The Tampa Bay Lightning took to the ice Tuesday against the New York Islanders hoping to end an ugly streak of struggling against the bottom feeders of the Eastern Conference behind them. They were also hoping to erase the memories of a rough 4-game road trip that saw them get points, but also saw them lose a number of close leads late. What the Lightning got on Tuesday night was a candidate for the worst game of the season.
Guy Boucher called it a lack of structure. That would be a great place to start.
There also appeared to be a lack of energy. And the inability to score, or keep the puck out of their own net with the power play.
The one thing that went right for the Bolts was that they jumped out to a quick lead when Nate Thompson knocked home a puck from right in front of the net. From there, it was all Islanders, all the time as they scored four straight goals to take over, and ultimately win the game.
For the Lightning, more questions, and maybe even a small amount of reason for concern.