Inside The Penalty Box 10.28.08: New Faces, Similar Results In Tampa Bay

Posted by Neil Borenstein on 10.28.2008

Despite a heavy offseason overhaul to the front office and roster, the Tampa Bay Lightning are still searching for a winning formula seven games into this 2008-09 season. In this edition of Inside The Penalty Box, Neil Borenstein examines the offensively-inept Lightning that seem on track for another disappointing year.

Different Faces Offer Similar Results In Tampa Bay

Photo Credit: Yahoo! Sports/AP PhotoHead coach Barry Melrose has guided the Lightning to just one victory in seven games behind the bench.

The Tampa Bay Lightning went through a significant organizational overhaul this summer, changing the very foundation of a team that placed at the bottom of the league just one year ago. Unfortunately, the changes to the front office, behind the bench and to the on-ice product has not brought upon a different result. Just seven games into the 2008-09 campaign, Tampa Bay has only one win and five points to show for its efforts and ranks just above the New York Islanders in the Eastern Conference standings.

Perhaps the greatest indication that things aren't going according to plan in Tampa Bay came on Saturday. The Lightning suffered a 3-0 shutout defeat at the hands of the San Jose Sharks, who weren't even playing Evgeni Nabokov in net. They also managed to post just 22 shots on goal compared to 45 from the Sharks.

That loss added to the frustrations of head coach Barry Melrose and prompted him to put his team through a tough 45-minute practice on Sunday, meant to send a message to his players that their play to begin this season is no longer acceptable.

"The message is, if you're not going to work at night, you're going to work during the day," Melrose said, according to The Tampa Tribune. "There has to be repercussions for lack of effort. That's the one thing that can't be accepted."

The root of the Lightning's struggles come on offense. A team figured to be an offensive powerhouse coming into this season, Tampa Bay is dead last in the league with just 11 goals scored and is the only team in the NHL to post a goals-for average under two (1.53.) That can be attributed to pretty much all of the team's players not reaching their full potential.

Vincent Lecavalier

Has just one assist through seven games

Vincent Lecavalier leads the team in goals scored with three, including the game-winner in Tampa's sole victory of the season over the Atlanta Thrashers last Tuesday. Despite the fact that he scored 52 and 40 goals in 2006-07 and 2007-08, respectively, being on pace for a 35-goal campaign isn't all that bad for Lecavalier. But posting just one assist through seven games is, as the 28-year old center is far off the pace from reaching the 50-helper plateau he's hit the past two years.

Martin St. Louis isn't having that same problem, leading the team in both assists (four) and points (five.) But just one goal in seven games is very disappointing, especially since it came in Tampa's season-opener in Prague, Czech Republic against the New York Rangers. For a winger capable of posting 30 goals a season, being on pace for just 11 is far off the mark of where St. Louis needs to be.

Steve Stamkos was selected first overall in the most recent NHL Entry Draft and was expected to pay immediate dividends (within reason, of course) for the Lightning. But a mix of low ice time (which is increasing somewhat) and his own need for time to develop in the NHL has caused Stamkos to go pointless. While Melrose has indicated Stamkos isn't going back to juniors, he might want to re-consider sending him to Sarnia if things don't get much better over the next two games. At 10 games, Stamkos will have spent the first year of his entry level contract.

Vaclav Prospal's four points in seven games is decent, but the 23-goal and 47-point season he's on pace to have is quite a decrease from the 33 goals and 71 points posted last year. Mark Recchi should still be capable of posting at least 40 or so points even in this advanced portion of his career. But with just two goals posted so far (which unfortunately does make him one of Tampa Bay's top producers), it's not looking good for him to hit even that low projection. Ryan Malone might be racking up the penalty minutes with 24. But after scoring 27 goals during the regular season and adding six more in the playoffs last year in Pittsburgh, he's simply not cutting it with just one score thus far with the Lightning. Radim Vrbata is currently day-to-day with a groin injury. But in the five games he did suit up for, the single point he has to his name via an assist is not enough from a role player who's proven to be capable of posting at least 15 goals and 35-40 points over the course of a season. Vraba's story is basically the same for Jussi Jokinen, who has just two assists this year.

These offensive shortcomings translate to the special teams department, as well. The Lightning have converted on just 9.4 percent of their power play opportunities (3 for 32), which is the second worst in the league.

Mike Smith

Ranks first in the NHL with a .941 save percentage.

It's true that some reservations must be taken when looking at projections so early in the season. But it's still easy to see where Tampa Bay is at right now, forwards just aren't playing up to snuff. They need to step up, and it needs to happen soon.

This lack of scoring is much more glaring considering the Lightning are getting the job done on defense, although much of that needs to be credited to some solid goaltending from Mike Smith. Even though they give up a bunch of shots – 37 on average, the Lightning rank fourth in goals against (17) and seventh in goals against average (2.36). On the penalty kill, the Lightning are eighth in the league by allowing just six goals on 45 opportunities when the opposition is on the man advantage (86.7 percent.)

As just mentioned, though, Mike Smith is a big reason for that. And I'm sure he'd love some more support from the guys in front of him. Ignoring skepticism over his ability to handle the starting duties throughout a full campaign, especially with veteran Olaf Kolzig breathing down his neck, Smith appears to have embraced the No. 1 slot in net.

In five starts this season, he leads the league in save percentage (.941) and ranks sixth with a 2.13 goals against average. He also has a shutout this year. Those numbers appear more impressive considering the amount of shots he faces. He's seen more than 40 shots in three of his five starts, and over 30 in another. In fact, the only reprieve for Smith came against Minnesota, when he posted his shutout by making 21 saves in a 1-0 shootout loss.

So, the Lightning are far from perfect in their own end, as well, regardless of their defensive rankings. But it's on offense that the problems currently exist. From the first line to the fourth, Lightning forwards need to start making plays and putting the puck in the net, as they were figured to do quite efficiently coming into the season. Otherwise, they'll be in store for another disastrous showing by the end of the year.

Photo Credits – Yahoo! Sports/AP Photo

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Until next week, you have just been Inside The Penalty Box!

~ Neil Borenstein