EP. 5 "All these feelings"

Stevie Z recaps the most recent games on the homestand and what are some prevailing issues that are haunting the Bolts despite their wins. He takes a look into the tight Eastern Conference playoff race and the Bolts last 8 games. As well as some discussion on Bjorkstrand and his diminishing role, plus more!

Transcript

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What is going on, everyone? Thanks for tuning in to the 401 Channel Side Podcast, a Tampa Bay Lightning fan podcast, hosted by yours truly, Stevie Z. Coop is asking the question: why does everyone have feelings? Well, Coop, I've got a lot of feelings, and I want to share them. So let's get into this recap of the most four recent games on this homestand for the Lightning, starting with Seattle. I'll be fully transparent. I was out of town for work. I watched this game intermittently when I could. You know, from what I saw, Bolts got off to a slow start again, Seattle out the gate. I said it from the last episode. I thought that Seattle would come into this game with some urgency, some jump. Because they're teetering on that playoff cut line, they needed a win. They got it in overtime, but they got off to a good start. The Kraken did. And then from there, when they got the lead, the Bolts did a good job of coming back. And I thought that after that first period, the Bolts really controlled the game, especially the third period. But the Kraken did such a good job of blocking shots. 29 shots blocked for Seattle against the Bolts. And that that goal that Vasi gave up in OT, I'm sure he'll want that one back. You know, he got Hegel breaks his stick and then decides to go for the change. And it kind of leaves Vasi. Well, it doesn't kind of, it does leave Vasi in a spot of who to play. Montoy is looking like he's gonna pass, doesn't gets a no-look shot off past Vasi. Bolts lose the game. They got a point, which is good for the standings, but just the slow start was not what the Bolts needed. Really going into a game where you kind of knew that number one team that they played wanted their get back from the home game on the Western Road trip that the Kraken had. And like I said, they're on that cut line, so they're gonna give everything because that wild card spot is close for them. Moving on to Saturday against Ottawa, I did not like the Bolts first period at all. I mean, just 18 seconds into the game, Cousins spinaround shot finds its way under Vasi. It was the fourth game in a row for the Bolts trailing early. Now let me back up. Let me let me for even that, right? Bolts go 11 and 7, no coup draw for Paul due to illness. Uh Ottawa was coming in one point off the wild card, the second wildcard spot. So you knew that they were coming with some urgency as well. Sure enough, they get that goal 18 seconds in. 1535 left in the first period. The Sens get a second goal on their second shot, right? Zub with a big point shot. Vasi gets the initial save, but it's a big rebound, and Vasi gets caught out of position. He saved a second rebound chance as well by cousins, but there's nobody to protect the net. It's a wide open net. Jordan Spence finds the puck, puts it into an empty net for the easiest goal he may ever score. 2-0, bolts down early again. And the Bolts got their first shot eight minutes into the first period. I mean, it was a terrible start. They looked scrambled defensively. Ottawa was getting in the lanes, blocking shots, blocking passes. And later on in this period, it had a chance to get away from the Bolts. 655 left in the first. Vasi has a big breakaway say. Uh save on Brady Kachuk. Big. I mean, that that was a save that could have one of those like remember this for later. And sure enough, um, it did benefit the Bolts later. But Ottawa blocked 11 shots and many more passes in the first period. I thought it was awful for the Bolts, right? They were getting beat to everything. There were some booze in the crowd. You know, they just it looked like they were just kind of just showing up. One o'clock game, gonna kind of coast through it. It didn't look good. 1623 left in the second period. Both finally get on the board. Uh Lilbert finds Das do cross-ic in the Ozone, and James Reimer looked like a fish out of water. He slides way over, gets out of position. There's no room for Das 2 as Reimer blocks a shot attempt, but then Brandon Hagel finds the loose pug, puts it into the empty net, 2-1. And then shortly thereafter, 1446 left in the second period. A Das Du snapshot beats Reimer clean.

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Gord finds him all alone in the slot. 2-2. It's the fifth of the season for Charles Edward Das du. And you know what? It was at that point you're like, okay, the Bolts got into the game finally. But you just don't like that it's over this homestand, it's taking the Bolts so long to get into the game. At least the early half of this homestand, anyway.

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And then it starts to get a little chippy.

