Jon Cooper's Tampa Bay Lightning are no strangers to meaningful hockey games.

Under Cooper's guidance the Lightning have been to a Stanley Cup final and conference final in back-to-back seasons. They were up on the Pittsburgh Penguins 3 games to 2 in that conference final, only to lose in seven games to the eventual Stanley Cup winners.

The Lightning are experienced and seem to play through adversity as well as any team in the league. Steven Stamkos hasn't played a game since Nov. 15, but the Lightning find the next guy to step up and produce.

Jonathan Drouin now has 21 goals and 32 assists over 71 games. The 21-year-old forward is proving he was definitely worth the wait. Brayden Point, another 21-year-old, is now centering Cooper's top line of Nikita Kucherov and Ondrej Palat. Point has 16 goals and 20 assists, and he scored another big goal Thursday night in Toronto.

Lightning corps is young, but experienced

Still, it's the guys Cooper has coached for a few years now who are keeping the Lightning in this playoff hunt. Kucherov, 23, is now a superstar with 39 goals and 82 points. Palat, 26, is skilled, reliable two-way forward -- the kind you want in the playoffs. Tyler Johnson, 26, has battled back from injuries just in time for this playoff push. Alex Killorn, 27, scored 18 goals so far this season, the most of his career. And Victor Hedman, 26, is the rock this team is built upon back on the blue line. He will remain a perennial Norris Trophy candidate.

Those are all relatively young hockey players with a lot of playoff experience for their age. They showed that experience with stifling defense and strong forechecking Thursday night as they jumped on the Maple Leafs early in the 1st period in Toronto. Over the course of the game the Lightning out-hit the Leafs and blocked 19 shots.

That's how playoff games are won -- in the trenches -- and that's what a late-season playoff push means. Mike Babcock knows this better than anyone. He will need to relay this message to his team before it's too late. Most of his players haven't seen a playoff game in the NHL let alone a 7-game series against the Penguins. This is the time of year when experience matters most.

The Leafs can clinch the final spot in the East with a win Saturday night in Toronto. The Lightning are one of two teams which are keeping the young Leafs honest down the stretch.

Read more: Maple Leafs flirt with missing playoffs after loss to desperate Lightning

Here's a look at the Eastern Conference playoff picture:

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