How the Lightning were built into a Stanley Cup Finalist

From the drafting of Alex Killorn, Steven Stamkos and Victor Hedman in 2007, 2008 and 2009, respectively, to the acquisitions of Blake Coleman, Barclay Goodrow and Zach Bogosian at the 2020 trade deadline, the Stanley Cup Finalist Tampa Bay Lightning have been in the making for 14 years.
The Lightning have won a Presidents' Trophy, been to two Cup Finals, five Eastern Conference Finals and finished atop the Atlantic Division twice over that span.
Now, they're on the precipice of winning the second Stanley Cup in franchise history, the Dallas Stars the lone opponent standing in their way.

Former Tampa Bay general manager Steve Yzerman has his thumbprints all over Tampa Bay's 2020 playoff roster, but current GM Julien BriseBois has added his own touches at key moments, augmenting the Lightning lineup into one of the best in the NHL year after year.
We'll take a long look into how the Lightning were built, from the core that's been there for most of the Bolts' playoff success over the last decade, the second core that's helped the Lightning sustain that success, the newcomers Tampa Bay added this offseason in an effort to become better defensively to the trade deadline acquisitions that have " a little dirt under their nails" and made the Lightning a tougher, more hard-nosed unit.

The core
Tampa Bay's roster features nine players who played at least one game with the Lightning during their run to the 2015 Stanley Cup Final: Braydon Coburn, Victor Hedman, Tyler Johnson, Alex Killorn, Nikita Kucherov, Ondrej Palat, Cedric Paquette, Steven Stamkos and Andrei Vasilevskiy.
Of that group, seven were draft picks of the Lightning.
Tampa Bay selected Steven Stamkos with the No. 1 overall pick in 2008. The Lightning captain hasn't played this postseason as he continues to rehab from a core muscle injury that required surgery on March 2.
His leadership, however, has been felt throughout this postseason. When the Lightning earned the Prince of Wales Trophy following their series win over the Islanders, Hedman, Killorn and Ryan McDonagh waited until Stamkos, dressed in jeans and a jersey, could come out to join the group. As Hedman carried the award off the ice, he spotted Stamkos and let him take it into the locker room.
"Even though Stammer's not playing, he's still the leader of this team and he's such a good influence in the room during practices and morning skates, so he's still a big reason we're here where we are," Hedman said.
Victor Hedman, a finalist for the Norris Trophy for the fourth-straight season, was selected by the Lightning with the second overall pick the year after taking Stamkos. The Hedman/Stamkos duo has been at the heart of the Lightning's success over the last decade. They've taken the Lightning to the Stanley Cup Final twice (2015 and 2020) and the Eastern Conference Final five times (2011, 2015, 2016, 2018 and 2020).
Hedman is having his best postseason yet. His nine goals and 15 points so far are both franchise records for most in a playoff season. He's maybe the biggest difference maker the Lightning have in their lineup.
"He's killing penalties, power plays, five-on-five, he plays like 30 minutes a night. It's just unbelievable how well he plays," Mikhail Sergachev said. "Sometimes you can play 30 minutes and do nothing, and he's doing everything for us."
Alex Killorn is the longest-tenured member of the Lightning, having been selected by the team in the third round of the 2007 Draft. He had a career year in 2019-20, setting personal highs for goals (26) points (49), power-play goals (8) and power-play scoring (13 pts.).
The 2011 Draft supplied the Lightning with Nikita Kucherov (2nd Rd.) and Ondrej Palat (7th Rd.).
Kucherov leads all players for scoring in the 2020 Playoffs (6-20-26 pts.) and tied Brad Richards' record from 2004 for most points in a playoff year entering the Stanley Cup Final.
Plus, the typically quiet Kucherov has emerged as a vocal leader for the Lightning this offseason.
"Kuch, himself, has really stepped up and been a positive influence on our team in the locker room," Kevin Shattenkirk said earlier this postseason. "He's speaking up, and it's been very refreshing to have him buy in that way as well."
Palat is healthy after nagging injuries have kept him from reaching his full impact the last few seasons. The often-overlooked member of the Bolts' top line, he's supplied the Lightning with eight goals coming into the Cup Final, all coming in the last 10 games.
