Lightning Have Intriguing Off-Season Target In Senators Forward

The Tampa Bay Lightning should be busy this off-season. While they undoubtedly had a strong regular-season, they struggled in the playoffs, losing in five games to the Florida Panthers in the first round. With this, it would not be particularly surprising if the Lightning looked to make some tweaks to their roster this summer.

One specific area the Lightning could look to address this off-season is their bottom six. It is fair to state that they would benefit by adding more secondary scoring, and one pending unrestricted free agent who could give them just that is Ottawa Senators forward Adam Gaudette.

Gaudette, 28, signed a one-year, two-way contract with the Senators during this past off-season and proved to be a complete steal for Ottawa in 2024-25. In 81 games, he scored a career-high 19 goals and recorded 26 points and a plus-12 rating. He was also impactful for the Senators during this short post-season run this spring, recording one goal, three points, and a plus-2 rating in six games.

With numbers like these, Gaudette demonstrated that he can be an impactful depth scorer in the NHL, and the Lightning could certainly use another of those. If the Lightning signed him this off-season, he would give them a very solid option for their fourth-line center role, at a minimum. However, he can also play the wing, so the Lightning could fit him anywhere in their bottom six.

Overall, with the Lightning needing more production from their bottom six, taking a shot on a player like Gaudette could be worthwhile. It will be interesting to see if they make a push for him this off-season from here.

Lightning Facing Decision With Veteran Forward

After a quick first-round playoff exit, the Tampa Bay Lightning are entering what should be a busy off-season. The Lightning have multiple pending free agents heading into the summer, and one of them is veteran forward Luke Glendening.

Glendening, 36, just completed the two-year, $1.6 million contract he signed with the Lightning during the 2023 NHL off-season. Because of this, he can become an unrestricted free agent on July 1, and the Lightning now must decide if he is a player they want to keep around or let walk.

Glendening was a mainstay on the Lightning's fourth line this campaign and also received time on their penalty kill because of his defensive play. In 77 games this season with the Bolts, he had four goals, seven points, 58 blocks, and 105 hits. He also recorded one goal, one assist, and 13 hits in five post-season games for the Lightning this year.

Overall, if Glendening is willing to stick around at a cheap price, the Lightning could consider keeping him around for their 4C role or even as their 13th forward. However, it would also be understandable if Lightning management wants to make changes to their bottom six after how the playoffs went for them this time around.

Nevertheless, it will be interesting to find out what Glendening's future with the Lightning will be. In 158 games over two seasons as a Bolt, he has 14 goals, 18 points, and 226 hits.