the freakin game and I for one am over it. What the heck is going on with our team. One day the freakin stanley cup team shows up and the other who the heck knows.

Kuba played a solid d tonight and had hit after hit. We have no PP and our offense really stunk it up out there tonight including my favorite as you know MSL. What happended it looked like we jumped out to a lead and we just spent the rest of the time playing catch up.

I am starting to wonder if I need to go back to playing on saturday night and not watching cause the guys are sure having a hard time finding their way. Maybe the rose colore glasses are a little tainted.

Hellooo any bolts players out there want to win a cup sally.....

[Phil]

Boyle will soon find a lump of coal in his stocking. He's going to get traded along with Denis. Need to unload some of the payroll and can't give up any of the Big 3.

Regardless of winning or losing -- I like winning more, but there is such a lack of energy by this team for looooong stretches of play. 10-20 minutes per game is all I am seeing.

Roy shows an abundance of energy and physical play and scores two goals... and he is 'rewarded' with mediocre ice time? What happened to Torts philosophy of 'earning ice time'???

I can live with not winning... just not ithout all-out-effort by the Team.

Go Bolts!!!

[Sol]

Tort has to go. He may be a decent coach, but the chemistry isn't there any more. I would also let Marty go. He makes big bank and could be traded for a to notch goal tender. The golie is the most important piece of the puzzle and we all know that our goal tending is very suspect.
And then there is Feaster. What a flop!
How about another burger, Fat Boy.

[Nat4]

I like your optimism Nan and couldn't agree with you more on St Louis and Lecavalier, thank goodness we have something positive to watch.

Depressing loss! On a slightly positive note good play by Prospal and really nice play by Lecavalier on the second goal.

Any news on Boyle and Craig?

[I now agree with Ted]

That was the team with the worst record in the conference beating us on our own ice. No excuses. I have to say, though, that Prospal played like a Trojan, passing, moving the puck, taking hits.

The situation deteriorates rapidly.

[Bill]

I see a GM and coaching change coming if this team doesnt make the playoffs. This team completely sucks

[Casper]

Forget it weez, we're stuck with this crew. Adjust your cup for comfort and settle in for a long and painful ride.

Sullivan was a Tool Man type wing, now teaching defense. Great. Think Joe Reekie can come back and show Marty and the Vinnys how to score?

My jock's too small for this....

[weezer]

MONTREAL - Montreal Canadiens goaltender Cristobal Huet was given the green light by a team doctor to return from a pulled groin.

Huet, injured in a shootout loss to Nashville on Dec. 1, was slated to back up starter Carey Price in a game Saturday night against the Toronto Maple Leafs.

With Huet back, third string goalie Jaroslav Halak will be retrned to the AHL's Hamilton Bulldogs, according to coach Guy Carbonneau.

[bear]

Nan I would prefer to trade Richards too but any GM crazy enough to take on his cap hit won't be offering much back. He's an albatros.

Time for reality in Tampa.

[Nils]

Niiiice....Sure, gut the roster in favor of career minor leaguers who, last I looked, were next to last in that pathetic league.

Nan's right. You don't trade Vinny unless you want to get 50 points a season and have an attendance of 15 plus the zamboni driver and Thunderbug.

Although I live within walking distance of the Forum, I have no intention of witnessing any more of this pathetic situation unless and until moves are made.

[STHRich]

Phrase that will not be heard at the Forum tonight "Ovechkin passes!".
Go Bolts!

[Nan]

I agree with David. At this point, why doesn't the team just bring up or trade for some younger players (under 30 years old) instead of getting these older players. Of the older players JF acquired, only Kuba is holding his own but I sure wish he would hit more! Hasn't Gratton been in the box at least once every game? Lukowich and Gratton have been less than good and we need them to be good. Maybe these younger players will be hungrier and eager to show their stuff and be better than these older guys who are maybe thinking they have hit the gravy train and so they just don't try anymore!

I disagree with Bear though, trade Brad not Vinny. The Lightning need Vinny to pull in the ticket holders. Brad doesn't do that. I honestly just watch the games now to see Vinny and Marty skating and scoring, the heck with winning! Those two are so exciting to watch. I dread it when any of the other three lines are on the ice.

Still the history of this team has shown that it usually starts improving in January and starts winning more games. The question will be, if they will do the same this season. Once again, we all have to hope that they can pull themselves out of the cellar. I think that they can!

Go Bolts! Beat those Caps!

[David]

Gratton being out is addition by subtraction. Just like Taylor. Bringing back older marginally skilled guys with a penchant for drawing penalties was quite the move Mr. Feaster.

[Alabaster Cat]

Jay Feaster: as a General Manager you are pathetic. The team roster is filled with weakness, you have no minor league back up to cover injuries, and you have failed to repair any of the team's major personnel problems. If you left your job, no one would notice after the applause died down.

You are a walking exemplar of the "Peter Principle." Go away...please!

[Another Joe]

I say bring up some young guys. Jones,Wanving,Keller. Its not gonna hurt any. the defense is waht it is. Young which means sometimes good and sometimes bad

[Debbie]

Marc should be starting. Even if he didnt dazzle against the Flames, he still was the better of our two netminders. How can he be expected to shine when he is thrown into the fire unprepared? Goaltenders are very meticulous people - the have traditions they follow when they start, and when they don't. For example, one goaltender threw up before each start, how was he supposed to follow that if he's being called off the bench halfway through period one? No wonder goaltenders have a hard time coming into a game in relief.