Raw Charge
The static cling that brings Tampa Bay Lightning fans together.
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Lightning Morning News: A big trade on the eve of the new season
Lightning News: The Lightning will sit back the next few days as the rest of the NHL drops the puck on the new season. The Panthers head to Raleigh to face the Stanley Cup winning Carolina Hurricanes at 5 p.m. today while the Lightning won’t start their season until Thursday night at Madison Square Garden against the Rangers. The Lightning made their final roster cuts and as they finalize their opening night roster. [ Raw Charge ] One of the last cuts this year was forward Benjamin R...
Tampa Bay Lightning set 2026-27 roster
The five o’clock window for having a cap-compliant roster has come and gone, and the Tampa Bay Lightning have officially announced their 2026-27 roster. With no one claimed off of waivers, and the Bolts making no claims, the Lightning had one more transaction to conduct to get to 23 players (well technically they had to make three moves) and they did it by loaning Benjamin Rautiainen back to Tappara to finish off his European contract. They then placed Yanni Gourde and Dominic James on in...
2026-27 Atlantic Division Preview: Buffalo Sabres
The Sabres were one of the biggest surprises of the 2025-26 season. Can they build on their success or will they get swallowed up by a tough Atlantic Division? 2025-26 Record 50-23-9 (109 Points) 1st in Atlantic 2025-26 Record Against Lightning 3-0-1 2025-26 Goals For 283 (5th) 2025-26 Goals Against 240 (10th) 2025-26 Power Play 19.5% (21st) 2025-26 Penalty Kill 81.9% (4th) 2026-27 Division Odds +900 2026-27 Stanley Cup Odds +3000 Stats via NHL, Natural Stat Trick, and Hockey Reference. O...
Sam O’Reilly among final Lightning roster cuts
The Kid Line will have to wait a little while longer before taking the NHL by storm. On Sunday, the Tampa Bay Lightning all but finalized their 2026-27 roster as they made eleven moves in order to trim the head count to 26 players. While they don’t take to the ice until Thursday, their final 23-player roster has to be finalized by 5:00 PM on Monday. Most of the moves that the Lightning made were expected. Matteo Pietroniro and Jarred Tinordi were released from their try-out deals and will...
One more for the road, well, on the road
The Tampa Bay Lightning’s preseason comes to an end in Sunrise tonight as they take on the Florida Panthers just a couple of days after the two teams met in Tampa. With the majority of the assumed regular season starters on both teams having hit their two-game maximum, tonight’s tilt should resemble a Syracuse Crunch versus Charlotte Checkers game more than a NHL contest. That doesn’t mean it’s not worth a watch, especially for Lightning fans. If the lines from the morning skate are to be...
Lightning trade Johansson to division rival
Jonas Johansson’s time with the Tampa Bay Lightning has come to an end. After clearing waivers and being assigned to the Syracuse Crunch, the veteran backup was traded to the Ottawa Senators for future considerations. With the move, the Bolts clear out his $1.25 million cap hit and open up a roster spot. Per Puckpedia the Lightning currently have 47 of their 50 contract slots are taken. Johansson gives the Senators another experienced netminder after Leevi Merilainen was claimed off ...
Roster cutdown day leaves Lightning with 37 players in camp
With just one game left on the preseason schedule and a week to go until the regular season starts, the Tampa Bay Lightning made their biggest roster cut of training camp. The roster was reduced by 21 players with most of them going to Syracuse. With the Crunch announcing their training camp starting on Sunday, it wasn’t a surprise that the transactions were made today. Here’s how it broke down: Players placed on waivers: Simon Lundmark Olivier Rodrigue Steven Santini ...
Lightning Morning News: Panthers take down the Lightning in first preseason match-up
Lightning News: The Lightning took on the Panthers last night at Benchmark. This game had a lot less fireworks than last year and featured some honest-to-goodness hockey. The Panthers scored an ENG late in the game and won in Tampa by a 5-3 score. Jansen Harkins scored twice and Connor Geekie finished a nice 2-on-1 with Sam O’Reilly as the Lightning goal scorers. The two teams meet again on the other side of Alligator Alley on Saturday. [ Raw Charge ] Jansen Harkins did his part to s...