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On the Sen's first power play, there's a play by the benches where Sorelli, the Sen's defender, known as Yak, and Dylan Cousins get into a little scrum. That ultimately ends the Sen's first power play at 1151, and they all go off for roughing. I made a note in the game, or being at the game, that I like Dylan Cousins' game. He has a little bit of a mean streak to him. He's got a nice shot, too. He's a big boy. I mean, he just it's kind of funny because he didn't really find a place in Buffalo, and now he's kind of carved out a nice little spot for him in Ottawa. So I really do like his game. The period ended 2-2, and I thought it was a much better period by Tampa engaged Chippy shooting. We get into the third, 11 1109 left in the third. Bolts take the lead off a rush by Hegel and Gonçalves. And Emile Lilleberg is up on the play, gets a pass in the slot from Hegel and goes backhand under James Reimer's locker arm. 3-2. And then near the end, two of uh 2-12 left in the third period. Again, so Potts a breakaway goal off a Hail Mary take-to-tape pass from Corey Perry. 4-2. Look, the rough first period by the Bolts didn't carry over to the second and the third. Uh ultimately a great comeback win over a really tough sense team. I think Ottawa's a fun team to watch. They are on the cusp too. And we'll get into that a little bit later. Uh Lilliberg, three-point game. One goal, two assists, death's due, two points. I mean, yeah, I said it, I've said it previously. There's something about that that third D pair that is leg simple and effective to find Lilliberg on the play for that game-winning goal. Uh I didn't have that on my calling card going into Saturday's game. Anyway, uh back to back versus Nashville. Stammer's back in town on Sunday night for a five o'clock game. Look, Nashville was coming off a loss the night before to Montreal 4-1. They had lost their last two games, but they came into the game in the the West second wildcard spot with 77 points. Stammer coming into the game had 36 goals. Still no cooch. Paul back in. Midway through the first period, not much going on. There's both teams have gotten a power play, both were killed off. Uh, just under 10 minutes left in the first. Uh just coming out of the box, Gensel on a rush, snaps it and it hits the inside of the post. Uh and was beaten clean. And I won't lie, I celebrated. I thought that that bad boy was in. But believe it or not, the bolts actually got their first shot on net with three minutes left in the first period. And you know what? At the end of the first, other than fighting the puck with some of the bouncing and the clears, I thought it was an even period, right? Despite the shots being 10-1 at the end of the first, the Bolt's best chance was to double doink off the post in the first period. And then getting into the second period, midway through the second, preds get on the board with 1129 left in the second period. Turnak hauls uh Hemmel down into Johansson and the puck slides in. It would have been a penalty regardless, probably for holding. So 1-0 Preds midway through the second period. We get into the latter half of the second. Just as the power play ends, Radish right point shot gets deflected. Gensel finds it to the right of Annan and puts it into the net for his 35th of the year. 1-1. And then with 1527 in the third period, Perry, Gensel, Hagel go to work. Perry forces a turnover along the board. Gensel picks it up, dishes the Hagel, who finds himself alone in the slot, makes a nice move and snaps it past Annan. The very next shift, you get a double deflection. Preds tie it off of Forsberg tip. 1507 left in the third. And then two minutes later, Lilleberg with a backdoor feed that gets blocked by Annan, but Perry finds it in the blue paint. 3-2. That would end up being the game winner. As the Bolts get an empty net goal. And in this game, with about eight, just over eight minutes left, Cherneck gets called for boarding Ryan O'Reilly, and he gets a game misconduct. And this is where John Cooper is speaking to the ref and he asks, What's happening to our game? Why does everyone have feelings? Obviously, he's fed up with not fed up, but he was upset with Chernak getting a game misconduct from where I was sitting. I don't know if Chernak said something or if he pushed the ref. It looked like he was gesturing to the ref, and I guess the ref had enough of it and just sent him off. Bolts were 0 for 4 on the power play, but 4 for 4 on the PK. Hey, and listen, I've been shitting on Johansson for the last couple games that he's played. This was his best game in a while. He looked very solid at net, he looked composed. He needed a game like this. He did, because I really think looking at the schedule, he's only going to get one more. And then going in to Tuesday, right against Montreal. Montreal came to the game on a five-game winning streak. They were third in the Atlantic with 94 points. Bolts were coming into the game with points and eight straight, and first place in the Atlantic with 98 points. They were tied on points with Buffalo, but I believe they owned the tiebreaker on regulation wins. Uh Bjorkstrand was scratched. Cooch was back in the lineup. Look, I I was really looking forward to this game. There's a lot of Montreal fans there. The atmosphere was pretty good. Bolts get an early power play, 1654 left on the first. Few good looks, can't get it to go in. 1036 left on the first. Bolts get their second power play. And this is where it got a little hairy for the Bolts. Because on this power play, uh Cooch runs into Dobesh and Dobson skates over, roughs up Cooch a little bit. Cooch roughs up Dobson back. They both end up going for roughing. And then with 935 left in the first period, the power play ends Kazgento goes off for hooking. We go four on four. Then Montreal gets a power play. It's a four-on-three. 