Tampa bay lightning playoffs11/27/2023 ![]() ![]() WYSHYNSKI: (Laughter) No, but they have a lot to apologize for. Have you ever seen a team this apologetic? Thank you for being there the entire way. This isn't the ending we imagined and certainly not the one we wanted. We understand your anger, your frustration, your sadness. And I'm basing that on a tweet from the Tampa Bay Lightning Twitter feed, which said this. So when push came to shove and adversity hit in the series, the Lightning had a bad six days compared to a great 82 games in the regular season, and then they were swept.ĬORNISH: Now, your assessment is far more kind, I think, than that of the fan base. The Columbus Blue Jackets had to win seven of their last eight games just to get into the playoffs. They've been on cruise control for months. They clinched a playoff spot in early March. But the bigger picture is this for the Lightning. ![]() Everything that they did so well in the regular season, the Columbus Blue Jackets did it better in this series. WYSHYNSKI: (Laughter) Well, I think Lightning defenseman Ryan McDonagh put it best. They were blowing away their opponents.ĬORNISH: So it's safe to say any sane hockey analyst (laughter) basically would have said that the Lightning was going to win the series, right? So what happened? So every time they stepped on the ice, they weren't just winning. Thirty of their 62 victories were by three goals or more. This was a team that was doing historic things in the regular season. That tied the all-time NHL record for wins in a season. Just how good were the Lightning before this collapse? Welcome to the program.ĬORNISH: Help us understand. Greg Wyshynski is senior NHL writer for ESPN. Columbus won its first playoff series ever with a sweep that still has experts like my next guest wondering what happened. Their first-round matchup was supposed to be a walkover. Now, contrast that with the Columbus Blue Jackets, an unlikely bunch. No team in NHL history had ever won more games in the regular season. In fact, there was a time - like, just over a week ago - that you could say they were one of the best teams ever. The Lightning were by far the best team in the National Hockey League. On the flip side, the Tampa Bay Lightning wish they'd never heard of the Blue Jackets. If you've never heard of the Columbus Blue Jackets, you're definitely not alone. ![]()
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