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Tough Year Continues

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By CARTER GADDIS, The Tampa Tribune

Published: December 19, 2007

Updated: 12/18/2007 11:58 pm

ATLANTA - It was as astonishing an image as you're likely to see this season, no matter how frustrating things get for the Tampa Bay Lightning the rest of the way.

A split second after the game got out of hand in the first period in a 6-2 Lightning loss to the Atlanta Thrashers at Philips Arena on Tuesday, goalie Johan Holmqvist - the very picture of stoicism on or off the ice - flung his blocker off his right hand and into his own net.

It was that kind of night for the Lightning, who lost their third consecutive game and fell to 1-4-1 since a three-game winning streak to begin the month.

Holmqvist's momentary fit of anger was not, he said, a result of mounting overall frustration. It was merely a spur-of-the-moment reaction to what he thought was a poor call, the goal coming as it did on a poke of Atlanta's Slava Kozlov's stick after Holmqvist believed he had frozen the puck with his blocker hand.

"I was just really upset, because it was just a totally wrong call," Holmqvist said. "It was big momentum in the game. ... From my view, I got control of it."

Holmqvist wasn't the only one with that opinion.

"I thought when I scored it was going to be disallowed," Kozlov said. "The goalie had the puck. I just poke-checked him for some reason. I was surprised."

Still, Holmqvist's response to the game's pivotal moment (the goal made it 3-0 with 2 1/2 minutes left in the first) was emblematic of a team trying to find its way in what is becoming one of the most trying Lightning seasons in recent memory.

"We have to try," said Coach John Tortorella, whose team fell to 3-12-1 on the road. "You have to keep on trying. You have to keep on believing. Not only within yourself, but as far as the person next to you. In coverages, in forechecking. Just believe that the other person next to you is going to be doing his job. And that's what we have to do."

The 3-0 hole sent Holmqvist to the bench to start the second period, the third time in four starts he has been replaced in goal by backup Marc Denis. Denis gave up another three goals on 15 shots.

The Thrashers didn't look like a team on a four-game losing streak, and some nifty line shuffling by Coach/General Manager Don Waddell seemed to help.

Six different Thrashers scored after Waddell broke up the high-power pairing of Marian Hossa and NHL goals leader Ilya Kovalchuk. Waddell unveiled the new line combinations during the morning skate, and it paid dividends as the line of Hossa, Kozlov and former Lightning center Eric Perrin clicked all night.

Atlanta goalie Kari Lehtonen (32 saves) also was a factor as the Lightning generated 17 scoring chances by the team's count.

Only Jason Ward, who scored his first short-handed goal in a Lightning uniform (making it 4-1 in the second) and Vinny Prospal, who eclipsed last season's goal total with his 15th, were able to beat Lehtonen.

Tampa Bay, which already had the league's worst team goals-against average and save percentage coming in, gave up six or more goals for the third time in five games.

What that means is, the time for the return of goalie prospect Karri Ramo from the AHL's Norfolk Admirals could be drawing near. If the Lightning are going to make a move before midnight Dec. 28 - they play four games between now and then - they'll have to do so before 11:59 p.m. today, when the holiday roster freeze begins.

Regardless of who is in net, though, the team will begin today at practice to try to maintain a constructive frame of mind.

"You've got to respond," Lightning center Brad Richards said. "It's an opportunity. You've got to look at it as an opportunity. We have two big home games here that we can go into the three-day holiday break with two wins. That's what we've got to look at. Put it in the capsule. It's very short-term right now.

"We can't look at anything past tomorrow, because that's when things snowball on you."

Reporter Carter Gaddis can be reached at (813) 259-8291 or igaddis@tampatrib.com.

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