Last season saw the Tampa Bay Lightning post a 34-36-12 record which was good enough for fourth place in the Southeast Division, and 12th overall in the Eastern Conference. This has led them to selecting with the sixth overall pick in this year's NHL Entry Draft in Los Angeles, Calif., June 25-26.
It was a season that saw the Lightning average 15,469 fans per game at the St. Pete Times Forum, which holds up to 19,758 for hockey games.
Over the course of an 82-game schedule the Lightning, under the guidance of general manager Brian Lawton and head coach Rick Tocchet, lost 100-man games to injury.
This would be the third season in a row that the Tampa Bay faithful have not seen playoff action. After being a city of champions earlier in the decade, this is an unacceptable result.
The Lightning won the Stanley Cup at the conclusion of the 2003-04 NHL playoffs. After that, the 2004-05 season was lost to the lockout, and the Lightning have not been the same team on or off the ice since.
The 2005-06 and 2006-07 seasons saw them finish second in the Southeast Division, only to be knocked out of the playoffs in the first round both times. This past season and the year prior, were full ...
Read Full Article at Bleacher Report - NHL
Article written by Mike Burse
2010 NHL Draft: Tampa Bay Lightning Preview
June 13th, 2010 by Mike Burse Leave a reply »
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