Lightning drop final preseason home game to Panthers, 5-3
The Tampa Bay Lightning rallied back twice, but couldn’t pull out the win as the Florida Panthers picked up the 5-3 win in the Bolts final home preseason game. Jensen Haskins scored twice while Conor Geekie picked up his second goal of the preseason in the loss. Andrei Vasilevskiy stopped 20 of 24 shots in the loss. The first period was a solid one for the Bolts. They didn’t have many shots on goal as Florida blocked six of their attempts, but most of the early play was in the Florid...
Chapter one of the latest Lightning/Panthers rivalry begins tonight
Welcome to the greatest show in the Sunshine State – the Lightning vs. the Panthers! The latest chapter in the rivalry gets underway tonight in the first of two pre-season games. Tonight the two teams meet at Benchmark and then both teams will wrap up things on Saturday in Sunrise. In theory this game should have fairly low stakes since no one wins a Stanley Cup in the preseason. Yet, it’s Lightning Panthers. These teams don’t know how to play a normal game. So, it should be pretty entert...
2026-27 Atlantic Division Preview: Boston Bruins
Since their Stanley Cup Final lost in 2018-19 the Boston Bruins have been stuck in a good-but-not-great stretch of play that has seen them make the playoffs in all but one season, but fail to advance past the second round in any of them. Is there any reason to believe this year will be different? 2025-26 Record 45-27-10 (100 points) 3rd in Atlantic 2025-26 Record Against Lightning 0-3-1 2025-26 Goals For 268 (10th) 2025-26 Goals Against 247 (14th) 2025-26 Power Play 23.4% (9th) 2025-26 Pe...
2026 Tampa Bay Lightning Top 20 Under 25: #5 Ethan Czata
The Lightning’s second-round pick from 2025 moved into the top five with another effective season in the OHL. Can Ethan Czata take the next step as he finishes off his junior hockey career? Name Ethan Czata Position Forward Age (as of October 1, 2026) 19 Height/Weight 6’2″, 179 lbs. Expected 2026-27 Team Guelph Storm Draft – Year, Round 2025, 2nd (56th) Previous Rankings 11 ( 2025 ) JustinG. Ranking 4 Final Rank 5 Stats: Our Thoughts: Ethan Czata is heading for a ...
Lightning place Jonas Johansson on waivers
The Tampa Bay Lightning continue to adjust their roster as the calendar moves closer to October 1st. On Wednesday they placed goaltender Jonas Johansson on waivers, indicating that the newly acquired Dennis Hildeby, who had 23 saves in his preseason debut Tuesday night, will be Andrei Vasilevskiy’s back-up for the upcoming season. When Hildeby was acquired in a trade that sent Nick Paul to Toronto the writing was on the wall for Johansson, and general manager Julien BriseBois acknowledged...
Lightning Morning News: Battle of Florida up next
The Tampa Bay Lightning preseason rolled along with a trip to Nashville last night. Things looked great for the first 45 minutes until Matthew Wood scored two goals for the Predators to tie the game late in the third and force overtime. Felix Nilsson scored in overtime to seal the comeback win for the Predators. It wasn’t all bad as newly signed Jeffrey Viel scored both goals for the Lightning. The Battle of Florida is next up in Tampa on Thursday night at 7 p.m. ET! [ Tampa Bay Lightning ] ...
Lightning’s second preseason game will feature a much younger line-up
The Tampa Bay Lightning head to Nashville to complete their preseason home-and-home with the Predators. On Monday, the Lightning put a veteran line-up on the ice to earn the 2-1 victory with Ilya Mikheyev and Conor Geekie providing the offense. While Mikheyev gets the night off, Geekie will be back on the ice as he continues to fight for a spot on the roster. The Tampa Bay Lightning players heading to Nashville for the game tonight: [image or embed] — Raw Charge ( @rawcharge.com ) S...
Lightning return prospects to their junior teams
The Tampa Bay Lightning made their first significant cuts of their shortened training camp as they returned seven players to their junior hockey club organizations. None of the players re-assigned were a surprise as they had minimal chances of making the team, even with the current injury situations. Three players will head back to the OHL (including two to the same team), two to the QMJHL, and one each to the WHL and USHL. The moves (and where they are heading): Ethan Czata – Guelph...
Lightning Morning News: WE’RE BACK!
