The Buccaneers lost to the Tennessee Titans, 23-17.
There was a lot about the game on Sunday that showed promise. Legarrette Blount had another fine day, and the defense had some takeaways and pressure. But the Bucs would once again beat themselves with missed opportunities, penalties, and turnovers of their own.
Yes, the field was wet and sloppy, and so some errors are bound to be made. The Bucs certainly took advantage of similar mistakes by the Titans. But Tampa Bay continued to shoot itself in the foot.
What really represents this game as a whole was a particular Bucs drive. Blount had been fed the ball and was breaking off seemingly 10 yards with every touch. The Bucs were in a position to add to their 7 point lead, and momentum was in their favor. But then Kellen Winslow got a penalty for holding, setting the team back 10 yards, followed by a Jeremy Zuttah false start to tack on 5 more. What had once been a potential touchdown drive quickly turned into a punt from midfield. The Bucs would not score again, and a 6-point Titans win off of a drive late in the 4th quarter really stings.
Josh Freeman continued to be inaccurate and made more poor decisions, seemingly forcing to ball while ignoring defenders in the area at times. As good as Freeman was last year at controling the ball, he now has 16 interceptions this year, second most in the NFL. And many are in just horrible situations to throw a pick in, including several on passes to the endzone and a few picks late in the 4th.
The run defense was gashed again, this time by Chris Johnson, who has arguably been the biggest dissapointment in the NFL this year (at least for fantasy owners). The Bucs' drop into mediocrity began a few years ago on MNF against the Panthers, where they absolutely could not stop the run. Those Bucs lost 4 straight to somehow miss the playoffs, resulting in Jon Gruden's firing and the release of several veterans. Here, 3 years later, the youth movement has seemingly done nothing to improve this, even with the injury of Geral McCoy.
After a 4-2 start, the Bucs sit at 4-7 and playoff hopes are all but extinguished. And if they continue to make stupid mistakes, they may not win again.
Family and football obligations prevented me from writing recaps on the Lightning’s two victories against Florida this weekend. Here are official game recaps from the Lightning's website:
The world of sports is a world of business. Although we the fans may hate to admit it, the truth is that the goal of each sports franchise is to turn a profit. As in any other sector of the economy, the sports industry often involves stiff competition among the corporations, who fight for the limited funds of their patrons. A working-class family can only contribute so much to entertainment, and many times they have to decide between paying to see one sport or another.
Many of the large cities and regions in the United States, including the Tampa Bay area, are the homes to multiple professional and collegiate sports teams. In Tampa Bay, the major professional franchises are the NFL’s Buccaneers, the NHL’s Lightning, and MLB’s Rays; other pro teams include Arena Football’s Tampa Bay Storm and the North American Soccer League’s FC Tampa Bay Rowdies, as well as a number of minor league baseball teams. The Florida Gators, South Florida Bulls, Florida State Seminoles, Central Florida Knights, and the Tampa Spartans also all have strong fan bases as far as collegiate athletics go. With so many organizations competing for the money of a region that has about half the population of New York City, it would not come as a surprise if there was a bitter rivalry between these teams, especially the Bucs, Bolts and Rays.
Interestingly, however, that has not seemed to be the case in recent years. In fact, there has been quite a bit of love, or at least mutual respect, between the three major teams in the area. There have been several instances of the owners, coaches, and players of these teams interacting with each other as friends, not foes.
Raheem Morris and Joe Maddon have become good friends, and each has shown his support of the other team:
Morris, Maddon, and Guy Boucher met several months ago for a panel discussion by the Tampa Tribune, and since then Boucher has also kept in contact with his fellow head coaches. Boucher expressed his support of the Rays in their playoff run:
The rest of the Lightning also rooted on the Rays in the playoffs during the NHL preseason:
Earlier in the year, the Rays had hosted the Lightning's Steven Stamkos, Nate Thompson, Teddy Purcell, and then-Bolt Mike Smith during batting practice:
The Rays' Evan Longoria and BJ Upton have been known to attend several Lightning games a year:
Recently, following the announcement of postseason baseball awards, the LightningcongratulatedJeremy Hellickson and Joe Maddon:
The examples of the unity of the teams in the Tampa Bay area continue on. The Rays have hosted Bucs draft picks to throw the opening pitch; some of the teams have ticket deals for local students; The Buccaneers have held practice inside the Trop; and so on. The point is that these teams rather like each other. As someone who was born and raised on Tampa Bay sports, this status of these teams’ relationship brings that old “warm and fuzzy” feeling.
