During Saturday's game against the Buffalo Sabres, head coach Jon Cooper made a bold decision. He benched Steven Stamkos, Nikita Kucherov, and Brayden Point during the third period. As a result, Kucherov, Point, and Stamkos did not play in the third period. Some media outlets are reporting that there may be "internal divisions" within the team.
The following day, the Lightning faced off against the Carolina Hurricanes. After two periods, they only managed to get four shots on goal, none of which were in the second period. They ended up losing the game 6-0.
"In my opinion, this is the beginning of the end. I have great respect for this coach, he's done great things, but I don't think you sit three guys like that, especially when you've won Stanley Cups with them.
I'm not saying it's intentional, but if the Lightning have zero shots in a period, it's not because they didn't want to."
Meanwhile, Louis Robitaille, head coach of the Gatineau Olympiques, had this to say: