Colorado has several weapons who can make any team, including the Lightning tonight, pay dearly for taking a penalty.
By BRANT JAMES
Published March 1, 2004
Dan Boyle didn't realize it. Martin St. Louis can't explain it. Craig Ramsay has a general idea, but it's either too basic or too complicated to relate with words. But everyone agrees. It's "huge."
Whatever factors are responsible - from a high level of team speed to a dogged intensity branded onto its overall game - the fact is simple.
The Lightning's ability to kill power plays on the road is one of the primary reasons it is on a 20-4-1-4 run that has made the Southeast Division a runaway and it has set its sights on the No. 1 or No. 2 seed in the East. In short, killing a penalty on the road is like daring a bully in his back yard, dodging the roundhouse right and watching him fall on his face in front of his friends. It instills confidence.
"It's huge," said Ramsay, the associate coach in charge of special teams. "One, you pump up your own bench, and two, you bail your team out. Now the guy who took the penalty feels pretty good, and he can get out and help out."
If the Lightning's road penalty kill, which is the best in the NHL at 86 percent (15 goals in 107 chances), needed further validation, tonight would be the opportunity. It faces a Colorado team with the third-best power play in the league, scoring on 21.7 percent of its opportunities. The Avalanche, however, is 13th on home power plays (18.6 percent).
During its past three road trips, a span of 11 games, the Lightning has killed 29 of 33 penalties for an 88 percent rate. The Lightning's overall penalty kill was 12th (84.6 percent) entering Sunday. "We're No. 1?" Boyle asked of the road penalty killing. "Well, penalty killing is one of the things that are overlooked in the game. When we kill all our penalties, it gives us a good chance to win a game and against a team like Colorado. They win a lot of games like that. The top five guys they can put out there are pretty good."
Colorado's Milan Hejduk is fifth in the league with 13 power-play goals, and teammate Joe Sakic has 11. As usual, the Lightning will try to shut both down with pursuit and intensity.
"I don't think there is a particular reason (for the road success)," St. Louis said. "We're on the same page. We're aggressive. We don't want to give them that time and space because when you do, good players make plays. So we stay aggressive; limit their time with the puck."
A power play at home breeds fans' expectations of an easy score. Not providing one brings grumbles and affects the home team, center Tim Taylor said.
"It's huge," he said. "If you get a penalty against you and go out and kill it, it creates a lot of enthusiasm on the bench and gives your players a lift, on the road especially, when that guy comes out of the box."
And in the Lightning's case, it can be an offensive weapon. Tampa Bay is tied for second with 13 short-handed goals, a league-leading seven by St. Louis.
"We're really creating some offense when we're penalty killing," Ramsay said. "It's a little bit of a wake-up and a little more pressure on them to be smart. And maybe, we hope, they don't take quite as many chances, don't gamble as much in our zone, knowing we are willing to go the other way down the ice."
St. Louis said he is unsure if his ability to break the other way makes teams less aggressive on the power play, but he knows when opposing players with the same ability are on the ice.
"I'm sure they talk about it," he said. "We talk about it. We know what teams score a lot of goals short-handed."
Executing a penalty kill is good business. Scoring off one is a bonus. And it's definitely huge.