For the first time since May, the Tampa Bay Lightning have some game action to recap. It’s only preseason, obviously, but the new season is finally upon us. The NHL will expand to 84 regular season games starting this season for a balanced schedule, with only four preseason games (a home-and-home with Nashville and Florida) scheduled until the regular season begins in New York City on October 1st! Lightning News: It was one of the busiest sports days imaginable in Tampa Bay yest...
Game Day! The Lightning take on the Predators to kick off their preseason campaign
The first competitive shifts of the 2026-27 season will soon take to the ice as the Tampa Bay Lightning host the Nashville Predators at Benchmark International Arena this evening at 5:00 PM EST. With only four preseason games prior to the season starting, the Bolts are kicking things off with a NHL-veteran heavy line-up tonight. a look at the #Bolts lines and D pairings from their first morning skate of the preseason: Mikheyev – Point – Kucherov Hagel – Cirelli – Guentzel Geekie – O’Rei...
Lightning Morning News: Last Friday before the games begin!
Today is the last Friday without Lightning hockey until at least April, hopefully all the way until the middle of June. Let’s check out some headlines around the NHL. Lightning News: The Lightning got some unfortunate news that Yanni Gourde and Dominic James will not be with the team to start the season. However, that opens the door for some young talent to make a name for themselves this preseason. [ Raw Charge ] Another day closer to the regular season and there doesn’t seem t...
BriseBois’ update on contract negotiations points to cloudy future
The Tampa Bay Lightning open up camp today and the good news is that everyone who is healthy should be on the ice. That can’t be said for every team (cough, Winnipeg , cough). Due to a couple of injuries, there are some questions that need to be answered in terms of the roster, but the biggest organizational question remains the same from July – what is going on with Nikita Kucherov? A small, somewhat consequential deadline passed earlier this week when the new memorandum of understanding...
Injury news could provide opportunities for young players
With the prospect showcase firmly in the rearview mirror it is time for the real fun to begin – training camp. The 2026-27 season is right around the corner and the Tampa Bay Lightning are ready to get back on the ice. Well, most of them are. At the pre-camp conference, general manager Julien BriseBois addressed the media and updated them in regards to a couple of injuries. Injury updates from #GoBolts GM Julien BriseBois: Forward Yanni Gourde had offseason hip surgery and will be out unt...
Lightning Morning News: We’re almost there
The Tampa Bay Lightning played two games the last two days! It was only a prospect tournament but we’re only a few days away from the first preseason game on Sunday. The regular season starts in two weeks in New York City! The Lightning were participating in the 2026 Prospect Showcase hosted by the Carolina Hurricanes this week. The Lightning lost on Monday to Nashville but didn’t go down without a fight. They won yesterday afternoon against Carolina, which always feels good. Check out 3 ...
2026 Tampa Bay Lightning Top 20 Under 25: #6 Dylan Duke
The Duke had a sensational season for Syracuse last year, can he turn that into a permanent spot in the NHL this season? Name Dylan Duke Position Forward Age (as of October 1, 2026) 23 Height/Weight 5’10”, 176 lbs. Expected 2026-27 Team Syracuse Crunch Draft – Year, Round 2021, 4th (126) Previous Rankings 2021 (23), 2022 (14), 2023 (7), 2024 (7), 2025 (6) JustinG. Ranking 6 Final Rank 6 Stats: Our Thoughts: Is there much more we can say about Dylan Duke that we ha...
Three things to watch for at the Lightning’s prospect showcase
The 2026-27 Tampa Bay Lightning season unofficially gets underway this afternoon as a small group of their prospects take on the Nashville Predators young guns at 2:00 PM up in Raleigh, North Carolina. While it is little more than a glorified scrimmage game, for many of the players competing it will be their first taste of action in a NHL uniform. Not every player on the ice is going to have the same goal over the next two days. Prospects on the cusp of the NHL can start their campaigns for ea...
Lightning Morning News: Let there be hockey!
The 2026-27 NHL season is on the cusp and with that we’re bringing back the daily links! The suits around the league are filing paperwork again and there’s actually some news in the NHL. Without further adieu, let’s catch up on some of the latest news and current events around the league. Lightning News: With the 2026 Prospect Showcase first day in the books, the 2026-27 season has officially begun. The Predators and Hurricanes met yesterday and the Lightning play this afternoon at 2...
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