30 seconds later, when Dashu trips Lane Hudson, I'll be honest with you, I probably would have put another D-pair out there for the four-on-four. Lane Hudson is an incredible skater. He made Lilleberg and Das Du look like traffic cones. I mean, he split them and you had no choice but to trip them. A minute and a half later, 735 left in the first Hab score on their power play with one second left on the 5-1-3. Slawkowski just blasts a one-time shot. I mean, he got all of it past Vasi, 1-0. And then really a minute later. Mr. I like my wings, Jake and Bake, Jake Gensel. Nice power move behind the net. And he gets loose on Dobson and gets to the front and puts it home 1-1. It's 36th of the season. And this play started when Gergensen pitched Fork the puck out of the zone to start a rush. And it was a good finish by Jake Gensel. And at the end of the first period, look, the Bolts hadn't started well at home in the first period throughout the entire duration of the homestand up to this point against Montreal. I thought it was a good first period. I thought they matched the intensity. I didn't think they were lazy, I guess you could say, or just disengaged. I thought they were engaged from the opening puck drop. And I made a note about Lane Hudson. I mean, just watching him move on the ice, uh, it's incredible. I've got a thing for guys who are just powerful skaters, powerful, efficient skaters, and he just glides. Really, it's effortless for effortless for him. It was really a treat to watch. Right? We get to the second period, and it was zooming by. Zooming by. I mean, not much happening until we get a poor D zone exit, and Sorelli tries to one touch a pass through the neutral zone, and he gets picked up by the Habs for a rush chance. Three Bolt players go to an attacking Montreal player. Caulfield is all alone to the back post. He finishes the rush chance 2-1 Montreal, 722 left in the second. The Bolts get a power play with 425 left in the second, and it was just sloppy. Nothing again. Like it was just no rhythm, no flow for the bolts on the power play. And look, through two periods, I thought Dobesh was playing really well. Really well. Like he was squared of the pucks. There wasn't a lot of second chance opportunities for the Bolts. There was no clean looks. So Montrell was doing well defensively in front of their goaltender, and the Bolts weren't getting enough traffic in front of him. We get into the third, and I thought that from a possession standpoint and an activity standpoint, the bolts really dominated the third period. But they couldn't get one to go in. Right. Just no matter what the bolts did, you could not control the bouncing puck. You couldn't get the rebound, you couldn't stop a clear. They tried to get some traffic in front, but Montreal is number one in block shots as a team. And they really lived up to that in the third period. Here's what I'll say about this game. It ended up being 4-1. I thought Tampa played well, but I didn't feel like any of their shots really challenged Obesh. Like it was just the one and duns, the bolts over passing, and they had 37 shots. But still, I thought they Hooper in his postgame thought that they could have had 55-60 shots because they passed up out of some really good opportunities trying to pass the puck into the net. And I think there is a trend when a goalie is on his game against the bolts. Offensively, you see the bolts overpass to try to get the goalie to move. And ultimately, what ends up happening is they end up passing themselves out of good opportunities because the pass eventually gets blocked, because whoever's defending just stays put and realizes that lightning aren't going to shoot it, they're just going to pass it around because they're they're frustrated. I think it's really a frustration thing, too. And here's what I'll say about Montreal. Look, I they're on a mini heater right now. They've won their last four games and given up only four goals. Here's the thing about that. They've in three of those games, they've given up what I think 35 plus shots in three of those games. So they've beaten, they beat Carolina twice, they beat Nashville, and they beat Tampa. Looking at it, I just don't think it's sustainable to let your goalie see that many shots, personally. I also think that if you're leading the league and block shots, that is probably a case for you're in your own defensive zone a lot. I mean, in terms of goals allowed, the Montreal Canadians are the fourth worst defensive team in the East. And only Pittsburgh is worst out of the Eastern teams that are currently in playoff position. It will be interesting to see they play again. Not next, is it next week? The second to last week of the season. The Bolts will go up to Montreal. That'll be interesting because the game did get a little chippy at the end there. Um, you know, late in the third period, Jake Evans boards Kutaroff. And listen, I saw it. I mean, it was a pretty nasty hit. For me, the first thing that I thought was, did Kuchoff turn into that? Now, watching the replay, you could make an argument, maybe he did it at the last second, it it happened quick. I just think that Jake Evans, and maybe this is rose colored glasses, right? I think that Jake Evans saw Kucharov's number, didn't change his track, really had it in his mind that he was going to hit Kuturoff regardless. He ran straight through Kucharoff's back. Right. And it wasn't so much the hit itself. I thought the extension on the upper back through the nameplate into the boards, into the dasher nonetheless, in a dangerous, vulnerable position. The fact that it got downgraded, you know, it was being challenged as a major and they kept and they penalized it as a minor penalty. I really think that that was more so of the result of the hit that Kucharov