Koekkoek, Dotchin Exposed as Lightning Elect to Protect Coburn

NHL expansion draft protection lists were released at 10:00am 10:30am today.  There were no surprises up front or in goal for the Tampa Bay Lightning, with the following players being protected as per Erik Erlendsson of LightningInsider.com:

• Ryan Callahan
• Steven Stamkos
• Tyler Johnson
• Nikita Kucherov
• Alex Killorn
• Vladislav Namestnikov
• Ondrej Palat
• Andrei Vasilevskiy

Where things get a little bit interesting, however, is on defense.  The general consensus within Bolts Nation was that either Jake Dotchin or Slater Koekkoek was going to be exposed, while the other would be protected alongside Victor Hedman and Anton Stralman.  Well, both Hedman and Stralman were protected as expected (duh!), but both Dotchin and Koekkoek were exposed.  The Lightning instead opted to protect Braydon Coburn, who will be 33 years old by the end of next season.

Namestnikov is the Secret Prize in the Lightning's Drouin, Sergachev Deal

The Tampa Bay Lightning sent forward Jonathan Drouin to the Montreal Canadiens in exchange for junior defenseman Mikhail Sergachev yesterday.  In doing so, the Bolts opened up an expansion draft protection spot that was almost certainly going to be occupied by the team's former Number-27.  If Drouin and the sort of mammoth deal he signed with the Canadiens wasn't in the long-term plans for Tampa, the timing of this trade couldn't have been better.  It will allow the team to protect Vladislav Namestnikov, a player who has the potential to be a cornerstone of the team's top six next year.

It's admittedly a little bit difficult to get overly excited about a player who potted 10 goals and 28 points last season, but Namestnikov's situation is a little bit unique.  The underlying numbers, both traditional and 'fancy', give plenty of reason for optimism.

TRADE: Lightning Send Drouin, Conditional Sixth to Canadiens for Sergachev, Conditional Second

Tampa Bay Lightning General Manager Steve Yzerman has spoken at length this offseason about his desire to improve and solidify the team's blue line heading into the 2017-18 season.  He likely didn't do that today.  What he did do, however, was obtain one of the league's top defensive prospects, one who figures to be a mainstay on the Tampa blue line within the next couple years.  The Lightning today traded potential-star forward Jonathan Drouin to the Montreal Canadiens in exchange for 2016 9th overall pick, Mikhail Sergachev:

We have acquired Mikhail Sergachev & 2018 cond. 2nd rd pick from the @CanadiensMTL in exchange for Jonathan Drouin. https://t.co/EH5iNVAmyG

— Tampa Bay Lightning (@TBLightning) June 15, 2017

Only moments after the trade was announced, the Canadiens inked Drouin to a six-year deal worth $5.5M per season.  Sergachev, who still has another year of junior eligibility, remains on his entry-level contract:

6 x $5.5M for Drouin: https://t.co/zGrrwB5PX4

— Bob McKenzie (@TSNBobMcKenzie) June 15, 2017

The trade sent shockwaves through the hockey world, to say the least.  It was expected that the Lightning would do something this offseason, but this specific deal with the Canadiens wasn't on anybody's radar.  It's a move that comes with significant risk and offsetting potential rewards for both sides, so naturally the intrigue level is high.

Rumor: Lightning, Canadiens Discussing a Galchenyuk-for-Drouin Swap

Ever since the Tampa Bay Lightning shut the doors on their 2016-17 season, the hockey world has been waiting for Steve Yzerman to drop a shoe.  The general consensus has been that he will look to deal a young forward (i.e. Jonathan Drouin) for help on the blue line (e.g. Ryan Ellis, Matt Dumba, Sami Vatanen).  The assumption has always been that a simple deal of that sorts would help to propel the Bolts back to post-season contention in 2018.

As someone who is and always has been firmly on Team Drouin, I haven't been a huge fan of the idea that Tampa should trade him for a defender.  Drouin has the potential to be really, really special.  You don't trade a player of that caliber for anything but a top-pairing defender.  The Lightning don't need a top-pairing defender; they have one in Victor Hedman.  Instead, what the Lightning need is someone who can step in on a second pair and take minutes away from players like Andrej Sustr and Jason Garrison.  That's the pressing need on this roster.

Yzerman Deals Filppula to Philadelphia, Cements Himself as a Trade Wizard

Never in the history of hockey has selling felt and looked so good.  After moving on from pending free agents Ben Bishop and Brian Boyle earlier in the week, Tampa Bay Lightning GM Steve Yzerman did the seemingly impossible when he moved Valtteri Filppula to Philadelphia in advance of Wednesday's trade deadline.  The full particulars of the trade were as follows:

To: Tampa Bay
Mark Streit

To: Philadelphia
Valtteri Filppula
2017 Fourth Round Pick
2017 Seventh Round Pick

Lightning Trade Brian Boyle to Maple Leafs

If sending Ben Bishop to the Los Angeles Kings in a deal yesterday didn't signal to the league that the Tampa Bay Lightning are sellers, today's trade that sent Brian Boyle to the Toronto Maple Leafs in exchange for a 2017 second-round pick and forward Byron Froese certainly should:

We have acquired Byron Froese and a 2017 second-round pick from the @mapleleafs in exchange for Brian Boyle. https://t.co/KbzAxskHq6

— Tampa Bay Lightning (@TBLightning) February 27, 2017

A pending-UFA, Boyle finishes his Lightning career having scored 41 goals and 66 points in 212 games.  Signed during the summer of 2014, Boyle was instrumental in solidifying Tampa's fourth line on its way to the Stanley Cup Final in 2015 and Eastern Conference Final in 2016.  He had a job to do, and on most nights he did it really well.  Fans and coaches alike knew exactly what they were going to get from #11 whenever he took to the ice.

BREAKING: Lightning Trade Goaltender Ben Bishop to the Los Angeles Kings

The Tampa Bay Lightning are officially trade deadline sellers.  TSN's Bob McKenzie is reporting that GM Steve Yzerman has traded goaltender Ben Bishop to the Los Angeles Kings:

Ben Bishop has been traded to LAK.

— Bob McKenzie (@TSNBobMcKenzie) February 26, 2017

With the Lightning mired in a down year and facing the reality of a tremendous cap crunch in the offseason, Bishop, a pending UFA, had to be moved.  The fact of the matter is that Andrei Vasilevskiy is more than capable of manning the Tampa crease, and at a fraction of the cost.  Of course, just because trading Bishop has looked like the smart thing to do for a while doesn't mean that it was ever a guarantee.  The market for goaltenders is notoriously weak, and there were other options available (read: Ryan Miller).  The fact that Yzerman was able to turn a great asset like Bishop into something, even if the return isn't of a jump-for-joy sort of quality, makes this a great day for the Tampa Bay Lightning organization.