Mishkin's Musings: On Coleman, the home stretch and the Eastern race

-Relentless. In the hours and days after the Lightning traded for forward Blake Coleman, I kept hearing that word. From Lightning GM Julien Brisebois to Lightning players to the New Jersey reporters that cover the Devils, "relentless" was used to describe Coleman's game. And it was often one of the first, if not the first, words out of their mouths when they were listing Coleman's attributes. Going hand-in-hand with relentless was this descriptor: "hard to play against".

In addition, Coleman has great speed. And a scoring touch. On a Devils team that ranks 26th in goals scored per game, he has already netted 21 goals, including three shorthanded markers.
Then there's Coleman's contract status. Not only his is not a "rental" - he's under contract for next season - he is currently on a very cap-friendly deal. Brisebois mentioned this fact during his media session after the trade was complete.
It's true that the cost to acquire players tends to be higher around the deadline. The Lightning sent the Devils a first round pick and prospect Nolan Foote. But in return, they have added a very good player to the roster, not only for this season but for 2020-21 as well.

-Beginning with their 6-1 win over Florida on December 23, the Lightning have gone 23-2-1 over a 26-game stretch. They've recorded a 10-game winning streak and their current franchise-record 11-game win streak. Back on December 23, they were in sixth place in the Atlantic Division. Now they're in second, just one point behind the Boston Bruins. Not just second in the division, but second in the overall league standings.
Clearly, thanks to this phenomenal run, the Lightning have put themselves in an excellent position to make the playoffs. So, with 22 regular season games remaining, what will be the keys for the Lightning down the stretch?
First things first, the Lightning do need to clinch a playoff spot. So they want to ensure that they keep banking points.
But there's more. Following last year's 62-win regular season and first round playoff exit, Lightning players conceded that they had let some bad habits creep into their game during the final few weeks of the regular season. Some pundits speculated if this was due to the fact that the Lightning weren't playing meaningful games down the stretch. Unlike, for example, Columbus, which needed a hot finish just to qualify for the postseason. Assuming that the Lightning maintain their current trajectory, they will be in a similar spot, having clinched a playoff berth with some runway left in the regular season.

Such a scenario doesn't always lead to early postseason trouble, though. In 2017-18, the Lightning similarly secured a playoff berth with time to spare in the regular season. That team proceeded to go 8-2 in its first 10 playoff games.
So the big key for the Lightning down the stretch will be to continue honing their game. They've done a terrific job tightening up their team defense this season. Maintaining that focus will help them navigate through these final 22 regular season games and not let any bad habits seep in.
-What about the rest of the East? Last month, I wrote about the 12-in-10 metric and how the top 10 Eastern teams were all at or above that benchmark. Since then, Toronto, Florida, and Columbus have slightly fallen off that pace. Still very much in the race, but in a less advantageous spot than the seven Eastern teams ahead of them.
READ MORE:Sizing up the Eastern Conference Playoff Race
Of course, between Toronto and Florida (which are separated by just two points), one of those clubs is positioned to finish third in the Atlantic, which guarantees a postseason spot. And Columbus, despite being in sixth place in the Metropolitan, is tied with Carolina and the Islanders with 72 points and trails third-place Philadelphia by just one point. The Jackets have fewer games remaining than their competitors, though, which is why they're looking up at the 'Canes and Islanders.