The Tampa Bay Lightning spent Wednesday practice trying to solve the same problem that has followed them out of the gate: the power play still has no goals.
After two straight non-game days, the club used the time to experiment, and the biggest tweak was on the top unit. According to the setup spotted at practice, the Lightning went with two defensemen up top, with John Carlson on the left and Charle-Edouard D’Astous at the point, while Nikita Kucherov stayed on the right side. Jake Guentzel worked down low and Brayden Point occupied the bumper spot.
For a long stretch under Coach Jon Cooper, Tampa Bay has leaned on a familiar formula: one defenseman, four forwards, and most of the traffic running through Kucherov on the right half-wall. This version keeps Kucherov in the middle of things, but it gives him a second outlet in Carlson on the left side, filling the kind of role Steven Stamkos used to hold. The tradeoff is obvious enough - the point shot from the top won’t carry quite the same snap.
The Lightning have dabbled with a right-shot defenseman on the left side before, but the results were uneven. Darren Raddysh got that chance at times, and while his blast from the top of the circles caused problems, his shot from the left circle often led to clears because he had trouble putting it on net. Carlson doesn’t bring the same radar-gun number, but the appeal here is simpler: he can hit the target.
That matters because a clean shot from that spot changes the math. It also makes rebound chances easier to create.
Tampa Bay saw a couple of those situations against the Flyers, when the puck moved to that side and Brandon Hagel had trouble getting set to shoot. In theory, Carlson should have a cleaner path to those plays if the puck ends up on his stick.
If the alignment clicks, the Lightning should be able to stretch opponents out a little more. That could open space for Kucherov and Guentzel on the right, while also pulling a defender away from the slot and giving Point more breathing room in the middle. And if Point gets that room, the goals should follow.
He still hasn’t scored on the power play, and he has only two official shots on goal, but the underlying chances are trending the right way. Through three games, Point’s individual scoring chances per 60 minutes are at 21.74, and his individual high-danger chances are at 12.42. Both marks are well above last season’s 18.01 and 10.01, and they line up more closely with the numbers he posted when he was piling up 15 to 16 power-play goals a year.
D’Astous is another interesting piece of the change. He was the one handling the point in the top-unit look, even though Victor Hedman would seem like the natural fit there.
That suggests the Lightning are still being careful with Hedman’s minutes early on. For now, D’Astous looks like a solid option for the job.
The tracking data from All Three Zones comes from his 5-on-5 work, but it points to traits Tampa Bay wants at the top of the umbrella. He can set up Carlson on the left, Kucherov on the right, or fire the puck himself.
His shots also tend to create rebounds. The challenge will be making those reads quickly enough to keep defenders moving and seams open.
Moser also appears to be getting a boost. After logging just 30:09 of power-play ice time across his previous 136 games with Tampa Bay, he is now in line for more work on the second unit.
That group usually doesn’t see much ice, but it will still be a bigger role than he has had before. The second unit is expected to be all left-handed shots, with Conor Geekie and Gage Goncalves likely handling most of the playmaking as they try to move the defense around and get pucks to the net.
The Lightning may not use this exact look against the Minnesota Wild on Thursday. With more practice time coming up - after Thursday they have two games in six days - they could keep refining it first. Still, the message from Wednesday was clear enough: Tampa Bay knows the old power-play approach hasn’t worked, and it is at least willing to try something different.
In Other News...
Lightning Just Sent A Tough Message About Three Young Prospects
The Lightnings prospect pipeline got a little rougher around the edges this week, with Syracuse Crunch general manager and head coach Joel Bouchard announcing that three young players have been moved down the organization. Forward Milo Roelens, forward Connor Kurth and defenseman Dyllan Gill were all reassigned from Syracuse to the Orlando Solar Bears, a reminder that even in the AHL, development can come with a quick change in scenery.
For Tampa Bay, the move touches three different stages of the system at once. Roelens has been working to keep his momentum going, while Kurth and Gill remain part of the organizations draft stock from the 2022 NHL Draft, still trying to carve out their place in the depth chart. The Solar Bears now become the next stop, and for all three players, the task is the same: use the minutes they can get to force the Lightnings hand a little further down the line. [Read more 🡒]
Lightning Face A Tough Roster Call With Dominic James Returning
Dominic James is nearing a return for Tampa Bay after recovering from a broken hand, and his availability could come as soon as Thursday against the Minnesota Wild. It is the kind of boost that tends to ripple through a lineup quickly, especially for a team trying to keep its forward group balanced as the season settles in.
To make room, the Lightning had to make a difficult roster decision and exposed center Jansen Harkins on waivers for reassignment to Syracuse. Harkins dressed for the season opener before a lineup rotation pushed him into the press box, and if he clears he would head to the Crunch with a veteran role in the AHL awaiting him. [Read more 🡒]
Lightning Are Getting Early Signs That Could Change This Season
Through the opening stretch of the 2026-27 season, Tampa Bay has gotten a few encouraging looks from players who can shape the tone of the year in very different ways. Ilya Mikheyev has brought scoring touch along with the kind of defensive work that can steady a lineup, while Victor Hedman has been effective in a reduced role even without showing up on the scoresheet. Those are the sort of early indicators that matter for a team trying to sort out its identity before the schedule gets too deep.
Conor Geekie has also given the Lightning a glimpse of what his next step might look like, blending physical play with a timely impact on the result, and Brayden Points return from injury has been just as important for what it says about his overall game. He has already chipped in offensively and, perhaps more importantly, has started to reclaim the defensive value that slipped away last season. For Tampa Bay, the encouraging part is not just who is producing, but how several core pieces are beginning to round into form at the same time. [Read more 🡒]