Could Steven Stamkos return to Lightning? There is now a precedent

It’s one thing to help out the Nashville Predators when they’re looking to unload some contracts and bring defenseman Ryan McDonagh back into the fold.

The Lightning weren’t the same after McDonagh left following the 2022 Stanley Cup Final, and reacquiring him in May aligned with their goals of becoming better defensively. McDonagh’s plus-32, tied for second-best among NHL defensemen, shows that after a couple of years away putting that lightning bolt back on can rejuvenate you. Plus, his return has done wonders for pairing partner Erik Cernak.

But then the Lightning reacquired Yanni Gourde, along with Oliver Bjorkstrand, from Seattle before the NHL trade deadline. Gourde didn’t bring Blake Coleman and Barclay Goodrow back with him, so the energy line that was the pulse of back-to-back Cup teams won’t be duplicated. Even if he had, it wouldn’t be the same.

Still, the Lightning bringing back two key members of their championship teams shows that, yes, a player can go home again.

Paging Steven Stamkos?

No, No. 91 isn’t walking through that door anytime soon. But we never thought we’d see McDonagh or Gourde back in a Lightning uniform, either, and here they are playing similar roles on a much different roster in their mid-30s.

It remains to be seen whether Gourde can be the impact player he was previously with the Lightning, but he’ll be given every chance to show it. In Seattle, he was called upon to be more of a leader, a voice in the room, on an expansion team. But he still played in a matchup-line role, sometimes alongside Bjorkstrand, and brings the same energy that made him a fan favorite in Tampa Bay.

Though Gourde never wanted to leave, sometimes time away can help. He knows from personal experience the winning culture that pervades the Lightning dressing room, and he returns as a player willing to do anything to get another shot at a Cup because he knows he doesn’t have many left.

Power play? Where do you want him? Third line? Sure. Top line along with Jake Guentzel and Brayden Point? Sign him up.

Coach Jon Cooper doesn’t hesitate to switch up his lines. Sometimes it’s due to an opponent, sometimes it’s because a line needs a “reset,” like when he sat Nikita Kucherov recently against Buffalo. But when it comes to Gourde, there’s no one who knows where he can be successful more than Cooper.

The same goes for Stamkos. Yes, he’s playing better in Nashville, and maybe he just needed time following the Predators' horrendous start. He has five goals and nine points in his last four games after going 13 straight without a point.

It might take a couple of seasons, but it wouldn’t be surprising to see the Lightning bring Stamkos back. There is a precedent now.

It would be a beautiful thing to see him and Victor Hedman end their careers together. Of course, the money would have to work. But Stamkos no longer would face the mountain of pressure that had been on his shoulders as the face of the Lightning while bringing back his unparalleled leadership and lethal one-timer to a franchise that still could use both.

Lightning need to let it rip

Following their shootout loss Thursday in Philadelphia, the Lightning bemoaned a game that never should have gone to overtime. The Flyers were reeling, having lost five straight at home, and even without Nikita Kucherov and Andrei Vasilevskiy Tampa Bay should have been able to find a winning formula.

The Lightning had just 14 shots on goal during 5-on-5 play. Of the seven games this season in which they totaled 15 or fewer in such situations, four have come in the past eight games.

Tampa Bay won half of those recent games — March 1 at Washington and Feb. 28 vs. the Flames — but it took early leads and tactically held on to them. The Lightning’s 2-1 loss March 3 at Florida included nearly 16 minutes of special teams play and was a game they probably would have won had some bounces gone their way.

If there’s one thing the Flyers do well, it’s block shots. They entered the night averaging a league-leading 17.88, and the Lightning have struggled to get shots to the net. Thursday, Tampa Bay had 13 attempts blocked and missed the net on 11 others during 5-on-5 play. Add the 14 they put on net, and they managed only 38 total attempts in more than 50 minutes at 5-on-5.

The Lightning are a top-five team in a lot of key categories, and shot percentage is one of them. They started Friday tied for second in overall shooting percentage at 12.2%, and their 5-on-5 shooting percentage is fifth at 9.74.

Every opponent is different, but against a team like Philadelphia that takes away shooting lanes the Lightning clearly passed on too many opportunities.

The numbers say to let it rip.

Is bigger better in today’s NHL?

Daily Faceoff asked this week whether having a heavier team is a factor in winning the Stanley Cup. We talk a lot about the physicality needed in the postseason, especially for a deep playoff run.

When the Lightning won back-to-back titles, they were the fourth-heaviest team in 2020 and second-heaviest in 2021, so they certainly used size to their advantage. But while five of the last seven champions have been among the top-six heaviest teams, Florida ranked 18th last season, and the Colorado team that beat the Lightning in the 2022 Final ranked 14th.

It’s an interesting thing to note and an indicator of how hockey has changed from a big, heavy game to one of speed and skating. Since losing to the Avalanche in 2022, the Lightning have prioritized speed over size.

Tampa Bay still has its share of big bodies who can play a physical game, but they’re mainly in the defense corps. But in terms of momentum, is the energy that Gourde, Brandon Hagel or Anthony Cirelli — none of whom can be considered physically intimidating but all who are a pain to play against — bring any less valuable?

This season, according to Elite Prospects data, the Lightning rank 22nd among the league’s heaviest teams with an average weight of 198 pounds. For what it’s worth, the Maple Leafs are the NHL’s heaviest, averaging 208.