got up and then was gonna be able to continue to play because that was a pretty nasty hit. I was surprised. I I was honestly surprised. And then in my it wouldn't matter anyway, because Radish got a penalty too for jumping in and tackling Jake Evans. So, I mean, the Bolts wouldn't have really had anything until what, maybe 30 seconds left? Because there's maybe two 230 left in the game when that play happened. And then Montreal gets two empty nights goals, the score ends up being 4-1. In my opinion, the score is really 2-1. It was a good game by both teams. Um, I'll tell you what, post-game though, Montreal fans on the socials. A statement win for them. Holy cow! I mean, listen, when Kuchiroff got boarded, and I knew like I had to run to the socials and check the commentary. Montreal fans, please pull out the Kucharoff doll and show me where he hurt you. Because my word, some of the stuff that they were saying when Kutaroff got boarded, oh, it couldn't have happened to a better person. He's a piece of shit. The only thing that would have made it better if he was injured. I was like, gosh, dang. I mean, like, I get it. He said some things about you guys in what 2021 about how you acted. Listen, the guy was on a high, he's having fun, and he gets booed every time he goes there, which I think is great. He he plays into that. But my word, you know, it's it's actually, you know what? I'll I'll say this about Montreal. Tampa certainly has more history with Montreal than they do with something that's trying to be forced with Buffalo, and that's more so on the Buffalo end, right? Like Tampa and Montreal have met what they met in 2004, they met in 14, they met in 15, and they met in the Stanley Cup final. Right, so there is playoff history there. And really, when the Havs were struggling, there wasn't that much animosity between the teams. But when Montreal and Tampa are both good, there is some nastiness between the two teams. That's fun to watch. That isn't that isn't something that's forced. There's history there, and that that predates a lot of the players, right, that are currently that goes back to Tampa's first cup run. And then Montreal swept, Montreal swept Tampa in 2014, Tampa came back in in 2015 on their way to the Stanley Cup final, and then obviously, like I said, Tampa beat him in the Stanley Cup final in 2021. So there is history. I always enjoy when Montreal comes to town to play Tampa. Not so much the fact that we Tampa fans get run over, ran out of our own rink by opposing Canadian fans. It's just there's they're here, it's a lively atmosphere. I enjoy it. The ole ole chants get quite annoying. Yeah, I mean, I left after they potted the the fourth goal, the second empty net goal. It's just all like, all right, well, this is gonna be what it is for the night. But look, on the homestand, the bolts are currently 3-1 and 1. The negatives is the slow starts, right? I think we can all agree that the bolts need to be ready to go from the opening puck drop. I just personally don't think, and I'm sure everybody will agree to some extent, that the lack of urgency in the first period is not a sustainable trend for success to not only finish out the season, but clinch a playoff spot. And then when you get into the playoffs, when things are a lot tighter, it's just not a sustainable trend. I love the fact that they come back, but for me, I would really like to see them play more consistently like how they played against Montreal in the first period. So moving forward in these next couple games on the homestand, when the puck is dropped, that urgency from puck drop. Right. I I think I said earlier, lazy, and I and I misspoke. It's not laziness, it's like I said, I reiterate it, this disengaged feel, right? That the bolts are getting beat to everything, loose pucks, you know, they're not skating, they're kind of just feeling their way through the game, and meanwhile, the other team is just buzzing around, you know, tape-to-tape passes, in and out of the zones, and Tampa just seems to be one step behind. And what you don't want is if you play a team that is hot at the right time, if they get an early lead in that first period, and then you got a goalie who's having himself a night like Dobesh was last night, well, then what? You know, then then you're then you're fighting an uphill battle, something that you really caused yourself by the lack of urgency to start the game. You know, so the eight-game point streak was snapped with the loss to Montreal, but on a positive note, right? Jake Gensel, he's got goals in seven of his last eight. I mean, he's really turning it on, right? And like a lot of these guys, right? He lives for the playoffs, he's been uber consistent all season long. Okay, wait, he's up to 36 goals now. 36, 37 goals now. Like, he looks really good. And I hope that that form can continue going in to the playoffs. One one thing that I did notice about the Montreal game, and I'll then I'll move on from here, is that the Yanni Gord, Gerbenson's homeberg line, they were out. For me, it seemed like they were getting every other shift almost. Like Cooper was going back to the well over and over and over again because they were really good defensively, they were generating chances offensively, they were getting the puck in and out of the zone. I mean, they were drawing penalties. If that line, as we kind of finish the regular season, and hopefully into the playoffs, if that line can just find a little bit more scoring touch, that is an X factor line for the Bolts. Because I really think like from the Western trip into the homestand, they've played really well. Just they've gone a little dry on the homestand with the goals, but that doesn't mean that they're not playing well. You just want that added element to their game as the season finishes. Right, so we've got eight games left.