"He just does all those things that are unnoticed, but lines don't survive without him," Cooper said during the Eastern Conference Final. "He just doesn't get the attention some of the other guys he plays with gets because of the caliber players they are, but you need a Palat on your line."
In the 2012 Draft, the Lightning selected two more players that would become part of their core: Andrei Vasilevskiy (1st Rd.) and Cedric Paquette (4th Rd.).
Paquette has been a fourth-line stalwart on all of Tampa Bay's playoff runs since 2015. His 85 hits entering the Cup Final are the most in a playoff season in Lightning history.
And Vasilevskiy, the reigning Vezina Trophy winner and a finalist again for the award for the third year in a row, is, quite frankly, Tampa Bay's most indispensable player. He's led the NHL for wins each of the last three regular seasons, and this postseason, has allowed two or less goals in 13 of his 19 playoff starts and eight of his last nine coming into the Cup Final.
"When you know that if there is a breakdown, which there's going to be in games, that your guy back there has a good chance of stopping it, it's not a recipe to rely on that but it's a nice luxury to have," Cooper said. "He's been outstanding for us."
"He gives us a chance no matter what the situation is," Ryan McDonagh added.
Of the core group, two players weren't drafted by the Lightning.
Tyler Johnson went undrafted but has been a fixture on Tampa Bay's playoff runs since Jon Cooper took over as head coach. In 2015, Johnson was the frontrunner for the Conn Smythe Trophy until an injury suffered in the Eastern Conference Final against the New York Rangers prevented him from being fully effective in the Cup Final versus Chicago.
Braydon Coburn came to the Lightning at the 2015 trade deadline, the Bolts sending D Radko Gudas, a First and a Third Round pick in the 2015 Draft to Philadelphia to get him. He immediately proved his worth, scoring the game-winning goal in Game 7 of the opening round against Detroit that year.
The player with the most playoff experience on the Lightning roster - his 137 career playoff games are tops on Tampa Bay - Coburn's been used as a spot starter this postseason, coming into the lineup when injuries necessitate. He's been effective too despite his limited playing time.
"When you do try and make a run, you need depth," Cooper said.

The second core
Since making their run to the Stanley Cup Final in 2015, the Lightning have added pieces, whether by draft, development or trade that have become part of the team's core.
Call them the second core, if you will.
Brayden Point is the leader of that group. The most dynamic player in the 2020 Playoffs, Point was an undersized center with immense hockey sense but questionable skating skills when he was taken in the Third Round of the 2014 Draft. But he's worked diligently on his skating with instructor Barb Underhill and has emerged as the Lightning's leader among the forward group during this postseason run.
"Everybody knows, he's our best player, and it's just fun to play with him," his linemate Ondrej Palat said. "When he has the puck, he has a poise. He's just really, really good and a big part of us right now."
Anthony Cirelli has a knack for scoring big goals in clinching games. The Lightning's Third Round selection in 2015 scored the overtime winner for the Oshawa Generals to win the 2015 Memorial Cup and played overtime hero again for the Erie Otters in the 2017 OHL Final to help the franchise clinch the J. Ross Robertson Cup in five games.
In Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Final, his aggressiveness allowed the Lightning to set up in the offensive zone on the game-winning scoring play, and he got open down low to one-time Barclay Goodrow's pass through Semyon Varlamov for the goal to send the Bolts to the Stanley Cup Final despite suffering a knee-on-knee hit earlier in the game that put serious doubt into whether he'd be able to finish the game.
"Anthony is someone who gets in and is so strong kind of in his triangle with his balance on his skates and then strong on his stick," Kevin Shattenkirk said. "But he can fight off one, two, three guys and get the puck to the other players on his line and make things happen from there…(He's) a bright young star and someone I've enjoyed watching all year."
Ryan McDonagh was former general manager Steve Yzerman's boldest deadline deal acquisition, coming over from the Rangers along with J.T. Miller as the Lightning bolstered their lineup in 2018. He's since signed a seven-year contract extension with the Lightning that kicked in this season and has been part of Tampa Bay's shutdown defensive pairing.
