By TOM JONES, Times Staff Writer
Published November 16, 2005
WASHINGTON - It's a whole new NHL.
And to keep up with the times, teams have to keep up with the offense.
"We need to score four or five goals to win," Lightning coach John Tortorella said. "It's the world we're in right now, it's the game we're in right now. Am I happy about how many goals we've given up? You know how I feel about it. I think our goaltending has been very mediocre. So we've got to find a way to win games other ways. Certainly we're not going to be sitting back playing defensive hockey trying to protect the goaltender. We're going to be trying to score some goals."
But that won't happen until the third and fourth lines contribute consistently. Entering play Tuesday, Dmitry Afanasenkov, Martin Cibak and Evgeny Artyukhin have scored one goal each. Tim Taylor and Dave Andreychuk have two each. Rob DiMaio had no goals.
"It has been abysmal," third-line checker DiMaio said about the offense from the bottom two lines. "We have to do our part.
That can be difficult when the third and fourth lines get so little ice time because of the numerous power plays in today's new NHL.
"Five-on-five, we've got to be a lot better and pitch in here and there," DiMaio said. "Right now, it's too few and far between."
The other issue is the third and fourth lines are expected to play defense first.
"You don't want to give anything in your own end because that will really hurt you," DiMaio said. "So it's a fine line."
MORE O FROM THE D: Another area that has contributed goals few and far between has been the defense. The Lightning's defense has six goals and all six have been scored by Dan Boyle.
The rest have none, including Pavel Kubina, who had 17 in 2003-04.
"Anyone who sees Kuby walking around this dressing room, he knows, he's feeling the pressure," Tortorella said. "It's not going right now."
MISCELLANY: If John Grahame had started in goal for the Lightning, it would have been the first time two second-generation goalies had started against one another. Washington's Brent Johnson started in goal for the Caps. His father, Bob, played 24 games for the Blues and Penguins in the early 1970s. Grahame's father, Ron, played 40 games for Boston in 1977-78. Ron spent most of his career in the old World Hockey Association. ... More than 100 Lightning staff members will visit 46 schools in Hillsborough, Pinellas and Pasco counties today as part of the annual Great American Teach-In.
