NHL Projections: Tampa Bay Lightning Lineup
The Tampa Bay Lightning had a very interesting year last year. They didn't have the best regular season, but picked things up at the end of the year. In the playoffs, they made it all the way to the Eastern Conference Finals before losing to the Pittsburgh Penguins. I expect the Lightning to be even better this year. I think they could easily be the best team in the east and one of the best in the NHL. Tampa Bay's roster is loaded with great players, and I'm really not sure what their lineup is going to look like. Some very good players are going to be left out of the starting lineup, and who those will be remains to be seen. This is my best guess for what the Lightning's lineup will look like at the start of the season.
Forwards
| Jonathan Drouin- | Steven Stamkos- | Nikita Kucherov |
Ondrej Palat- | Tyler Johnson- | Alex Killorn |
Vladislav Namestnikov- | Valtteri Filppula- | Ryan Callahan |
Cedric Paquette- | Brian Boyle- | J.T. Brown |
Defensemen
Victor Hedman- | Anton Stralman |
Jason Garrison- | Andrej Sustr |
Braydon Coburn- | Nikita Nesterov |
Goaltenders
Ben Bishop |
Andrei Vasilevskiy |
There's not much to say about the Lightning; they are really good across the board. Their forward group is full of talented players, but they also have some toughness and grit in the bottom six. Their defense is pretty good one through six. Victor Hedman is a superstar and their best defenseman, while Anton Stralman and Jason Garrison are both solid veterans. Braydon Coburn is another solid veteran, while Andrej Sustr and Nikita Nesterov are young up and coming players. In net, the Lightning are in great shape. Ben Bishop is the starter and has been one of the best goalies in the league. Andrei Vasilevskiy is the backup, but he will be the starter in the near future. Tampa has two great goaltenders. Overall, this team is in great shape and should be one of the best teams in the NHL this season.
