NHL Rumor: Insider claims Tampa Bay Lightning actively seeking 'to strike' trade market ahead of deadline

The Tampa Bay Lightning are on track to make the postseason for the eighth consecutive season. With a 29-20-4 record, the Bolts have 62 points and currently occupy the third seed in the Atlantic division.

The Eastern Conference playoff race changes by the day, so nothing is etched in stone just yet. But with superstar players like Nikita Kucherov, Brayden Point, Victor Hedman, and Andrei Vasilevskiy still playing at elite levels, Tampa Bay needs to push for another run at the Stanley Cup.

Sportsnet NHL insider Elliotte Friedman provided the latest on Tampa's plans leading up to the trade deadline during Friday's edition of "32 Thoughts: The Podcast":

"I mentioned that they were pretty serious about Saad, didn't get him. I heard they're really looking out there. Yeah, they're back in, in third by points percentage over Ottawa. That's going to be a great race between Toronto, Florida, Tampa, Ottawa, Detroit, and I'm talking about mainly the Atlantic side.

"No, I heard Tampa is really, really looking for a forward. And I, you know, I had some of the Tampa and Buffalo fans ask me about my note about Tuch. I don't know what Buffalo is going to do here, I really don't. But I do think Tampa's asked about him, so we'll see. But they're just they're not going to sit pat.

"I've got too many people telling me this week that the Lightning are active and they they want to strike. They want to strike," Friedman added. (34:00)

Friedman mentioned earlier in the week that the Tampa Bay Lightning would have interest in Sabres forward Alex Tuch should he become available. Tuch has 40 points (18 goals, 22 assists) in 53 games in 2024-25, and is in the sixth season of a seven-year, $33.25 million contract.

The Tampa Bay Lightning remain a major threat in the Eastern Conference

Despite coming off of back-to-back first-round playoff exits, the Tampa Bay Lightning cannot be slept on. With 62 points in 53 games, the Lightning are six points back of the Toronto Maple Leafs (68 points), and seven behind the Florida Panthers (69 points), with one and three games in hand respectively.

While the Bolts aren't among the very top of the league standings, they are tied for third in the NHL with the Dallas Stars in goal differential at +39. Only the Winnipeg Jets (+67), and Washington Capitals (+57) are better in that category. It can be a very telling statistic demonstrating how good Tampa Bay really is.

The Tampa Bay Lightning are back in action on Saturday afternoon in Detroit to battle the Red Wings. The puck drops at 1 p.m. EST at Little Caesars Arena.