Erik Cernak, the other half of that partnership, was Tampa Bay's prize from the Ben Bishop trade at the 2017 deadline. The Slovakian blueliner is a leading shot blocker and penalty killer this postseason for the Lightning.
Mikhail Sergachev took the next step in his development when he learned to use his 6-foot-3, 216-pound body more physically midway through the regular season. Coming to the Lightning via trade with Montreal before the 2017-18 season in a deal that sent Jonathan Drouin to the Canadiens, Sergachev's emergence has bolstered the blueline. He's getting used in more situations and handed more responsibility too. Sergachev's taken a leading role on the Lightning power play, handled the opposition's top lines and been a driver of the offense from the back end.
Yanni Gourde went undrafted and bounced around the minor leagues before the Lightning's scouting staff saw potential in the undersized forward and signed him. He set the Lightning's rookie record for goals (25) in 2017-18.
This season, he battled through a career-long 35-game goal drought during the regular season but if you're looking for an under-the-radar reason the Lightning are in the Cup Final, search no further than Gourde. He's fifth on the Lightning for goals (5) and scoring (12 pts.) this postseason, and the third line he centers has been better than every other team's third line, giving the Lightning an advantage no opponent has yet overcome.
And while Jan Rutta has been injured for all but one game this postseason, his steady play and ability to complement Victor Hedman on the Bolts' top pairing in the regular season was a big reason the Lightning were able to find their best game during a stretch from late December to mid-February when they went 23-2-1.
Rutta was part of a player-for-player trade with Chicago on January 11, 2019 that sent Slater Koekkoek back to the Blackhawks.
Rounding out the Lightning 2020 Playoffs roster are five players who haven't played much this postseason but are part of what the Bolts hope are their emerging core, the next wave of players to supplement the group they already have.
Mitchell Stephens has played the most this postseason out of the new core, scoring a goal in seven playoff games. His ability to win key face-offs has been a pleasant surprise for the Bolts this postseason as he's taken defensive zone draws with the opposition's net empty and the Lightning holding onto a lead in the closing seconds and offensive zone face-offs with the Lightning trailing and their own net empty, often winning each.
Carter Verhaeghe has played five games this postseason, contributing two assists and injecting pace and energy to the Lightning lineup, particularly when Point went down with an injury in the Eastern Conference Final.
Mathieu Joseph, Alexander Volkov and Scott Wedgewood haven't played this postseason but are important depth pieces this year and for years to come.

The offseason acquisitions
BriseBois signed two players on the current Lightning roster the first day of free agency July 1, 2019.
Luke Schenn was a veteran defenseman with over 700 games in the NHL the Lightning noticed during the end of 2018-19 with Vancouver. Schenn played for four teams that season: Anaheim, the Canucks and Utica and San Diego in the American Hockey League, but he stuck around with the Canucks to finish out the year, and the Lightning felt he got better as that season progressed.
He added size, physicality and was a cost attractive fit on the back end.
Realistically, the Bolts brought him in to be one of their top six defensemen in 2019-20. The opportunity to sign Kevin Shattenkirk probably squeezed him out of a regular starting role, but he's been reliably steady when called upon during the regular season and has shined in the postseason, starting every game since Game 2 of the Second Round versus Boston when Ryan McDonagh was unavailable due to injury.
Tampa Bay switched to an 11 forward/7 defenseman lineup, bringing in Schenn and Braydon Coburn, and won Game 2 in overtime 4-3.
They haven't gone back to 12/6 since and Schenn remained in the lineup while Coburn came out when McDonagh became available to play again. He's contributed two assists in 10 contests and been a mainstay on the Bolts penalty kill.
"Schenner makes us an inch taller on the bench," Cooper said during the Eastern Conference Final. "He's big, he's physical and he plays teams that have a little bite like the Islanders do, guys like Schenner keep them in check. You don't see too many of their guys lined up to get anywhere close to Schenn. Couple that with the fact he's a vet, he makes a really good first pass for us, you get to the front of the net, he's the one usually doling out the punishment, not getting it. It's great to have guys like him in our lineup. Plus, he's world class in the locker room and as a human. Can't have enough of those guys."
