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Originally Posted by keenan87
As much as Tampa has turned it around.. they have sucked for many years.
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No, they have not. The Lightning were still a playoff team for two more seasons after they won the Cup, and after missing a year for the Lockout. They made a surprise appearance in the playoffs in 2011, and have been a fixture in the post-season since 2014 (the 2016–17 season derailed TB with a huge number of significant injuries). The Lightning sucked for three years. That's it.
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Its really hard to screw up 1-3 overall picks (which they did in Drouin but then lucked out). I know what you are trying to say and they have drafted well, but it just irks me because lots of people think they have done it without completely tanking.
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The big difference between TB and almost every other team that has rebuilt is that they did it fast and they did it smart. Sure, they "tanked" in the same sense that every team goes through cycles of winning and losing, but they deserve massive credit for building an incredible team around their high-end draft picks. As far as I am concerned they are the model franchise—every team should aspire to build the way that Yzerman built the Lightning. Now, here's hoping it only ever gets them close to a Cup without winning.