Tampa’s young players continue to gain recognition from people in the know. NHL.com has been featuring a Top 14 for 2014-15 series over the summer to determine who they think are the best 14 players in the league at each position heading into the new season. Starting at the beginning of September Arpon Basu, Brian Compton, Corey Masisak and Dan Rosen have cast their votes and a two members of the Lightning made the cut. (Photos/Susan Ferlita)
Steven Stamkos received the most accolades in the voting and it’s not terribly surprising. He placed fifth among centers behind Sidney Crosby, Jonathan Toews, Anze Kopitar and Evgeni Malkin respectively.
Here’s what the panel had to say about Stamkos:
“Stamkos is difficult to place among the elite centers because his skill set is so different. If he’s able to mold himself into a better defender/faceoff guy, he could be No. 1 when Crosby concedes the title. Or Stamkos could move to wing and be the best player at that position immediately.”
Tampa’s captain was also ranked third on the list of power-play specialists behind Alex Ovechkin and Erik Karlsson.
His trademarked shot also got some recognition:
“Stamkos is one of the most effective power-play scorers because of his one-timer from the left circle. He doesn’t always shoot it, but he is always dangerous from that spot. The Lightning were 20.4 percent (28-for-137) on the power play with Stamkos in the lineup last season; they were 16.5 percent (22-for-133) without him. Had Stamkos played in 82 games last season he would have been on pace for 20 power-play goals.”
Victor Hedman was the best defenseman no one was talking about last season. It looks as though some hockey people have been paying attention to his impressive development. The big Swede was selected as the tenth best defenseman in the league by the panel.
Here are their thoughts:
“It took four years, but Tampa Bay was rewarded last season for selecting Hedman with the No. 2 pick in the 2009 NHL Draft. Hedman finished fourth in scoring among defensemen last season, and his emergence as a top-flight blueliner was a major reason the Lightning stayed afloat while Steven Stamkos recovered from a broken leg that forced him to miss the bulk of the season. At age 23, there’s no reason to believe the 6-foot-6, 233-pound defender will slow down.”
Goalie Ben Bishop’s stellar play helped lead the Lightning to a playoff berth and saw him named a finalist for the Vezina Trophy. He finished the season with a 37-14-7 record, 2.23 GAA and a .924 save percentage. Bishop’s work also led to him being ranked the eighth best goalie in the league.
The panel had this to say:
“In his first season as a starting goalie, Bishop provided the Lightning with the best goaltending the franchise has had since winning the Stanley Cup in 2004 with Nikolai Khabibulin in net. Bishop placed in the top 10 in the NHL in wins (fourth), save percentage (seventh), goals-against average (seventh) and shutouts (fourth).”
Many local fans seem to lament the fact that the Lightning players don’t get as much recognition as stars on other teams in the media or at award shows. The big names are always going to be mentioned. These lists show the opinions of very smart hockey people who pay very closely attention to what’s going on in the game. The Lightning are forcing people to pay attention and they could very well change the complexion of these lists going forward.
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