That said, many people living in the region are transplants from other areas of the nation, and may only be a fan of one or two of the local teams while still adhering to their native teams. A Bolts fan may like the Yankees, a Rays fan could root for the Packers, and a Buccaneers fan may cheer of the Red Wings. While the teams in the area may be unified, the fan bases for the most part are not. If the whole community rooted for only the local teams, then not only would fanatic fervor increase, but more money would stay within the area in merchandise, ticket sales, and television viewership. I think the Tampa Bay area’s sports organizations can use their own unity to try and unite the fan bases.
And so, that brings me to the whole point of this post: let’s start an annual Tampa Bay Sports Fan Festival.
Each team usually has their own individual fan fests, with games, prizes, ticket and merchandise sales, and autograph opportunities, and these fan fests tend to draw massive crowds and are fun for all involved. The teams can certainly continue their own fan fests at their own locations, but the idea of a Tampa Bay Sports Fan Festival is essentially like a huge convention, and each team in the Tampa Bay area has a ‘booth’ with their own mini fan fest.
The location would likely be at a fair grounds type of area, perhaps during the summer when children are out of school and some adults may be on vacation. The event would probably span a few days, as an individual fan fest can be known to draw several thousand people. There could be a centrally located stage for musical acts and entertainment, surrounded by large areas designated for each team to do with what they please. They can set up team stores, have guest speakers, have player and coach autograph sessions, have games, giveaways and prizes; the kinds of things you would see at a normal fan fest. And when a fan is done checking out one area, he can move on to the next team’s area. Imagine, a fan can attempt a field goal at the Bucs’ zone, take batting practice in the Rays’ zone, get an autograph from his favorite players in the Lightning’s zone, try to score a penalty kick in FCTB’s zone, and try to field a ball off of the net in the Storm’s zone, all in one day. The idea is to not only provide a lot of fun and excitement for the fans of each team, but to possibly get those fans to venture into the zones of a team they don’t particularly cheer for and perhaps spark some interest. Maybe an autograph or a free hat can make that fan take the initiative to go to a game.
In addition, the festival could be a great way to help local businesses and charities. Invite locally-based restaurants to cater the event; getting their product out to a new audience can have fantastic benefits. The festival would also be an ideal location to house a fundraiser for local non-profit organizations, perhaps with a silent auction on various sports memorabilia.
An annual Tampa Bay Sports Fan Festival could have outstanding benefits for all involved: the teams, the fans, and the local businesses and charities. With the mutual respect between the teams in the Bay area, I think this idea is certainly doable and can have great success.
The Lightning lost to the Toronto Maple Leafs, 7-1.
The Lightning played well at the start of the game, something that was great to see after the traditionally slow starts this year. Unfortunately, sustained offensive pressure just could not be turned into goals. A Vinny Lecavalier PPG in the first is all the scoring the Bolts would be able to muster, despite numerous great scoring chances. The Leafs would add three of their own in the first, partially due to a 4-minute power play opportunity. The Leafs scored in the first half, so they retained the extra 2-minute power play, which was made worse when another Lightning penalty made it a lengthy 5-3, resulting in another Toronto goal. The Leafs would continue to pile on from there, and with the game eventually out of reach with about 15 minutes remaining, the effort by the Bolts seemed to be gone.
In many cases, the Lightning were extremely unlucky Tuesday night. Those missed scoring chances usually went by the wayside because the puck was bouncing or was just barely tipped. On the flip side, Toronto was getting all the bounces and breaks, and they capitalized on them. Keep in mind that the Forum had just hosted the Florida-Wright State basketball game the previous night, so the ice may not have been in peak condition. After several bad breaks, the Lightning players seemed to get discouraged. Missed opportunites can be disheartening, but especially when stuck in a losing skid you would like to see the players have a bit more tenacity.
UPDATE:
On Wednesday, the Lightning anounced that Blair Jones had been placed on waivers, and Dana Tyrell has been recalled. Tyrell is known for his heart and hustle, so hopefully his return can spark some energy into the team after a rough stretch.
