NHL

In sports, rule-breakers have become more common

June 25, 2015 general

Thursday, 8:13 a.m. What is cheating? And how rampant is it? Is cheating deflating a football? Is it corking a bat like Albert Bell? Is it spitting on a baseball? Is it Stick-Um all over the jersey? Is it stealing signs? Is it illegal taping of opponents? Is it tinkering with the headphones? Is it […]

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Palat playing “big-boy” hockey for the Lightning

June 10, 2015 general

Wednesday, 3:49 p.m. He is the last Triplet you can name. The last one whose jersey you will buy. He has the least amount of flash. The least amount of goals. He is Ondrej Palat. And he is the glue. If you wish, you can wax philosophic for days about Tyler Johnson, about the speed, […]

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Lightning excels in Game Six, eliminates Montreal

May 13, 2015 general

Wednesday, 12:14 a.m. TAMPA The seas were rough. The boat was sinking. There were sharks in the water. It was not a good time to be a member of the Tampa Bay Lightning, whose season Content beyond this point is for members only.

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Montreal roars back to beat Bolts, come within 3-1

May 7, 2015 general

Thursday, 11:19 p.m. TAMPA There is nothing to worry about here. Nothing to fear. Just keep repeating that to yourself as you wander through the graveyard. Eventually, you might believe it. There for a moment, the Tampa Bay Lightning was cruising along, on its way to a party, and it seemed that nothing could go […]

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Don’t Look Now! Bishop is on a Roll

May 5, 2015 general

TUESDAY, 11:02 a.m. TAMPA In the playoffs, fortunes can change with the sounding of a horn. That’s all it takes. One moment, a goaltender is strong and regal in the net. The next, the wrong team is celebrating, and head is hung, and his team feels vulnerable. And so a fan of the Tampa Bay […]

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After trade, Lightning a more complete team

March 3, 2015 general

TAMPA Today, they are more complete. Today, they stand a better chance. Today, the Tampa Bay Lightning has more balance to their roster. And isn’t that what the NHL trading deadline is all about? “It makes everyone just a little bit taller,” is the way coach Jon Cooper puts it. Content beyond this point is […]

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Cooper must stop the Bolts’ bleeding quickly

February 12, 2015 general

Thursday, 11:37 p.m. TAMPA– This, then, is where a coach earns his money. Here, at the crossroads of trouble, is where a coach becomes important to a team. Now, we will learn a bit more about Lightning coach Jon Cooper. His team has just been squashed, like the bug in a Raid commercial. It was not […]

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How good are the Tampa Bay Lightning, really?

February 10, 2015 general

Tuesday, 6:00 a.m. Yeah, but how good are they? Fifty-four games into a season, and still, we do not know. They are good at home. They are average on the road. They are good on the penalty kill. They are lousy on the power play. They are decent in goal. They give a lot of […]

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Bishop bounces back to boost Bolts

February 8, 2015 general

9:14 p.m. Ben Bishop. It had to be Bishop who started. Because if the Tampa Bay Lightning is going to be around at the finish, it will be because of Bishop. Content beyond this point is for members only.

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Lightning get another home win, but road awaits

January 31, 2015 general

Saturday, 11:40 p.m. TAMPA Here, they are a juggernaut. Out there on the road, they are another pair of gray pants. Here, they skate like the wind, and their big guys make muscles, and their goaltender plays as if he is at Hell’s Gate. Out there, they skate in circles, the sometimes they get lost, […]

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