Lightning can make Southeast statement

Beginning tonight, the next eight games come exclusively against division foes.

By EDUARDO A. ENCINA, Times Staff Writer
Published November 3, 2007

TAMPA - Though the Lightning returned from the New York area having lost three games and still winless on the road, coach John Tortorella spent Thursday night talking about the progress made during the past two games.

Increased scoring opportunities and 60 minutes of grit were there. Tortorella said his team was on its way to "rehabilitating" itself.

"You have to believe you're going to be a better team having gone through this," he said. "Our players are good enough mentally and strong enough mentally to know we'll get through this as long as we play the right way. We are a good team, but we're a lousy team when we play the wrong way and start cutting corners."

Having returned from the morale roller coaster that was the trip, the Lightning faces another challenge. Tonight's home game against Atlanta opens a stretch of eight games in 17 days, all against Southeast division teams.

"We have to play desperate, for sure," center Vinny Lecavalier said. "We're one game below .500 now.

"That's not where we want to be, and we have a chance now to go home tonight and get back to .500 and go from there. Division games are always very important."

It's too early to standings-watch. But take away the Hurricanes, who have 17 points (at 7-3-3), and the other four teams in the division are separated by just three points.

Despite its recent struggles, the Lightning tops that group with 11 points. Even the Thrashers, who began the season 0-6, have eight points at 4-9.

"We've got to fix this thing pretty quickly or else we're going to be on the outside looking in and be out of a playoff spot in January, 10-12 points out," defenseman Shane O'Brien said.

And division play is always key. Last season, the Lightning used its success against the Southeast (a 19-11-2 record for 40 of its 93 points) to propel itself to a playoff spot.

Just two teams from the division (the Thrashers and Lightning) made the playoffs. But this season, with Carolina's resurgence, the division should be tougher.

Tortorella is confident.

"Eventually we'll get a bounce. We'll get an ugly goal, and we'll start scoring," he said. "And then people will ease up on themselves in terms of the pressure they're putting on themselves to create more offense.

"When you're in this type of funk we're in in the offensive end and in the winning and losing part of it, it's not a great game that gets you back. It's a few minutes of ugly hockey, a half of a game. And then you find your game for a few minutes and you score two or three, or maybe you win in overtime ugly. That's how you get out of these things."

Intradivisional madness

Beginning tonight, the Lightning has eight games - four home and four away - against teams in the Southeast division over the next 17 days. In essence, it's four sets of home-and-home series that could create some distance among the teams:

Tonight vs. Atlanta

Monday at Florida

Wednesday vs. Florida

Thursday at Carolina

Nov. 10 at Washington

Nov. 14 vs. Carolina

Nov. 16 vs. Washington

Nov. 19 at Atlanta

[Last modified November 2, 2007, 21:39:11]