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The Bolts have played 74 games. Six out of the eight games are versus teams vying for a playoff spot. Okay, they play they play Pittsburgh, they play Boston twice, they play Buffalo, they play Ottawa, and then they play Montreal. So it's not gonna get it's not gonna get easy for the Bolts because all of these games are going to mean something, right? No team in the East, I'm sorry, well in the Atlantic anyway, has clinched a playoff spot, right? So let's look at the Atlantic division race right now, and we'll go through the whole East as well, right? So Buffalo's in first with 100 points, right? Both Buffalo and Tampa have 46 wins, right? So Tampa obviously in second with 98 points. Montreal is in third with 96 points, right? Looking at the Metro, Carolina, 47 wins, 100 points. Pittsburgh, 38 wins, 92 points. The Islanders, 42 wins, 89 points. Boston is the first wild card, 43 wins, 94 points. And then you look at that second wild card spot, and there are five teams that I think are are battling out for that spot right now. It's held by Columbus, right? 75 games, they've got 38 wins, 88 points. Ottawa is right there, 74 games played, 38 wins, 86 points. Detroit, 39 wins, 86 points. Uh, and they both have 74 games played as well. The Flyers, 74 games played, 37 wins, 86 points, and then the caps, 75 games played, 38 wins, 85 points. It's gonna be really interesting. I know that when you look at it, Ottawa, Detroit, Philly, and Washington, right? They're all battling with Columbus. Based on trends right now and how things are going. I just I really thought it was gonna be Ottawa, and it still could be Ottawa before they gave up a touchdown to Florida on Tuesday night. They really need Jake Sanderson back, they need us to get some guys back because I do think that a team is really competitive, they are fun to watch. The goalie situation is a little interesting, right? Why they didn't play Olmark versus the Lightning is strange to me. Uh well, rest or whatever it was, and then he came in against Florida and he gave up what two goals on the first two shots he saw, or something like that. That's not what you need from your starting goaltender as you're trying to make a playoff push. Detroit, I saw something on social media earlier that was just really, I mean, they've done it again in a sense. Going back to 2023, okay, in March, Detroit 5-9-1 in March of 2023, 2024, March, 3-9-2, last year in March 4-10-0, and this year 5-7 and 2. That team collapses at this time of year. Now look, here's something that I'm curious about. Is Stevie Y's job in jeopardy if Detroit misses the playoffs? I've said in a previous episode he doesn't, he hasn't really made many moves at the trade deadline that are like needle-moving moves for Detroit. Larkin criticized it last year. They didn't do it again this year, and they have absolutely collapsed. They were what third in the Atlantic a couple weeks ago. And now, in their last 10, they're 3-6-1 with a losing streak of two right now. And how things are currently trending for them based on just the current run of play, I wouldn't be surprised if they missed the playoffs. And they'll just miss it. They'll just miss it. But what is it, seven years of Steve Iserman there? And I can forgive and understand the first four years, right? Previous general manager Ken Holland left a bit of a mess for Steve Eiserman to kind of come up and clean. But the last three years, what's okay, you're the first year that you were competitive, year five, I get. Right? You're competitive, you were right there with what? Somewhere between 10 and 20 games left, you were on the cusp and you fell off. Understandable. Last year, you were even closer. Okay, you're still you're still a franchise with young players trying to figure out a way to win and get over the hump. This year, what is it? Because you were in position really for a lot of the season. And to kind of fall out in March. I mean, you gotta wonder, like I said, is he in jeopardy here? Because for me, if I'm a Detroit Wednesday fan, I'm pissed. Because it's just maybe this is who Steve Irisman is. Like, he did it in Tampa, the drafting with the step with the scouting staff and and what they were able to find unearthing gems, but he didn't make any moves to really push this team over the top. That was Julian Brisbois who really stuck the dagger and made some of those moves and was like, you know what? Yeah, I'm gonna I'm going to use my picks as capital to go and get players that I want. Right, Detroit has good young prospects, no doubt. And I believe that their AHL team, Grand Rapids, they're killing it this year in the AHL. That doesn't necessarily always translate to the NHL, but at some point, you gotta wonder what's going on there. Right. So, anyway, enough about Detroit for the Bolts. One thing that I noticed looking at the standings, right? I mean, goals for 268, goals allowed 207. They've got a plus 61 goal differential. Look, their first in offense, their first in defense in the East right now. It's very similar to last year. I tipped my hat off to JBB in the offseason. I was like, he probably needs to make a move for getting a heavy somebody who can, you know, bump in the corners and muck it up a little bit and get into the post-whistle scrums because I thought that Florida had bullied Tampa the last two years, but he's stuck by his process and his numbers and his analytics, and Tampa has repeated it again. Last year, Julian Breesball said, I don't want