The scene in Tampa after one relatively meaningless game in late March last season was…tense.
The Bolts had long lapped the field to lock up the Presidents’ Trophy and were on their way to tying an NHL record with 62 victories. Yet the Washington Capitals, the defending Stanley Cup champs at the time, had come to town and cleaned Tampa’s clock, winning 6-3, also winning the battle in the trenches, with Tom Wilson besting Erik Cernak in a fight.
After the game, fielding questions, coach Jon Cooper was uncharacteristically terse. It was as if a bigger, stronger, more experienced team had come to town with just a week left in the season and read aloud the book on how to beat the Tampa Bay Lightning.