The addition of Curtis McElhinney on July 1 was unexpected considering the Lightning already had Andrei Vasilevskiy and Louis Domingue under contract. But McElhinney could be signed for an attractive $1.3 million, which would give the Lightning cost certainty for two seasons at the backup goalie position going into what will be a difficult offseason salary cap to manage.
McElhinney has impressed as the Lightning backup. He went 8-7-3 with a .906 save percentage and strung together two separate three-game win streaks, often while getting difficult starts like the second end of a back-to-back set.
He's yet to appear this postseason but considering how he performed during Tampa Bay's restart training camp, particularly in two intrasquad scrimmages, there's no reason to worry should he be called upon in the Cup Final.
The Lightning benefitted when the New York Rangers terminated the contract of Kevin Shattenkirk August 1. Tampa Bay signed the veteran defenseman four days later, and he immediately became a mainstay in the lineup. Like his new team, Shattenkirk came to Tampa Bay with a chip on his shoulder, unsettled how his time in New York ended and eager to prove himself a top defenseman in the league again.
Shattenkirk became a regular partner of Mikhail Sergachev. He netted eight goals and contributed 34 points, tied for second among Lightning defensemen for scoring. He's a natural fit in the locker room with his easy going manner and willingness to engage with everyone.
He's become a vocal leader too, that being felt most in the playoffs. In the First Round, the Lightning were in a clinching Game 5 but played maybe their worst period this postseason in the second to fall behind 3-2 to Columbus. Shattenkirk was the calming, reassuring voice in the locker room during the second intermission to help the Bolts reset. That voice grew louder on the bench when the Lightning went down further 4-2 with 10 minutes to go. And then he started the comeback on the ice a few minutes later by blasting a shot into the net from the right circle, the Lightning eventually winning the game and series 5-4 in overtime.
"We needed someone to step up and say something. He did," Tyler Johnson said of Shattenkirk. "Kind of got the guys rallying, kind of got us to reset. And then he went out there and got a big goal for us too. I have to give Shatty a lot of the credit for that."
Pat Maroon was a free agent after winning a Stanley Cup with his hometown St. Louis Blues in 2019. Maroon famously scored the double overtime game-winning goal in Game 7 of the Western Conference Second Round versus Dallas to keep the Blues' improbable Stanley Cup dream alive.
The Lightning liked his pedigree. He's the only player on Tampa Bay's roster to win the Stanley Cup. He's qualified for the playoffs the last four seasons with four different teams. He's big and physical and adds a different element to the Lightning's forward group. He can hold the puck on his stick while shielding defenseman on his back from the hash marks to below the goal better than anyone in the NHL.
When he signed, Maroon said his goal was to win as many Stanley Cups as he could in his career and coming to Tampa Bay was a good place to try to win another.
Now he's played more games than anyone in the NHL the last two postseasons and is in the Stanley Cup Final for the second-straight year.
"Patty's got a ring and he's got one for a reason," Blake Coleman said. "He's been through this grind. I think he's been a good sounding board for our team in the sense he knows there's going to be these ups and downs. I think it's second nature for guys to want to get frustrated with a loss or not being able to score, things like that, but Patty's been great about just keeping us level, helping guys like me and other guys on the team just understand that it's going to be a long series. You're not going to win 16 games in a row, but you've got to stay loose and still have some fun and that kind of thing's contagious and goes into your game.

The trade deadline
Eight days before the 2019-20 trade deadline on February 24, Julien BriseBois made a move to acquire Blake Coleman from the New Jersey Devils for a hefty price: 2019 first rounder and prized prospect Nolan Foote and a 2020 First Round draft pick.
Coleman had posted back-to-back 20-plus goal and 30-plus seasons. He was an "elite" penalty killer according to BriseBois. He ranked near the leaders among NHL forwards for hits. He led Devils forwards for blocked shots. He was a willing shooter. And he came in at an attractive cap hit through the 2020-21 season, helping BriseBois alleviate some of his salary cap woes heading into the 2020 offseason.