to make any panic moves because I like our team. Right, what was it? They finished first in offense, second in defense, or something like that, and then they finished on special teams fourth in power play and sixth in penalty kill or reverse, vice versa. And this year, right, they've done it again in the east first offensively, first defensively. That's really impressive. It's really impressive. And for me, if the bolts can just continue to be steady, remain urgent, stay true to those details. I think I mean you want to see them round in form over here the last eight games, because they're all gonna be tough. There's no gimme games the last two games of the season, and hopefully they would have clinched by then. Obviously, no guarantee based on that schedule. They play Detroit and they play New York. Those are the quote-unquote gimme games at the end of the year that will soften the blow against the six out of the eight teams that they're gonna play who are currently in playoff position. I want to get into uh something that I noticed, right? Bjork Strand was scratched you know for the uh for the Montreal game. And he was scratched earlier in in the homestand as well. I believe it was the Minnesota game. Looking back, right, you have to go back 11 games since his last point, right, which was March 7th against Toronto. In the last five games, he played 10 minutes or less. Right this year he's got he's played 72 games, he's got 29 points, 11 goals, none of them are on the power play. He's got a minus 15 plus minus. This decrease in minutes, I mean, that's gotta sting for Bjork Strand. Somebody who earlier in the season was on the first power play, he's not even getting first power play time right now. Hagels kind of took over that that spot on power play one. This was somebody that when he was traded for along with Yanni Gord, it was a right shot. You were hoping for that he could kind of mitigate some of the loss, but that the power play was going to have when they lost Steven Stamkos, and he has not been that at all. At all. I mean, they gave up a first-round pick for him. He's a UFA. If I I mean it can't be any more clear that they don't have plans to sign him. I mean, his last game that he played, I believe he got eight or nine minutes. He's playing on the fourth line now with Perry and Nick Paul. And you could scratch for Scott Sabron. And I'll tell you what, watching Corey Perry, Nick Paul, and Scott Sabron, I was I mean, poor Nick Paul, because he's he's anchored by two guys who can't really skate. Like, you can't scratch for Scott Sabron. That's tough. Scott Sabron was assigned to the AHL coming out of training camp. That's been like a fall from grace. What you're and and the thing is, is like I like the way Bjork Fran skates. He's not effective on the fourth line outside of his skating, but the Bolts have tried to put him in many different roles. I don't think he's actually fit in all in any of them, to be quite honest with you. Like Gonsalvis is now, Gonsalvis is now in the top six, playing with the likes of you know, Point Hegel, Cooch, and whoever else, Gensel. He doesn't really have a role, like in Dominic James is out, he's not gonna be back till late April. But that guy. I mean, you know what to expect from his rookie. He's gonna skate, he's gonna go hard in the corners. Bjorkstrand does that too. The problem is that Bjorkstrand gets paid like he's supposed to contribute goals. He just hasn't done that. That's really unfortunate for him. It's got to sting because he's a UFA, and I'm sure his value is dropping for what he could get on the on the market because I just don't see a way the Bolts re sign him. And that's tough for a guy like him. For Tampa, I mean, Tampa's finding guys to fill his role. You've got 11 goals, nine are on the power play. I'm not sure how many of those are one-timers fed from Cooch, to be honest with you. I was actually surprised. I think he's second on the team. First on the team is Radish with 10 power play goals. Another player who's kind of caught my eye over this homesteader. Emile Lilleberg, he's got four points on this homestand. He's looked more confident offensively, sometimes too confident. He's jumping up on the play, he's like below the circles in the corner, digging out the puck, and there's a Ford having to rotate over to cover him defensively. And it's like, okay, he's starting to feel comfortable. That three-point game that he had, I didn't see it coming at all. But he's with that confidence, he's looking to find those scene passes, the pass that he tried to make to Corey Perry against Nashville. Corey Perry sitting at the back post. If that pass connects, that's a filthy pass because there's no space to make that pass. But that's what I'm saying. There's confidence. Like I mentioned it probably in the last episode against Minnesota. He made a play along the boards to bank it off the board, shimmy off the Minnesota defender, and kind of pass it to himself. There's a level of confidence since he's returned back from injury, despite missing what, 31 games this season, that he's kind of found. And here's the thing about Lilleberg last year on all bolts socials, fan socials, like he got a lot of crap about, oh, he's the worst NHL defenseman analytically, or whatever it was. And like I said, I don't know how valid that is. I won't I won't really look. There was some things that I saw about game score, and he was pretty bad in that regard. But I really think that you just had to give the kid a chance to show what he could