What type of team is Tampa?

Got a call last week from Tampa Bay Lightning owner Oren Koules.

The man who brings you the Saw horror movies as well as Two and a Half Men was a little upset at his team being identified as one of my three disappointing teams through the first quarter of the 2009-10 season. At the time the column was published, the Lighting ranked in the middle of the pack in the overall standings and Koules wondered how disappointing can that be? He had a point.

At the same time, and maybe it’s just me, but I thought this year’s version of the Lightning had a legitimate chance to be a contender. On paper I’d put the Lightning up against the majority of contending teams. Just look at what Tampa Bay has up front: a former Hart and Art Ross Trophy winner in Martin St-Louis, a superstar centre in Vinny Lecavalier and a rising star in Steven Stamkos not to mention top flight depth players such as Ryan Malone, Jeff Halpern and Alex Tanguay.

The defence received a huge upgrade in the off-season when Tampa Bay signed veteran Mattias Ohlund to play with No. 2 overall pick Victor Hedman. One hoped the addition of Anrej Meszaros, David Hale and Kurtis Foster would have provided the Lightning with a dependable blueline, but through 21 games Tampa Bay had given up seven more goals than it had scored.

Goaltending? Well, most of the world seems to think Mike Smith has the potential to be a true blue No. 1 stopper, but thus far he has yet to prove that true. He shows glimpses of being a safe keeper, but not enough to make the league’s best shooters toss and turn the night before facing the Lightning. Luckily, Antero Niittymakin has played some of the best hockey of his revived career.

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I have never looked at them as a contending team, and before the season I predicted that they miss the playoffs. Right now I see them anywhere between 6-10 in the East.