Defending Champion Tampa Bay Opens NHL Season with a Pair of Wins

The NHL season got underway on January 13th with new temporary divisions, a 56 game schedule entirely within those division, and a schedule that includes a lot of two game series in the same city to cut down on travel. The defending Stanley cup champion Tampa Bay Lightning opened the season hosting the Chicago Blackhawks on January 13th and 15th.

Tampa Bay heads into the season without winger Nikita Kucherov, who led the team in scoring last year with 85 points in 68 games. Kucherov had hip surgery and is out for the entire regular season. But the Lightning have a lot of depth, and Tampa Bay beat the Blackhawks 5-1 and 5-2 in the two game set. Steven Stamkos had a pair of goals and three assists in the sweep, and goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy had 57 saves.

This was probably an easy start to the season for Tampa Bay, as the Blackhawks are beset with injuries and are in process of rebuilding. Goalie Corey Crawford was let go in the off season; he signed with the New Jersey Devils but then did an about face and retired before the start of the season. The Blackhawks are using what is essentially a rotation of four at best second string and third string goalies. Defenseman Brent Seabook, who was injured last season, has not yet returned. Center Kirby Dach broke his wrist at the World Juniors Tournament in December and is out for the season. And most disturbing, center and team captain Jonathan Toews, who scored 60 points in 70 games last season, is out indefinitely with an undisclosed–and at last report, unknown–illness.

Here’s some highlights from the season opener