do. The other part of that is like he's got a he's got a D partner in Dass do who together they have this chemistry that's worked really well. And over the homestand, you really noticed it. And you really noticed it in that Ottawa game and the Nashville game. It took a step back really against Montreal because those top-end guys that Montreal has was pushing them back a little bit. But Lilleburke has caught my eye. And when he came back from injury, I was a little bit aware, like cautious about where he would be. But he's helped round out the top six really well for the Bolts. Right as we kind of get into finishing up on this podcast today. Let's look at this. Noah Steen signs a two-year entry level with the Bolts. If you remember, or if you recall who Noah Steen is, right? He was a seventh round, 199th pick in the 2024 uh entry draft. He's the kid who when he was drafted by the Bolts, his family was recording the reaction, and his family was so excited for him. Family in tears, seventh round pick. It doesn't matter. That's so cool, right? You never really get to see those reactions like you do with other sports, like particularly in the like in the NFL, when you get to see their player reactions at their home. It was really cool to see that. Noah Steen played in the Swedish league for Orebru at 22 points a season, 12 goals, 10 assists. His team finished 10th out of 14 teams. About his game, right? He's a little bit bigger. He's been listed at 6-1, 190, 195. He plays a real direct game. I would imagine with him signing on that tryout with Syracuse, he's gonna go there and try to carve himself out a bottom six role to see where he fits and adjusts to life playing North American hockey. Right? Um he's not gonna be a guy who's gonna generate a lot of points for the Lightning, or Syracuse for that matter, I think. Because in his career, looking at his numbers, he's just never been, he's never been that player, right? Like Elite Prospects has enlisted as an edge in an agitator, you know, penalty kill specialist, somebody who will be a two-way forward, like a checking type forward. And you know what? The Bolts do love that. Because you kind of look at Syracuse and what they have. I mean, I I I look at it, and let me pause there because there's another one that I want to get into alongside Noah Steen, that he signed his entry level. Uh Benjamin Rotiainen, right? The Tapeta forward, the finish forward who had 77 points in Liga this year. Alongside Noah Steen, if Tapeta somehow were to get eliminated from the Liga playoffs, he would be one that I would be looking to see if he would sign an entry level with Tampa. Here's the caveat to that. Unless Tapita get knocked out earlier, because right now they're in a playoff series in the first round, they're tied 1-1, and Tapita is the first overall seed. I just don't see Benjamin Rothiainen signing his entry level to play with the crunch this year. And I'll be honest with you, if he were to sign this year, where do you where do you put him? Right? Because you look at it in that, right, Puckpedia has the the top six guys, right, who have scored. I mean, you look at it like Connor Geeky, he's got 59 points this year, right? Mitchell Chafee, 55 points this year. Jacob Peltier, 73 points this year. Dylan Duke, 55 points this year. You would assume all those guys are in the top six, right, for Syracuse. So where does he fit in? Now, I am curious in the summertime if Tampa will try to persuade him to come over, leave Finland and sign, and then open up the season with Syracuse. It does interest me because Mitchell Chafee is a UFA. He is 28 years old. And maybe the Bolts would like to see a prospect that they've drafted who's performed really, really well in Europe to see if they can transition him over to North American Ice and see how he performs in the AHL. Because I just personally don't think he's not going to make the jump from Finland to the NHL right away. And that's not the Boltz, that's not the Boltz MO anyway. They like their prospects to get a little seasoning down there to make sure that they're really ready. People have asked why uh Pelchie has not gotten a call-up. He's played two games with the Bolts this year, and even though he leads the AHL on points, I'm just gonna, I just don't know where he fits right now. Anyway, like you he's not a player who's gonna succeed playing bottom six minutes. Realistically, that's the only place that they could put him. I I saw something on the socials about why they didn't call him up while Cooch was sick. I mean, if you can kind of get through the weekend without having to use one of your four collops, then you do that. Right? The Bolts did it, they won both games before Cooch got back this past Tuesday. And I also just don't know, right? So Pelchier's in the first year of a three-year contract with the Bolts. He's lighting up the AHL. I just I'm a little cautious because we did have another AHL leading scorer in Alex Barry Boulet. Granted, they're probably the same size. Um, but I think the difference is Peltier is probably a better skater than Bariboule. That's the one thing that hindered him that Barry Boulet couldn't adjust. He did really well in the AHL, but could not find himself space on the ice at all. It seemed like he was laboring when he was skating in the NHL, like he just wasn't able to keep up with guys. Pelchier has obviously played in the NHL with Calgary, but it'll be interesting to see, you know, because I I don't even know. Like, the thing is like when people when people