By Michael Wax
Oh boy.
The Lightning lost 6-0 to the Nashville Predators in their first preseason road game.
"You have to look at perspective," said Head Coach Jon Cooper. "You gotta pull things out of individual players. You'd like to win the game, but you're looking at improvements in some of these young kids, and have they taken steps?"
Here are three things we noticed from the disappointing loss:
The Sun Will Come Out Tomorrow
Make no mistake, the game was a poor showing by almost everyone involved. There were too many missed passes, too few shots on net, and too many turnovers in the defensive zone.
"Even though it's preseason, you still want to win," said Brown. "We're all competitors in there, so no one's too happy after that one. But like you said, it's just preseason, so luckily it doesn't count to the standings.
However, after a deep breath, we have to remember it's the preseason. The Lightning gave up seven goals in just their last game against Florida. They happened to score eight and escape with a win, and this time, they weren't so lucky.
"The game got pretty ugly, pretty fast," said Conor Geekie. "I think it's just one of those games. You've got to own up to it and then come back and get ready for the next one."
Many of these players probably expected to play yesterday as well before the cancellation, which has affected their schedules and routines.
At the end of the day, it's just one game that won't count on the scoreboard. The sun will come up tomorrow.
Back on Track?
Jonas Johansson had a very rough performance Wednesday, letting up seven goals and getting beat on pretty routine shots. Though the numbers didn't look pretty in this game either, he was rock-solid in net.
You give credit to JJ; he was standing on his head back there, said Geekie.
Many of Nashville's shots were high-danger opportunities thanks to missed assignments or bad bounces. Johansson was there for all of them, making over 30 saves, many of them highlight-reel.
"Kids got some tough breaks, especially that sixth goal," said Cooper. "We tipped that in. There was another one that went off the skate. He's had some bad breaks. It's about how you respond. And he went on the third period and made some really good saves for us."
Johansson certainly needed a bounce-back, and he got it, even if the results weren't what he wanted.
Those Final Spots
With Mikey Eyssimont and Luke Glendening slated to miss the start of the season, there's a good chance that one or two of the players in this game's lineup will be on the opening night roster. Even in a game like this one, certain players showed flashes, and they still have time:
"We've got four more to go, so there's a lot of runway left in our preseason," said Cooper.
Two of these players have diverging paths: Conor Geekie, trying to make the team out of junior hockey, and Logan Brown, attempting to come back from a season-ending injury:
"I try and get that out of my head and just play hockey here and do everything I can to put myself in a position to make it," said Brown.
Regardless of the result on the scoreboard in this one, there are moments to savior as the team looks to rebound.
The Lightning will continue their preseason on Monday, Sep. 30, against the Florida Panthers at 7 ET.
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