The Tampa Bay Lightning has so far taken the first two pre -season games. Although the actual final score will not tell you much, the players behind the promotion do that.
Let’s look at three collection restaurants of the first two games of the preseason. We will see how the chemistry is building, how the schedule can shake with Nick Paul who is absent and take a look at the targeting situation.
Chaffee and Geekie seem to work well together
These two are not expected to be on the same line during the regular season, but they have shown good chemistry in the early competitions of the preseason.
In the presidential opener in Raleigh on Monday, both picked up an assist of the goal of Emil Lilleberg to open the score against the Carolina Hurricanes. The next score contained Conor Geekie Assistance on the Power-Play goal of Mitchell Chaffee, making the score on 2-0.
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Neither of them saw action in Tuesday against the Nashville Predators, so feel free to take the observation based on one game with a grain of salt. However, the first impression was good.
The two only arrived at the score sheet once last season when Geekie helped a goal from Chaffee against the Columbus Blue Jackets on November 21. Both fed the core members of the team last season, but it promises that they could work well together.
When a team is looking for ways to find depth over all four lines, this can offer them a chance to find it.
Johansson’s performance will be aware
I don’t think it’s time to panic about Andrei Vasilevsky. Lightning should choose to be too careful with him, even if it means he is absent for a while (of ‘largest pre -season question for lightning: will Vasilevsky will be ready?’, Tampa Bay Times, September 21, 2025).
That said, the longer he is gone, the more we need to pay attention to what the backup looks like. It would not be the first time that Jonas Johansson held the fort. Together with Matt Tomkins, he did during the first 20 games of the 2023-24 season.
He will certainly be entrusted to do it again, if necessary.
In his only appearance of the preseason to date, he saved 29 of 30, with the only goal that came on the Power game. It helps to see him play from the gate early, especially because his last preseason was a point of care.
We will also see others to see who can help fill in. Brandon Halverson played on Tuesday in the game of Predators. Maybe we see Harrison Menghin at some point. In case it doesn’t hurt to view all your options.
Lightning has finished watching O’Reilly (for the time being)
This does not come from the first two games, in itself, but it is related. The lightning made 10 cuts of the training camp schedule, Including recently acquired prospect Vooruit Sam O’Reilly. He is assigned to the London Knights, his Junior Team.
It feels a bit fast, but it shows that they want to see more of some other prospects during the preseason. For example, Jack Finley, Dylan Duke and Ethan Gauthier remained around the Gulf of Sneeds.
While they are looking for someone to help fill the attack while Nick Paul is out, O’Reilly is excluded. He could appear this season, but lightning focuses on people with more experience. Finley and Duke spent time in the American Hockey League (AHL) and both made their NHL debut. Gauthier has played a handful of AHL games, so he is one step further than O’Reilly alone on that experience alone.
Jakob Pelletier also looks like a potential option with more NHL experience that can get a chance. Together with O’Rilly he had a goal in the victory over the predators.
Although some would like to see that Isaac Howard’s trading piece is in the NHL, his assignment helps to paint a better picture of whom the lightning thinks it is closest to NHL action.
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