say, Well, why don't you call this player up? What's his role gonna be when he comes up? Right, and speaking on Pelchier. Right? Like, there has to be a role for him. He signed a three-year contract, so I mean, I wouldn't be surprised if he's if he stays there in Syracuse. Now, there is gonna be spots in the bottom six for sure that are open, especially on the fourth line. You know, the likes of I don't I I would imagine that Cory Perry doesn't come back with the Bolts. I would imagine, you know, Bjorkstrand's not coming back. Scott Sabrin, like he's not an every he's not an every night player for the Bolts. The fact that he's getting in right now really surprises me. Because he's been kind of getting his ass ticked in some fights too, but I mean he's willing to go, right? What do you like? You like the you like the grit, you like the edge. But when you put them on the ice, like there was a couple instances against Montreal, where that fourth line of Sabron, Perry, and Paul are out there, and they're out there against Lane Hudson, Caulfield, you know, those those guys. And it's like, oh boy, we're in trouble. And what you hope for is just that with the bottom six, they're they're the bolts are not gonna call up guys just for the sake of calling guys up, right? That's why someone like Peltier, the the time is not right for him. Previewing the next couple games, as we finish this up here, right? Bolts play Pittsburgh on Thursday. Pittsburgh's coming in 38, 21, and 16, 92 points on the season, second in the metro. Uh, they have the most goals allowed of all Eastern playoff position teams with 238. Right, they're 6'3-1 in their last 10. They're coming off a game where they beat Detroit 5-1. Their big question is goaltending. Yeah, they got rid of Jarry for Stuart Skinner. I'm not sure that that was the right play. You know, that that'll be that'll be interesting. But you know what? It's going to be a game where it's like the bolts have to come out and start urgent. Engaged early on for the next six games. Because all these games are gonna hold meaning until you clinch a playoff spot. And what you what you're hoping, and now this is obviously you're being hyperbolic, you don't want it to get to a point where the like the bolts are the last two games, they haven't clinched a spot yet because it's so tight. I do think that the bolts will clinch a spot before then. But you know, you're playing a team who hasn't clinched either, and they want to clinch too. So you've got to up the level, right? Saturday, Boston, 43, 24, and 8, 94 points. First wild card, 7-1-2 in their last 10. They're on a four-game win streak where they've beaten Buffalo, Minneapolis, Columbus, and Dallas for really good teams. And like I said, at the time of recording, they're sitting the first wild card in 94 points. I I don't envision any team catching Boston for that first wild card. With 94 points, that just shows you the level of the division number one, um, the Atlantic division, that 94 points is the first wild card this year. I just don't know if I see one of those five teams in Columbus, Ottawa, Detroit, Philly, or Washington hatching Boston for that first wild card. And then they've got a until we record, right? We'll we'll hit the Buffalo, Ottawa, back-to-back. Buffalo's, at least the Buffalo fans are really looking forward to this game. Like they think that Logan Stanley is gonna rearrange Hegel's face, and he's gonna he's gonna concuss Kutcher off, and he's gonna do all those things. I'll be honest with you, I'm not really even all that worried about it or concerned by it. Um, I think that there's an element of trying to force something that really isn't there from their end, at least from their fans. Um for me, it's just a game that the bolts on a round and form win. Ideally, the game points get closer to clinching. That's really all I care about. And then they play Ottawa the night after that. And then we'll probably I'll probably look to record um after those four games because I'm going out of town again here this weekend. Little housekeeping here as I finish up. Right, Kuchrov named Yanna Cheld's first star of the month. No surprise, really. I mean, from March 1st to March 31st, he had nine goals, 17 assists, 26 points. I mean, cooch doing cooch things. That doesn't surprise me at all. Right, I think what you're hoping for is that he's a little bit healthier in 100% against Pittsburgh, because against Montreal he didn't really look he didn't really look all that good. He kind of looked like he was trying to get over being sick. Uh some prospect news, right? Uh Samuel Riley, right, named OHL Player of the Month for March, right? Eight games played, five goals, fourteen, nineteen points with a plus twelve, plus minus. Right, helped lead uh Kitchener to the top of the Western Conference, and that helped him earn player of the month in the OHL. And on the injury front, right, Hegel and Sabron are day-to-day. Uh Hegel out for the Pittsburgh game, surprised at with Hegel. Didn't know what it was. I believe Sabron got tangled up with Jacqueline, and they fell. And uh he banged himself up. So the Hegel one is interesting. He's day-to-day. Um Buffalo fans think that Hegel's ducking the the next game against Buffalo. I don't really think it's so much that as he did something in the game versus Montreal. So anyway, guys, look forward to talking to you again soon. If you want to interact on X at 401 underscores TVZ, shoot me your questions, your comments, anything like that. We'll talk soon, guys. See ya.