The Buccaneers lost to the Green Bay Packers, 35-26
The optimist in me had hoped for a miraculous upset by the lowly Bucs over the undefeated, defending Super Bowl champion Green Bay Packers, but the realist in me expected another blowout at the hands of all-pro QB Aaron Rodgers and his repertoire of offensive weapons. The result of the match-up turned out to be somewhere in the middle - David came close to slaying Goliath, but the Bucs were once again done in by the same mistakes that haunt them week in and week out.
The Bucs were once again in an early hole, trailing 14-0 a few minutes into the second quarter, partially due to an unlucky break where the Green Bay punter, deep in his own territory, botched the snap and yet somehow was able to bumble and stumble the ball past the first down marker. But the Bucs seemed to get energized by an amazing play by Legarrette Blount, who broke at least five or six tackles during a 54-yard TD run. Isn't it incredible what happens when Greg Olsen actually gives the ball to probably the Bucs' greatest playmaker?
The rest of the way, the Bucs gave a tremendous effort. For most of the game, the defense was playing a bend-but-don't-break-except-for-Quincy-Black-and-EJ-Biggers-and-Myron-Lewis type of game, which except last part was all this team could have asked for against the potent Packers. Unfortunately, blown assignments and just poor play by the aformentioned trio would ultimately give the Packers too much breathing room. On offense, Blount (18 CAR, 107 YDS, 1 TD) played well, and Mike Williams (7 REC, 83 YDS, 1 TD), Rejus Benn (5 REC, 75 YDS), and Kellen Winslow (9 REC, 132 YDS) played probably their best games of the year. But again, unfortunately, an offensive pass interference on Winslow negated a touchdown, and later Winslow just flat-out dropped the potential game-tying two-point conversion. Josh Freeman actually had one of his better games this year as well, completing 28 of 38 passes for 342 yards and two touchdowns , but he still had several instances of overthrowing or underthrowing open receivers and throwing two more key interceptions.
I want to make two main points about this game. The first is that the penalties absolutely NEED to stop. Big gains on offense are negated by a holding call or an offensive PI, or whatever other stupid thing Kellen Winslow does to earn a flag, and stops on defense are negated by a defensive PI or an offsides (which is one of the most boneheaded mistakes a player can make in my opinion - defensive linemen are essentially lined up staring at the ball; if it doesn't move than they shouldn't either). Tampa Bay had 9 penalties for 55 yards, and that doesn't incorporate the number of missed chances caused by the penalties (like Winslow's TD or a Corey Lynch interception that was wiped out by an offsides). You CANNOT shoot yourself in the foot like that and hope to beat the best team in the NFL.
Second, I'd make a claim that at this point in the year, Josh Freeman has some of the worst time management in football, second only to Les Miles. With just over a minute left and time running, down by two scores, and with no timeouts, Freeman held on to the ball and took a sack when he clearly had an opportunity to scramble or throw the ball away. You CANNOT afford a sack in that situation. And even after that, I see Freeman slowly walking around before the snap, taking his sweet time pointing out defensive alignments and calling out plays. At that point in the game, you need to forget about specific blocking assignments and just take the ball and throw it - and please, throw it towards the end zone, or at least the first down marker. Generally, throwing to a guy a foot past the line of scrimmage on 4th an 15 is not a very good idea.
Many will blame Raheem Morris' decision to attempt an onside kick with about 5 minutes left down by one score as a reason for the loss. I honestly did not have a problem with it. With as good as the Pack's offense has been, there's a chance you could never get the ball back. That said, I think the method of the kick was poor; you had already attempted that earlier in the game, and Green Bay was expecting it. In my opinion, seeing how many Packers were lined up near the front line, I would have tried to squip kick it a few yards past them and see if my team can beat the surprised Packers in a foot race to the ball, much like Baylor recovered a squip kick Saturday night against Oklahoma.
Overall, though, fans finally got to see parts of the exciting young football team we saw last year. Great runs, some great receptions, and - gasp - some decent tackling. The loss stings a bit, but hopefully the good effort creates some positive momentum for the rest of the year.
For those so inclined to the social media world, you can now "Like" TBSB on Facebook. The Facebook page will provide notifications and links to new articles, and perhaps other interesting content in the future, and is a great way to stay connected and updated on the blog.
When I first heard that the Rays were close to bringing one of the trio of catching Molina brothers, my reaction was that no matter which one it was, they would be a fantastic addition to our team, because, well, all three are pretty dang good.
