Returning from the All-Star Break, the Tampa Bay Lightning are looking to continue their strong play, which has resulted in them winning eight of their last nine games. Not only are the Lightning benefitting from Nikita Kucherov’s stellar play, but they have also benefited from the re-emergence of Brayden Point. However, one of the most significant factors in their recent success has been the improvement of their blue line.
Early in the season, the Lightning defense struggled, especially when Andrei Vasilevskiy was sidelined after his back surgery. However, during the last 11 games, the defense has picked up its play, resulting in fewer high-danger chances for opponents and allowing the Lightning offense to hit their stride. A great deal of the credit for the improved play goes to the play and leadership of their veteran blueliner, Victor Hedman.
Succeeding Through Injuries
The Lightning have had recent success without two of their better defenseman as injuries have sidelined Mikhail Sergachev and Erik Cernak. This has forced them to put a very inexperienced group on the blue line. Outside of Hedman and fellow veteran Calvin de Haan, they have skated second-year defenseman Nick Perbix and Darren Raddyish, along with two players making their NHL debuts last month in Emil Martinson Lilleberg and Max Crozier. The success of this group does not happen unless there is some strong leadership on and off the ice, which Hedman has provided.
Hedman praised the two newest members of the blue line after the team’s last win (Jan. 28) over the New Jersey Devils. “The guys coming up (Lilleberg and Crozier) have done a phenomenal job. You can’t say enough good things about those guys from just being in Syracuse. They come up, and they’ve made a difference for us. I’m very happy with the way Crozier and Lilleberg have been playing, giving us really solid, great minutes, moving the puck, creating some offense too. It’s huge.” This confidence in their teammates gives Hedman the freedom to focus on the offensive part of his game, as demonstrated by his three-assist performance against the Devils.
New Defensive System This Season
In the offseason, the Lightning changed their defensive philosophy and structure to focus on a zone defense. Part of this was because the rostered players on the Lightning defense got a little smaller. Last season, just two of the nine players in the blue line rotation were under 220 pounds, compared to this season, as just two of the current ten defensemen earning playing time are above 220. Also, head coach Jon Cooper wanted to stay ahead of the curve, knowing that a zone defense philosophy would give them a better chance to keep up with the outstanding NHL talent, especially in the Eastern Conference. The Lightning adopted a similar style of defense as the Vegas Golden Knights, who used it last season en route to a Stanley Cup.
Hedman did not complain about the change despite the early-season struggles. Instead, he embraced the philosophy and worked through the rough spots with his teammates until they could smooth them out. “We played the same way for, you know, 480 of those wins with Coop,” Hedman said in an interview before the All-Star Break. “There’s always going to be tweaks to the system, but this is probably the biggest major thing that we changed. But once you get accustomed to it, and if the stats show it’s making improvements for our game, that’s what we’re all for” (‘A high-danger move? Lightning’s defensive zone change nets rewards,’ The Tampa Bay Times, Feb. 4, 2024).
Defense Has Been Key to Recent Surge
The Lightning have gone 13-5-0 in their past 18 games. They have allowed more than three goals in only three of those 18 games, excluding the Jan. 2 game at Winnipeg, when the Jets scored their fourth goal into an empty net. Overall, the Lightning yielded 50 goals during the 18 games, good for an average of 2.78 goals against. They come out of the All-Star Break ranking 23rd in team defense at 3.28 GA/G, several spots higher than previously ranked. They have accomplished this without Sergachev and Cernak for most of this time.
Deeper analytics also show the team’s recent improvement on defense. Early on this season, the Lightning struggled with some of their zone responsibilities, as opponents were too often able to sneak into scoring positions unnoticed. Through the first nine games, they allowed an average of 9.5 scoring chances in 5-on-5 play. Over the last 11 games, however, they have allowed just 7.4, and their record of 9-2-0 reflects this improvement.
Despite the changes in philosophy and personnel, Hedman’s numbers are much better than last season. He has scored points in six of his last seven games and is up to 50 points on the season (nine goals, 41 assists), and has now recorded eight career 40-assist seasons, tied with Martin St. Louis for the most in Lightning franchise history.
Related: Brayden Point Regains Form to Help Lightning Win 8 of 9
The Lightning will need to continue this type of play after the break. While they have a good foothold on a playoff spot, their lead is not all that large, and they have an upcoming schedule featuring many playoff-contending teams. They will need the leadership of Hedman and the other captains and veterans on the roster to make the playoffs and contend for another Stanley Cup.
