TBO.com - TBO is Tampa Bay Online

Luongo Returning To Haunt Bolts

ADVERTISEMENT

By CARTER GADDIS, The Tampa Tribune

Published: January 31, 2008

Updated: 01/31/2008 12:12 am

TAMPA - On Jan. 17, 2004, the Lightning recorded a team-record 51 shots on goal in a game against the Florida Panthers. Tampa Bay lost.

A little more than two years later, on Jan. 24, 2006, the Lightning recorded 50 shots on goal for the second time in team history, also in a game against the Florida Panthers. Tampa Bay lost that one, too.

Clearly, it wasn't a question of effort or energy on those nights for the Lightning. It was more a matter of the Panthers' answer in net: goalie Roberto Luongo.

An old nemesis returns today in a different uniform. It's the first trip back to Tampa for Luongo since he was traded to the Vancouver Canucks on June 23, 2006.

And the Lightning don't need to be reminded of just how good he was against them during his five seasons in South Florida.

"He's been doing it in Vancouver, he's been doing it wherever," Lightning center Brad Richards said. "I played with him on different teams, Team Canada, and he's done it there. If he's not the best, he's in the top two."

Of course, New Jersey's Martin Brodeur is in that conversation, as well. In fact, if not for Brodeur's record-setting season last year, Luongo's 47 victories (tying Bernie Parent's former NHL record, now second-best after Brodeur won 48 times in 2006-07) might have brought the Vezina Trophy to Vancouver.

In his second season with the Canucks, despite occasional lapses, Luongo again finds himself among the NHL's leaders in the major statistical categories: third in goals-against average (2.10), fifth in victories (22 in 42 games), fourth in save percentage (.925) and tied for third in shutouts (six).

So, do the Lightning miss the challenge of facing one of the top two goalies in the world seven or eight times a season, as they did when he played in the Southeast Division?

"No," Richards said.

Better by far, evidently, to have Luongo on your side. And Lightning center Chris Gratton knows what that's like, having spent the 2005-06 season marveling at Luongo's ability when they were teammates with Florida.

"He's just such a competitor," said Gratton, who scored a goal for the Panthers the night in 2006 when Luongo made 48 saves in a 3-2 overtime victory against the Lightning. "He never gives up on a puck. When you've got an all-world goaltender like that who works as hard as he does and is as focused as he is, it makes it awfully tough to score on him."

And even though the Panthers never made the playoffs in Luongo's five seasons with Florida, life without him would have been a lot more difficult.

"We would've lost a lot more games without him in there," Gratton said. "He puts fear in the other team. The other team has to respect him. He can get in the other team's head. You get a goaltender that's making big saves, it can frustrate an opposing team, and it allows your team to gain confidence. Every time he went in there, which was a lot, it allowed us to gain a lot of confidence."

On the surface, it would seem the Lightning are catching Luongo and the Canucks at the right time. After surging to the top of the Northwest Division behind a typically Luongoan stretch in November and December - during which he recorded three shutouts in a row - Vancouver has gone 2-6-1 in its past nine.

The slump even prompted Coach Alain Vigneault to publicly call for more consistent play from his All-Star goalie.

After that rare piece of criticism, Luongo bounced back to defeat the St. Louis Blues in a shootout in the final game before the All-Star break. And, rather than travel to Atlanta to represent the Western Conference as the elected starter, Luongo went home to South Florida to be with his pregnant wife, Gina.

He's expected to be back with the Canucks tonight, the only chance this season Tampa Bay area fans will have to see one of the two best goalies in the world at work.

The difference between Luongo and the world's "other" best goalie, Brodeur - besides Brodeur's three Stanley Cup championships and three Vezina Trophies - is a little less than a decade's experience.

"Luongo's kind of taken the torch," Richards said. "He's still only 28 years old. We're going to see a lot of him for the next 10, 12 years."

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

Share this:

Loading Comments...

Email Print

ADVERTISEMENT