With Yadier entrenched in St. Louis and Bengie in Texas, the remaining brother is Jose, who was a member of the Blue Jays last year. Jose Molina is known for having a rocket arm and a good glove, and a knack for working well with pitchers. His bat has not traditionally been an area of fear for other teams, but he hit .281 in a very lucky (high BABIP) 2011 season.
This would be a tremendous signing if it is completed. The Rays' rotation is fantastic as it is, but bringing in Molina can make young starts like David Price, Jeremy Hellickson, and Matt Moore even better. His defense will also be a great point. Kelly Shoppach did suprisingly well defensively in 2011, but Molina would undoubtedly be an upgrade. The best part about having Molina on our defense is that he wouldn't be on another team's defense, as he gave the Rays' running game fits last year. And although his bat is not tremendous, it still is better than the abysmal offensive output the Tampa Bay backstops produced last season.
Molina also brings some good fortune with him; a Molina brother has made the World Series in each of the last three seasons (Jose w/ NYY in 2009, Bengie w/ TEX in 2010, Yadier w/ STL and Bengie w/ TEX in 2011).
The Lightning defeated the Pittsburg Penguins, 4-1.
Home ice has really seemed to make all the difference with the Bolts this year. They struggle on the road, especially in the first period, but the results within the confines of the St. Pete Times Forum have proven to be much better. Thursday marked their 6th straight win at home, and the team seemed to come out strong and aggressive in front of their fans.
Vinny Lecavalier started the scoring with an unassisted goal off of a Pens turnover in the first period, sneaking a puck through Marc-Andre Fleury's five-hole. In the second, Brett Connolly scored his 4th of the year to put the Lightning up 2-0. It was the first power play goal Fleury has allowed this season. Fleury's secong PPG allowed would come in the thrid period courtesy of Steve Downie, and Lecavalier would add an empty netter to raise the lead to 4. A Pittsburg goal would spoil the shutout, but Dwayne Roloson played a marvelous game, taking away several Penguins chances.
The Bolts clearly have a lot more energy at home in front of Bolts Nation then they do when they are on the road. While that makes sense, the boys have to find a way to bring the same high intensity no matter where the game is played. It's going to be impossible to win the Cup if they can only show this type of effort at the Forum.
Rays manager Joe Maddon was selected by the BBWAA as the American League Manager of the Year. Maddon earned 26 out of 28 first place votes, 1 second place vote...and was left completely off of one ballot. Detroit's Jim Leyland and Texas' Ron Washington finished 2nd and 3rd in the voting, respectively. While what Leyland and Washington did was impressive, they didn't have a near $42 million payroll to have to work with.
This is the second time Maddon has won the award, the other time when he led the Rays from their worst-to-first run in 2008, when the team won the AL pennant. He is only the 7th manager in AL history to have won the award twice in his career.
The award was the second of the postseason for representatives of the Rays. Jeremy Hellickson was named the AL ROY on Monday. James Shields finished 3rd in the AL Cy Young voting, behind Justin Verlander and Jered Weaver.
The Lightning lost to the Winnipeg Jets, 5-2 Monday night.
Yet another poor road showing from the Bolts. This time, it wasn't just a poor start to the game, but an overall terrible game. Defensive turnovers gave the Jets all the chances they would need. The Lightning, on the other hand, had plenty of chances but failed to capitalize. Several times they had open looks at the net, but either sent the shot wide or high or back towards the goalie. Marty St. Louis finally scored again, just his 3rd goal of the year, and Steven Stamkos scored his 11th, but the 2 goals were not enough in the losing effort.
One glaring problem with the Lightning right now is the unproductivity of the power play. They had not only a 4-minute 5-on-4, but they also had a full minute of a 5-on-3, and failed to score each time and in fact were only able to muster a few shots off. The passing has been terrible on the power play unit, they lack the ability to keep the puck in the offensive zone for very long, and there seems to almost never be a big body in front of the net to screen the goalie and tip shots and rebounds in. If only Dave Andreychuk could come on down and re-lace up the skates again...
Jeremy Hellickson was named the American League Rookie of the Year today by the Baseball Writers' Association of America, the organization that votes to determine the winner of postseason awards.
Hellickson had a fantastic rookie campaign, as he had 13-10 record and led rookies in ERA (2.95), innings (189), starts (29) and opponents’ batting average (.210). Helly's season earned him 102 points (17/28 first-place votes) in the voting. The runner-up was Angels 1B Mark Trumbo, who received 63 points with 5 first place votes. Fellow Ray Desmond Jennings placed 7th, which is pretty good considering how late he was called up.
