The Tampa Bay Lightning sit atop of the NHL’s standings right now but its scarier to think their roster could have been even stronger.
This past summer featured one of the NHL’s most storied free agency cases in history and the Lightning were right in the thick of things. John Tavares had his pick of the litter of teams to go to and as history tells it, he couldn’t resist heading home to play with his Maple Leafs. As the Lightning prepare to host the Buds tonight in a battle of the NHL’s top two squads, head coach Jon Cooper reflected on the free agency frenzy and expressed his disappointment with Tavares’ decision. With all that said, he believes the 28-year-old made the right call and praised him both as a player and person.
It really is tough to argue with Tavares’ decision. In 31 games this season, the Mississauga native has potted 19 goals to go along with 14 assists, good enough for a tie with defenceman Morgan Rielly for second place behind Mitch Marner (41 points). Toronto currently sits tied for second in the league with 113 goals, 15 behind the Lightning.
Tavares wasn’t the only player to cause some disappointment within the Lightning organization. After rumours swirled about defenceman Erik Karlsson coming to the team, he was instead traded to the San Jose Sharks. Make that 0/2 for Cooper & Co.!
Regardless of how things panned out, things have worked out pretty nicely in Tampa Bay.
(H/T Kristen Shilton)
