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Where Blake Coleman Fits on the Bolts |
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The Lightning were evidently concerned about their forward depth, and they made a big trade on Sunday to help bolster their skill and speed at left wing by acquiring Blake Coleman. In return, the Bolts gave New Jersey their 2019 first-round pick, Nolan Foote, and the Canucks’ 2020 first round pick.
The Devils were able to command such a large haul because Coleman has an additional year on his contract, so the Lightning will have his services for the rest of this season and next season. Tampa Bay understands its window to win the Cup is right now, so credit to management for trying to improve the roster by obtaining one more talented forward.
Coleman will bring an interior presence to the Lightning. For a franchise that in the past has been guilty of playing too much on the perimeter, Coleman drives to the net hard and agitates around the crease. He brings physicality to the forecheck and has good hands around the net. To wit, Coleman is set to score a career high in goals this year as he is presently one goal shy from tying his best total of 22 from last year. He’s not much of a playmaker, but the Lightning are flush with passing.
In Coleman, the Lightning gain another player who can sprint down the weak side and finish off the wing. Coleman has straight-line speed and isn’t afraid to shoot. His quickness and anticipation make him a valuable penalty killer as well. They also enable him to manufacture a surplus of breakaways. So, where does he fit in? Who are the best teammates for him? Here are three suggestions.
Blake Coleman-Cedric Paquette-Tyler Johnson
It’s not a perfect fit, but this way you get to keep Brayden Point with Steven Stamkos and Nikita Kucherov; Jon Cooper can stick Alex Killorn with Anthony Cirelli (with Ondrej Palat on the left wing); and the Mitchell Stephens line stays untouched. That would leave Patrick Maroon as odd man out, but frankly, Coleman’s utility to the Lightning mirrors Maroon’s, only Coleman is way faster and more talented.
One thing I really like about how this line fits together is that Johnson can be relied on as the puck-transporter and playmaker. Johnson can’t really be depended on to score anymore, but he still has the engine to move the puck from Point A to Point B. And if he is doing that, it’s best to surround him with teammates who can finish and retrieve. Coleman and Paquette aren’t exactly Stamkos and Cirelli, but they would add value by creating traffic in front and by attacking off the puck. They are also both capable forecheckers and cyclers.
Against Philadelphia, Johnson fed Paquette from behind the net for a goal, but Maroon helped create the turnover on Ivan Provorov.
Switch Coleman and Maroon, and it is easy to picture Coleman and Paquette wreaking havoc below the circles and creating scoring chances on the forecheck and cycle.
Blake Coleman-Brayden Point-Nikita Kucherov
This would be a really fun experiment, even if the line combination is short-lived. Offering up Coleman to play with the two stars would be a quick way for him to acclimate to his new squad. Without a doubt, Point and Kucherov would immediately orient themselves to be full-bore distributors because they’d be eager to set up their new teammate. When J.T. Miller got traded to the Lightning, I remember Kucherov and Stamkos tripping over themselves trying to be the first one to feed him the puck. It’s not hard to envision Point or Kucherov slicing through the defense, pulling up around the circles, and then trying to smack a pass to Coleman cutting down the wing.
One benefit that Coleman would add to the line is a strong presence around the crease. Neither Kucherov nor Point generate a lot of goals off rebounds or deflections. Having Coleman stationed in the paint, jostling to win position and deflect the shot or retrieve behind the net is a positive. Point tries this right now but is ineffective as he is easily shunted aside by defenders. From a spacing perspective, it would move Point away from the screen and hopefully force him into more of a playmaking role from the off-slot or as a shooter in the middle.
Having an effective screener would buoy the odds for a few of Kucherov’s fadeaway wristers to slip through and for shots from distance in general by the Bolts’ defensemen.
Blake Coleman-Anthony Cirelli-Alex Killorn
How Coleman’s arrival reshuffles the lineup is arguably as interesting as seeing what teammates Coleman demonstrates chemistry with. I am particularly interested in seeing how Coleman’s impact affects Ondrej Palat, the Lightning’s only pure top-six left wing. Palat got off to a hot start this season, posting five goals in the month of October and accruing 12 goals and 12 assists by the end of 2019. With a new workout regimen in the offseason, Palat suddenly seemed more explosive with the puck and was winning races and puck battles he wasn’t winning last season.
Then 2020 happened. He has two goals and ten assists this year in 20 games. Strip away his game on January 17th against Winnipeg when the Lightning thrashed the Jets 7-1 and he registered three assists, and his two goals and seven assists in the other 19 games seem underwhelming. For whatever reason, Cooper has been loath to move Palat out of the top six, despite uneven performances. But with Coleman on board, would Cooper stash Coleman on the left wing with Killorn and Cirelli, making it the ultra-energy skill line? If so, Palat could join Paquette and Johnson on the putative third line.
One thing I love about the Coleman matching with Cirelli and Killorn is that this line would be fantastic from an anticipation standpoint. All three forwards read the game very well, and their ability to create turnovers and advance the puck would make them a headache to stop. Coleman had the third best expected goals percentage and high-danger chances percentage among Devils players. Even if Coleman doesn’t get a chance with Killorn and Cirelli immediately, hopefully Cooper tries Coleman with one of them shorthanded. It would be awesome to watch the transition opportunities they could create together.
Coleman is an influential player and acquiring him with term on his deal is a coup for the Lightning. This also allows management to fully explore jettisoning Yanni Gourde at the season’s end and for them to do it without concern of compromising their depth.
Yes, there is a possibility that Foote turns out to be awesome or Vancouver plummets in the standings and the Devils get a great draft pick. Both of those scenarios are unsettling. But there is one thing about Coleman that is a bit more concerning and could have immediate ramifications, which is his temperament.
Coleman is a provocateur who commits a lot of penalties. The Lightning are trying to exercise more discipline, and it is important that Coleman try to operate within the rulebook come postseason. It’s great that the Lightning got more forward depth, and with Coleman in the fold the top-nine looks quite potent. But the easiest way for the Lightning to fumble this opportunity is to stop playing 5v5 by creating a heap of penalties. Hopefully, Coleman internalizes that memo by season’s end.
Tampa Bay Lightning Blogger • 
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