By far the most impressive thing I saw from Hellickson this year was his consistancy. He had 20 quality starts out of his 29 starts, and seemed to work into the 6th or 7th inning each time out. His ability to keep cool under pressure was also great. But as good as Helly is now, he still can improve a lot, and if he can then Rays fans are in for a treat.
Hellickson becomes the second Ray to win the award, following Evan Longoria in 2008. A Tampa Bay representative has a good chance to win the award again next year, as phenom Matt Moore may get a shot at a full year in the bigs.
The Buccaneers were blown out by the Houston Texans, 37-9.
I'm actually glad that this game was not televised, because the pathetic performance by the Bucs was in no way worth watching. I have serious respect for any fan that stuck around until the end, or even after halftime as the above photo shows. Granted, there probably weren't very many people there at the start of the game anyway. But if Tampa Bay wants to draw more patrons to the gates, then their horrid display today was not a good step in doing so.
The first play from scrimmage was indicative of how the day would go, as Texans got an 80-yard TD pass on a play action bootleg. The whole rest of the day, QB Matt Schaub had wide-open WRs who proceeded to break numerous arm tackles en route to a big gain, and RBs Arian Foster, Ben Tate and even Derrick Ward had wide-open running lanes and also proceded to break numerous arm tackles en route to a big gain. The defensive line could not clog the gaps and could not put pressure on Schaub, while the linebackers and defensive backs could not simply cover a man or even tackle him when he made a catch. An lone early bright spot, an interception by Aqib Talib, was of course overturned. Even without WR Andre Johnson, the Texans' O had their way with the Bucs' D.
And as good as the Texans' offense is, their defense is even better, and it showed. The Bucs' wide receivers just could not get open down field, and when they were open it seemed as if the balls were either dropped (Mike Williams) or called back due to penalties (Kellen Winslow). Josh Freeman wasn't much of a help either, as he threw 3 interceptions (although a few were tipped and goes back to the WRs dropping passes) and repeatedly threw to his checkdown man a yard down the field on 3rd-and-long situations, which predictably didn't work. Part of it may be the receivers not getting open, part of it may be Greg Olsen's playcalling, and part of it may be Freeman's decision making. But whoever is to blame, this offense and this team as a whole are just awful right now.
As a fan of the Florida Gators, I see so many parallels between the two teams. Poor tackling, poor discipline, poor starts to games, poor coaching. Each team has a decent runing game that it is forced to abandon because the team gets down big early, making the teams one dimensional. The similarities even go down to the team MVPs - the kickers, as UF's Caleb Sturgis (K) and Tampa Bay's Connor Barth (K) and Michael Koenen (P) have each had probably the best season so far relative to their teammates.
The biggest concern with the Bucs (and Gators) that I have is the lack of development. They have not improved throughout the course of the season or even compared to last year, and in some ways have even regressed. That falls on the coaching staff; whatever they are doing in practice just isn't working. Despite such promise at the start of the year, the seats of Raheem Morris and especially Greg Olsen are starting to warm up. Things may only get worse against the Buccaneers' next opponent: the undefeated and Super Bowl champion Green Bay Packers.
The Lightning lost to the St. Louis Blues Saturday night, 3-0.
The Lightning had an all-around off night, and could not get much going on offense against the Blues. Although they did generate a few good chances, especially in the final minute of the game, for the most part the offense looked sluggish. The Bolts could not capitalize on any of their powerplays, and in fact even gave up a short-handed goal. They were only able to muster 2 shots on goal in the entire second period, in an apparent attempt to emulate the Flyers' lack of shots a few days ago.
Mathieu Garon started to give Dwayne Roloson a much-needed breather, and played fairly well. The first goal he gave up was through a screen of abour 4 or 5 skaters, so it's tough to fault him on that, and the goal he allowed in the second period was a result of an unlucky odd-man rush by St. Louis in the closing seconds. The third Blues goal, however, was set up by a Garon turnover behind the net. Garon did what a good backup goalie should do be able to do in these spot starts, but the team in front of him could not provide enough support.
Hopefully Victor Hedman and Ryan Malone are close to returning, as part of the sluggishness could be caused by the lack of depth right now. When a team is without a top-6 forward and a top-4 defenseman (2 if you include Mattias Ohlund, who is still a ways a way from returning), then they are bound to have their off nights. Luckily, they next head up to Winnipeg in the first visit to this new incarnation of the Jets. Going back to their Atlanta days, the Lightning have a 12-game win streak versus the franchise.
