TORONTO — Jon Cooper recently talked about the “burden’’ his Tampa Bay Lightning were carrying into this season after last spring’s first-round meltdown.



I love that the Tampa Bay Lightning aren’t shying away. Don’t ignore the elephant in the room, stare it right between the eyes.



Just my own read on things, but I don’t think the Bolts are right just yet. I think there’s some emotional scarring that’s still healing from that four-game sweep to Columbus after putting up 62 wins, it’s why captain Steven Stamkos spoke up so early in the season after a poor team effort in the third game of the season.



It reminds me of the year the San Jose Sharks coughed up a 3-0 series lead to the Los Angeles Kings in the spring of 2014. There was baggage from that painful experience that carried into the following year, whether anyone wanted to admit it or not. But that adversity eventually made the Sharks better...