Jeff Halpern News

Mike Smith never has lacked for confidence, but even the Lightning goaltender admitted his solid three games on last week's road trip were needed.

Steven Stamkos scored his 15th goal at 2:56 of overtime to give the Tampa Bay Lightning their second straight win, 4-3 over the Atlanta Thrashers on Sunday.

ANAHEIM, Calif. - Jumping from the Gulf Coast to the West Coast this season really hasn't been that big of a deal, according to former Lightning LW Evgeny Artyukhin .

Scott Niedermayer scored on the power play 52 seconds into overtime Thursday, giving the Anaheim Ducks a 4-3 victory over Tampa Bay.

The last thing Lightning D Kurtis Foster heard from teammate Paul Ranger was positive.

The last thing Lightning D Kurtis Foster heard from teammate Paul Ranger was positive.

When it comes to goal production this season, the Lightning are so top-heavy at this point that the team would have a tough time bailing out the water in the hull of a ship.

The Tampa Bay Lightning will try to stretch their points streak to six games tonight, when they visit the Phoenix Coyotes and Jobing.com Arena.

The league will study whether it should ban hits to the head. But Lightning coach Rick Tocchet said a better idea is eliminating the instigator rule, which penalizes players who intentionally start fights.

"Everybody recognizes that the safety of the players - and I think that we've seen more of that so far this year - is a high priority topic for the general managers," Lawton said.

After 16 games last season, Lightning players "felt maybe a little lost," Vinny Lecavalier said.

There's a rumour out there that the Oilers are scouting the Tampa Bay Lightning, that came to me by way of reading a post over at The Copper & Blue .

D Victor Hedman is out with a concussion, D Paul Ranger is away dealing with a personal matter, and still Matt Smaby can't get in a game.

Steven Stamkos, left, colides with Alex Kovalev during heated game action Thursday.

Jeff Carter and Mike Richards led Philadelphia to a 6-2 win over the Tampa Bay Lightning Monday, each posting two goals and an assist.

The Toronto Maple Leafs could see their biggest offseason addition on the ice for the first time this season tonight when they welcome the Tampa Bay Lightning for a battle at Air Canada Centre.

Lightning coach Rick Tocchet wasn't aware his players called a closed-door meeting after Monday's nose-holding 6-2 loss to the Flyers.

An Idaho junior hockey team was banished temporarily from a city ice rink after players engaged in a game of "strip hockey" -- shedding a piece of equipment every time a practice shot missed its mark.

ALUMNI CUP: George Parros acknowledges the cheers in August 2007 as he displayed the Stanley Cup at Princeton University's Baker Rink.

The Lightning's shootout woes have been well documented, but a struggling power play has also contributed to their mediocre start.