American Thanksgiving has long been a barometer for NHL teams to have an idea about what type of team they have and where they might finish at the end of the year.
Since the 2005-06 season, 76.3 percent of teams in a playoff spot at Thanksgiving made the playoffs that season, according to NHL Stats.
Having played their final game before Thanksgiving, the Lightning find themselves firmly in the playoff picture as they sit in third place in the Atlantic Division. Tampa Bay is only two points back of Toronto for second as well with one fewer game played.
At this point, there is very little for the Lightning to accomplish in the regular season. The regular season has been all about qualifying for playoffs, getting healthy and playing the right way so they are in good spot to contend for the Stanley Cup in the spring.
In each of the last two seasons, the Lightning have finished third in their division and still gone on to the Stanley Cup Final. Their playoff success has proven that it does not really matter where they finish. Whether they have home ice or not or who they are up against means very little to them at this point and it is solely about getting in.
As long as the Lightning can keep up their current point pace and stay within the top three of the Atlantic Division, they will be setting up just fine for another run in the playoffs.
The most important thing over the remainder of the season will be trying to stay as healthy as possible. Anthony Cirelli’s return is not too far on the horizon and he will be a very welcome addition.
This team is fully aware that being regular season warriors does not necessarily translate to playoff success. They know the recipe and that peaking at the right time is what is important. As long as they can keep pace and stay where they are in the playoff picture, the Lightning are in fine position.