The Tampa Bay Lightning’s chances at making the post-season were dealt a crushing blow on Wednesday night after an embarrassing loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs. The Lightning were outcoached, outplayed, and outmatched in every facet of the game. The Toronto Maple Leafs looked like a team with killer instinct and drive, while the Lightning looked like a team in “Suck for Seth” mode.

With the loss, the Lightning’s chance at making the playoffs dropped from just over 38% to roughly 25% per Sports Club Stats. Regardless of how you cut it, this loss hurt. Every loss from here until the Lightning are mathematically eliminated from contention is going to hurt. If Wednesday’s performance is any indication, the Lightning don’t even deserve to be in the playoff conversation. Steven Stamkos was outmatched by Nazem Kadri, Mathieu Garon and Anders Lindback were outplayed by James Reimer, and the Leafs’ forwards were far hungrier than any member of the Lightning.

Despite the fact that they had lost five straight games, the Maple Leafs showed no ill effects and managed to get off to a great start. They were moving the puck well, generating chances, and controlling the pace of play. Their hard work paid off when Joffrey Lupul was left all alone in front of Mathieu Garon to tip home a perfect pass from Nazem Kadri, who had three assists on the night. The Leafs’ first goal highlighted everything that went wrong for the Lightning during the contest; the Bolts’ defenders simply couldn’t keep up with the Leafs’ ability to move the puck.

Down one goal heading into the second period, feelings of despair had not yet crept into the minds of the Lightning players. Bliss and hope didn’t last long as Dion Phaneuf wired home his fifth of the season just 52 seconds into the second period to give the Leafs their insurance marker. While Phaneuf’s shot was certainly an impressive bullet, Mathieu Garon has got to stop that puck. Clean slap shots from a distance shouldn’t beat NHL goaltenders when there’s minimal screening involved. Ultimately, that goal was the back breaker.

Tyler Bozak’s eighth goal of the season extended the Leafs’ lead to three later in the second frame, and that would end Mathieu Garon’s first stint in the Lightning crease. Regrettably, Anders Lindback didn’t fare any better as he was beaten by a Nikolai Kulemin wrist shot nearly as soon as he entered the net. At 4-0 with little pushback mounting, it was pretty clear that the Lightning’s night was over after two periods.

Only 45 seconds into the third period, Joffrey Lupul nailed Victor Hedman in the head resulting in the Lightning power-play. While it’s certainly easy to let emotion take over and suggest that the hit warrants a lengthy suspension for Lupul, it should be noted that Hedman did finish the game after a short stint in the quiet room. The hit itself was an unfortunate play that probably deserves supplemental discipline, but not a severe multi-game suspension. It wasn’t malicious, there didn’t seem to be intent to injure, and Lupul is about the farthest thing from a repeat offender. The principal point of contact was Hedman’s head and Lupul looked as though he left his feet, but the fact that Hedman did finish the game will most likely sway Sheriff Shanny’s decision.

Whether or not the Lupul hit woke the sleeping dogs is a tough call to make, but the fact remains that the Lightning did in fact manage to generate a little bit of offense in the third frame. Radko Gudas’ first career goal and Cory Conacher’s eighth of the season brought the Lightning to within two, but they would come no closer. Following the Gudas goal, Anders Lindback left the game with an injury and will be re-evaluated in the near future. While a 4-2 result may not look ugly, it’s important to remember how the Lightning got there. They lacked drive, they lacked passion, and they lacked that killer instinct that playoff teams have. The Leafs were much better and deserve full credit for their effort.

All in all, the Lightning needed a win on Wednesday but failed to convert. Good teams pull through when they need a big performance; the Lightning didn’t. While this season is more than likely over from a post-season aspirations perspective, there’s a lot to look forward to with this team. Even in recent games, the performance of many rookies has many fans within Bolts Nation drooling about the future. Stick it out, Lightning fans. In a few years this team will be one dangerous beast for opposition groups to handle.

As always, thanks for reading.

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