With more opportunities, the Bolts' power play is finding its rhythm

Through the first five games of the season, power plays were few and far between for the Tampa Bay Lightning.
Entering a two-game series against Nashville Saturday, the Lightning ranked next-to-last for power-play opportunities with 14, trailing only Florida (12 PP opportunities) among NHL teams, which had played one fewer game. Bolts head coach Jon Cooper said it was tough for the unit to get into a rhythm because of the infrequency in which the unit got out on the ice combined with the large gaps between games due to COVID-postponed contests.
The two-game sweep of the Predators, however, provided plenty of practice time for the Lightning power play. Tampa Bay was awarded seven power plays in the series opener Saturday and converted two in a 4-3 win. Two nights later, the Lightning went 1-for-4 on the power play, Steven Stamkos scoring from his office in the left circle for his 301st career power-play point, overtaking Martin St. Louis as the all-time franchise leader for power-play scoring.
The plethora of power plays against the Predators has given the unit a bit of a rhythm as it heads into a two-game set versus the Detroit Red Wings Wednesday and Friday at AMALIE Arena to close out a four-game homestand.

"It's a work in progress with those guys just because Pointer's playing in a different spot and it's a righty versus a lefty there, so if affects both the guy in the hole there and Hedman," Cooper said. "And so it was good to get some power plays…It's more about the momentum, and are they in the zone? Are they creating chances? We struggled with the breakouts early in (Monday's) game, but as we got going, we got stronger and stronger. And I think Point's getting more comfortable in that spot. But again, when you don't have a preseason and the camp is so short, now you're getting your reps in the games and it takes a little time to get comfortable there."
The Lightning rank 14th in the NHL currently on the power play, connecting on 24 percent of their opportunities. But the unit has scored a goal in three of the last four games, netted four-power-play goals total over that stretch and seems to be gaining in confidence.

"It's just kind of a feel-out process," Brayden Point said. "I think we're getting some decent looks. Some power plays are better than others. But it's a learning process."
Point has the most difficult role on the Lightning's revamped top power-play unit as he takes over for Nikita Kucherov while Kucherov recovers from hip surgery and is out through the regular season.
Point set up in the slot in previous iterations of the power play and scored a lot of goals as a result. In 2018-29, he netted 20 power-play goals, second-most for a season in Lightning history, and followed up with eight more in 2019-20.
Now he's asked to be the facilitator on the top unit in Kucherov's spot along the right wall, setting up Victor Hedman's bomb from the point on Steven Stamkos' patented one-timer from the left circle. It's a role he's growing more comfortable with every time the group gets an opportunity, which they've seen a drastic rise in of late.
"There's still lots to learn for myself in that wall spot," Point said. "…I'm getting lots of opportunities there to make some plays. Just trying to feel it out and get better as the game goes on. But still lots to learn for sure."
RETURN OF THE MAC: Lightning backup goaltender Curtis McElhinney has yet to play this season, largely because he was on the NHL's unavailable due to COVID-19 protocol list for nearly two weeks. But he's been off since January 29 and working himself back into game shape after his required quarantine.
With McElhinney unavailable, Andrei Vasilevskiy has started every game this season. But McElhinney might make his season debut shortly.
Cooper said McElhinney could "potentially" play Friday when the Lightning wrap up their homestand against Detroit, and if not then, soon after.
"Worst-case scenario probably in that back-to-back in Nashville," Cooper said, referring to games Monday and Tuesday against the Predators at Bridgestone Arena.

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