The Lightning defeated the Philadelphia Flyers Wednesday night, 2-1 in overtime.
After going down by a goal in the second period, Marc-Andre Bergeron continued his fantastic start to the season by putting a power play slap shot into the back of the Flyers net to tie the game at one. The game would head into overtime, when rookie Brett Connolly sent home a rebound for his third career goal, the game-winner. Dwayne Roloson stopped 14 of 15 shots in the winning effort.
However, perhaps even more interesting than the Bolts' W was the mini-controversy that stemmed from Philadelphia's refusal to attack the Lightning's 1-3-1 neutral zone defensive set-up. Several times throughout the game, the Flyers would keep the puck in their defensive zone without advancing it, sometimes for 20 or 30 seconds at a time. Their goal was to force the Lightning to break their scheme and move up to forecheck to force the Flyers to move the puck, but for the most part, they remained staunch in their alignment.
Now, time for a rant.
I have absolutely no problem with the Flyers doing what they did strategic-wise. Trying to lure the Bolts into breaking their hard-to-beat "Tampa T" trap was probably a smart move by Philadelphia. Although some considered the results to be several boring wastes of half-minute increments, which they were, but I also saw it as an intense, coaching chess-match of who would be the first to break their gameplan.
The problem I have regarding the situation has nothing to do with the stall strategy itself, but rather the reaction to it, namely by the pathetic excuse for broadcasters employed by the equally-pathetic excuse for a television network known as Versus. I have never liked Versus, mostly due to their incredibly biased commentary that portrays northeastern large markets such as the Flyers, Pittsburg Penguins, the Washington Capitals, and the Boston Bruins as the only teams that matter in hockey, while casting a negative shadow upon southern teams such as the Lightning.
That sentiment was in full force Wednesday, as the Versus announcers deemed that the Flyers were heros for the NHL by standing up to the evil Guy Boucher and the bad-for-the-sport 1-3-1, which has been around for decades. They blamed the Lightning for delaying the game; they suggested that Tampa Bay should get a penalty for their defensive alignment or even fined for it. My reaction to all this talk was a resounding: "HUH??" The last time I checked, the team that has the puck is responsible for attacking the other team's zone in an attempt to score goals. If they face opposition to this attack, it's a little thing that's called "defense". The opposing team is supposed to try to stop the team with the puck from scoring. It's just like how the defenses in football try to tackle the ballcarrier, how the defenses in basketball try to block shots, and how the defenses in baseball try to catch the ball for outs. Defenses are not supposed to back off and let the offense score at will (well, maybe in the NBA they are). Heck, if the 1-3-1 is so evil, then just have every game be a shootout. Of course, Versus would probably want to outlaw goalies, too.
I'll be sure the next time that a Lightning game is on what is probably the worst sports channel in the world that I mute the TV and hope that Dave Mishkin's fantastic call of the game is in time with the picture.
The Lightning defeated the Florida Panthers 4-3 in a shootout.
Once again, the Lightning fell behind early due to a slow start on the road. And once again, they were able to battle back to victory. Mathieu Garon allowed 3 goals in the first period, but Dwayne Roloson pitched a shutout in relief. Ryan Malone, Steven Stamkos and Teddy Purcell scored the next 3 goals of the game to tie it, and Dominic Moore scored what seemed like the first Lightning shootout goal in ages to give the Bolts yet another come from behind victory.
Being able to come back from all these deficits is good to see, but the Bolts should not be in a situation to come back in the first place. If this team wants to go far in the playoffs, or even make the playoffs for that matter, they need to get off to better starts so they don't have to hope for a miracle comeback every time.
The Buccaneers fell to the New Orleans Saints, 27-16, dropping their record to 4-4 and to 3rd place in the division.
The loss saw a number of issues that the Bucs have had this season continue. Once again, the team got off to a slow start offensively. Although Josh Freeman did not throw any interceptions, he was not particularly sharp, twice overthrowing open receivers - first Kregg Lumpkin, then Erik Lorig - who could have possibly run in for touchdowns or at least a huge gain. I'm not sure if Freeman has been negatively affected by poor playcalling by OC Greg Olsen, which is certainly a possibility given some questionable decisions such as abandoning Legarrette Blount. But either way, Freeman has regressed this season from his stellar 2010 campaign.
