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Stamkos's Linemates Should Feed Him in the Crease |
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For the duration of three full Presidential terms Steven Stamkos has been smacking one-timers past helpless goaltenders. The casual elegance of a man punishing a puck with one swift demonstration of power and grace has become routine for the Tampa Bay loyal. It looks easy because he does it so often. Time moves on, but Stamkos continues to crush the puck and the goaltenders can’t stop it. Of the 29 goals Stamkos scored this season, ten were one-timers.
In these abnormal times, the Lightning hope to return to normalcy. The last time Steven Stamkos played was in late February. After that, the captain had surgery and fully recovered – but ever since he has waited along with the rest of his teammates to see what happens next. Before the injury, Stamkos was notching goals at a clip that was a tick above one goal every two games. Lethal on the power play, the captain also thrived at 5v5 with Nikita Kucherov and Brayden Point as his linemates. In the last ten games the superstar trio played together, their expected goals percentage was 64.33 and their high-danger chances plus-minus was +12. They were killing the opposition.
So how to return to that level? I went through Stamkos’s goals for this season to have a taxonomy of how he found the back of the net. As mentioned above, a smidge over 33 percent of Stamkos’s goals came off his booming shot from the right circle. But of the other 19 goals, I was surprised to see that eight derived from deflections or his soft hands around the crease. This is a new development. Examining all of Stamkos’s goals from 2018-19, I only saw two that met these latter criteria and that was out of a sample of 45.
With the Lightning reinventing their approach for how to generate scoring chances, Stamkos has adapted along with his team. In 2018-19, Stamkos had several breakaway goals. He was the deadly sniper on the rush. He was a beneficiary of the Bolts’ transition offense, which later flailed in the postseason against Columbus. But an adjustment to the forecheck and cycle has evidently taken place.
Granted, some of the touch exhibited by Stamkos came while opponents were trying to stymie a rush chance. The embedded video is a prime example: Point attacks the net and can’t slide the puck past Pavel Francouz, but Stamkos beats Nikita Zadorov to the loose puck when it is evident it is not secured.
Stamkos has a powerful shot, that is undisputed, but his acceleration to the puck to best his enemy defender can be overwhelming. Collecting his 800th point, Stamkos follows a missed shot and stuffs the carom past Carey Price. Both the defenders and Price hope to foil the Lightning captain, but Stamkos’s feet and hands are quicker.
On December 9th, Stamkos had a goal against the Islanders that again underscores what a nuisance he is in front of the net. With Anthony Cirelli turning toward the middle, the second wave of the rush was coming from Kevin Shattenkirk who was uncovered on the strong side. Shattenkirk tossed a perfect pass to Stamkos, who spun and heaved a backhand past Semyon Varlamov.
How Stamkos got so open is relevant. Right as Shattenkirk was receiving the pass, Stamkos shoved Derick Brassard from behind and got separation in the low slot. Around the net, timing is everything.
Kucherov and Point are comfortable carrying the puck along the perimeter, which is why Stamkos asserting himself as a potent inside-outside threat is so valuable. Stamkos can flash to the off-slot for a one-timer. Or he can plop himself in front of the net and try to win the puck off the rebound or try to tip the puck in. He is also formidable attacking from beneath the goal line.
On December 10th, Stamkos got help from the referees on a missed tripping call, and from fellow Bolts’ forward Alex Killorn on the forecheck as Killorn swooped in as the F3 and generated the turnover. Even with the aforementioned aid, it is striking how Stamkos seizes on a sliver of space. A quick maneuver with a forehand-to-backhand-to-forehand deke allows him to deposit the puck past Sergei Bobrovsky.
When classifying Stamkos’s goals, I found a category where he preys on thwarted breakouts, exploiting the destabilized defensive coverage. The goal against Florida could be grouped with that bunch, but his nifty stickwork in the crease was the trump card. Nevertheless, the Lightning stand to accrue more 5v5 goals by forcing turnovers and trying to funnel the puck to Stamkos.
Last postseason, the Lightning struggled against Columbus to generate shots off rebounds or to release shots from the middle of the ice. In the Round Robin and beyond, Point and Kucherov would be wise to give Stamkos room to make plays around the crease. This means simplifying. Sometimes the best choice is putting the puck on net and letting one’s linemate try to make a play. If the Lightning cannot produce these kinds of dirty goals, they will have a short playoff run.
Tampa Bay Lightning Blogger • 
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