Upon entering the 2007-08 National Hockey League (NHL) season, the Tampa Bay Lightning were looking upon this season with renewed hope and vigor, and an expectation and belief that they were good enough to see playoff action.

With the rare distinction in the NHL of having an American as a head coach, John Tortorella, the Lightning were very active in the off-season.

They ended up having a whopping nine selections at the 2007 NHL Entry Draft, their highest being number 47 overall, which they used on Canadian right-winger Dana Tyrell.

The Lightning were also busy at the trading and free agency tables, acquiring Chris Gratton (from Florida for a future draft pick), Bryce Lampman (from New York Rangers, for Mitch Fritz), Michel Ouellet from Pittsburgh and Brad Lukowich from New Jersey, among others.

Going into the season, the Lightning had what appeared on paper as a reasonably strong line-up, relying heavily on the "Big 3" of forward Vincent Lecavalier, and wingers Martin St. Louis and Brad Richards, whilst Vaclav Prospal was also expected to figure prominently.

Things started perfectly for the Lightning, with three wins from their first three games, all home matches.

However, things quickly turned pear-shaped, and the Lightning finished the first month of the season with an average 5-5-1 record, and 11 points.

Losing the first three games of November meant that the Lightning had by that stage lost five games in a row, however they managed to bounce back mid-month, starting with a win over state-mate Florida.

The 3-1 victory over the Panthers began a run of five victories in a row, and by the end of the run they were back on even keel, with a 10-8-1 record and 21 points.

Once again, Tampa Bay's good work was quickly undone, as too much was being left to too few, and the Lightning lost their final five games of November, to finish the month with a 10-13-2 record and 22 points.

With home crowds still turning up in droves, the Lightning began December with three home victories on the trot, but once they left the comfort of the St. Pete Times Forum, they again struggled for consistency.

The team ended up dropping eight of their final 10 games for 2007 with a poor record of 15-21-3 and 33 points, which had the franchise vying for the worst record in the entire NHL.

Playoff aspirations were now the furthest thing from the Lightning's mind, as they simply attempted to regain some consistency in their form, especially away from their

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