The rest of the Bucs contined to make undisciplined mental mistakes, especially stupid penalties. Despite having a bye week between the loss to the Bears and this game, the mistakes have not been corrected. Some penalties can be alright given the situation, but things like false starts and personal fouls are unacceptable. If Tampa Bay wants to have even an outside shot at making the playoffs, they're going to have to eliminate these mistakes.
The Tampa Bay Storm revealed the team's new brand on Saturday at Storm Fest at the Forum. The official press release about the new look discusses some of the inspiration behind the changes. A photo gallery of the event and a look at some of the players modeling the new uniform can be found here.
As for my opinon on the new look, I'd say I'm satisfied. I do like how they essentially stuck with a modernized version of the traditional word mark, although the "Eye of the Storm" rather reminds me of the Carolina Hurricanes. I also think it's interesting how they incorporated Tampa Bay Blue - the same color of the Lightning's logo and uniforms, who are owned by the same group and play in the same arena. I think my main problem with the uniforms is how they went away from the traditional sharp gold helmet with the word mark in favor of the blue helmet with the circular storm logo. It creates an almost overkill of the blue, especially in the home set. I would also like to see a set of gold or white pants to be used as an alternate, but I'm always one for having options as far as a uniform goes.
The Lightning defeated the Chicago Blackhawks 5-4 in overtime in an exciting Friday night match-up.
While the first and third periods saw zero scoring from each team, they score 4 goals apiece in the second period. The Lightning's scoring included Brett Connolly's second goal of his career, and the 4th career hat trick, the second versus Chicago, for Steven Stamkos. The Blackhawks had been up 4-2 at one point, scoring 3 goals within 1:05, but the Bolts were able to battle back with Stamkos' second and third goals on the night to tie the game. With no goals in the third period, the game went into overtime, and with less than a minute left until a shootout plagued the Lightning again, Marc-Andre Bergeron made a fantastic steal to keep the puck in the offensive zone, followed by a heads-up pass to Marty St. Louis, and Vinny Lecavalier would sink St. Louis' subsequent pass into the back of the wide-open net for the game winning goal.
At this point in the season, Bergeron has probably the team's MVP. Although Stamkos is now tied for second in the league with 9 goals on the year, Bergeron is tied for sixth in the league in points, first among defensemen, and has 13 assists, which is tied for the league lead. And while he has typically been classified as an offensive-minded defenseman, MAB has been one of the most consistent performers in defense this year, making smart decisions and some great plays, such as the steal that set up Lecavalier's game winner.
The Tampa Bay Lightning were defeated by the Carolina Hurricanes Tuesday night, by a score of 4-2.
The defense seemed to falter again, allowing several great Carolina chances that resulted in goals. While Dwayne Roloson couldn't carry over his success from his shutout last game, the defense put him in some bad situations, and some of the time the pucks are bound to go into the net.
The Lightning had a tough night offensively, missing quite a few open looks and failing to capitalize on some great opportunities, such as a full 2-minute 5-on-3 powerplay that went for nothing. One positive from the night was Brett Connolly scoring his first NHL goal, after some good hard work by Marty St. Louis and Vinny Lecavalier behind the net. The goal brought the score within 1 at 3-2; unfortunately, less than a minute later the Canes got the goal back on a 2-on-1 breakaway, and the 4-2 score would stand.
The loss drops the Bolts to 4th in the Southeast Division, with 12 points on the year. If the season ended today, Tampa Bay would be in 9th place in the conference and out of the playoffs.
Some changes have recently been announced that involve some local professional teams.
First, the Tampa Bay Storm anounced that they will have a new logo and new uniforms next year. The changes will be introduced at Storm Fest, which takes place this Saturday. The Storm have had the same logo for quite a while, so in a way it has sort of a classic feel to it. Perhaps it is just a slight tweak; We'll pass judgement once the designs are released.
The other change in the Bay Area is the name of the newly-renovated St. Pete Times Forum. As on January 1, the Forum will be known as the Tampa Bay Times Forum. The newspaper is changing its name, and thus the arena name shall change too. I like how the name is now incorporating the entire region, because the St. Pete Times Forum in located in Tampa, Florida is a bit awkward. I think most people still prefer the pre-sponsorship days of the Ice Palace.