"The prices at this time of year are usually very high and to acquire good players you'll have to pay a hefty premium and we certainly did that today, but we could afford to do so," BriseBois said at the time of the trade to bring Coleman to Tampa Bay. "What I felt we couldn't afford to do is (not) give this group of players every chance to have as good of a spring as possible. So that's why I made the decision to pay the price and add the player to our group."
Coleman has formed a third line along with Yanni Gourde and Barclay Goodrow that's been a difference-maker for the Lightning in the postseason. Their tenaciousness on the forecheck and relentlessness pursuing the puck is an example the rest of the team follows. They've contributed pivotal goals in key moments. Coleman has four goals and 10 points this postseason.
"He's a team-first guy," Ryan McDonagh said. "You've heard our coaches and players talk about him, that line, they just go out there and do their job and never take a shift off. That's been his m.o. before he joined our team. He works so hard on the ice. He's tough to play against. You're seeing that now during the playoffs."
Minutes before the deadline expired, the Lightning traded their second 2020 first round draft pick to San Jose for Barclay Goodrow, a physical center who would form an immediate connection with Coleman as the new forwards on the Lightning.
Goodrow endeared himself to his teammates and Bolts nation for the way he stood up for himself and his teammates March 7 in Boston where he fought Chris Wagner and was more than willing to jump into the fray against the rival Bruins in a heated, tone-setting regular season contest.
Goodrow and Coleman are maybe the Lightning's most important penalty-killing duo up top. They man the flanks of the Bolts' third line around Gourde. Cooper often says the top lines cancel each other out in the postseason and its your third and fourth lines that can change the series. The Coleman-Gourde-Goodrow trio has been by far the better third line in all three of Tampa Bay's playoff series so far in 2020.
"We've got different lines that can bring different elements to the games," Victor Hedman said after the First Round. "Gourdo, Coleman and Goodrow has been phenomenal throughout the first series. They bring that grit. They bring that hard forecheck game, but they chip in with big goals as well."
On the clinching goal that sent the Lightning to the Stanley Cup Final, Goodrow took the puck behind the net, made a hard move to cut back and elude a defender and set up Anthony Cirelli in front for the overtime Game 6 winner against the Islanders.
"Goodie makes a hell of a play to get the puck in front there," Cirelli said after the game.
Nobody ever wants to see a player get injured, but if the Lightning don't lose Ryan McDonagh and Jan Rutta to longer-term injuries in January-February, it's likely Tampa Bay never signs Zach Bogosian the day before the trade deadline.
Bogosian had his contract terminated by Buffalo after he refused an assignment to their AHL team in Rochester and was quickly snatched up two days later by the Bolts.
The Lightning just needed a body at that point with defensemen dropping from the lineup alarmingly. But Bogosian turned out to be a diamond in the rough. He showed promise in eight regular season games where he assisted on two goals and partnered with Victor Hedman on the Lightning's top pairing.
"The cap space was very affordable for us at this point," BriseBois said on Feb. 24 about signing Bogosian. "Zach wasn't really worried about what he was getting paid, he was more worried about going to an environment where he has a chance to win a Stanley Cup. We're a contender, and with him we're a better team."
The restart allowed Bososian - as well as Coleman and Goodrow - to get to know his teammates better and acclimate himself to the Lightning's systems.
And he got healthy again. Bogosian had offseason hip surgery coming into 2019-20 that caused him to miss the first 22 games of the season with Buffalo and he never got comfortable with the Sabres again. He said the pause allowed him to heal fully. And he was an immediate standout in Tampa Bay's restart training camp, earning the spot alongside Hedman for the duration of the playoffs and solidifying three very capable pairs the Lightning could trust in all situations.
Bogosian never played in a Stanley Cup Playoff game before this season despite 12 seasons in the NHL and over 600 regular season games played.
Now he and the Lightning are in the Stanley Cup Final. Getting lucky by having Bogosian come available at an opportune time and without having to give up any assets was one of those fortuitous moments teams need to make a Stanley Cup run.
"We knew them as players," BriseBois said of the three deadline acquisitions. "We had good intel on how they were as people, and they've been incredible for us. They've made us better. That was the whole point of making those trades. And signing Bogo was to make us a better team and it did."