Tampa Bay Lightning captain Steven Stamkos discusses the road ahead and what the Tampa Bay Lightning are doing to prepare.

The Tampa Bay Lightning has made their way back home after a mostly-successful road trip through the Western Conference and after a few days off the team is preparing for a new challenge; captain Jonathan Toews and the Chicago Blackhawks.

After the Lightning’s practice session this morning, Steven Stamkos briefly discussed things like the Lightning’s road trip, what they took away from it, and most importantly…the road ahead.

At the very end of the short clip, Stamkos says something that resonates very deeply within some of us here in the Bolts Nation who feel as if the Lightning has underestimated a few of their opponents this season.

“There’s no easy hockey games here, no matter who you’re playing and whether it’s here or on the road,” the captain said. “You have to be prepared for that.”

It has boggled my mind throughout the course of the season how the Tampa Bay Lightning could absolutely lay a beat down on a team like the Montreal Canadiens, who the Bolts beat 7-1 back in October, or the New York Islanders, who the Lightning defeated 5-2 in November; yet they seem to get a run for their money against teams like the Edmonton Oilers, Buffalo Sabres, and the Carolina Hurricanes who are struggling to stay out of last place.

While no one will probably come out and say this outright, the answer is plain and simple…underestimation.

We’re all guilty of it at one point or another in our lives. You see a team that is struggling to string wins, and you’re sitting pretty at the top – or somewhere really close to the top – of your division and you think to yourself, “Nah…we got this.” Unfortunately, by the time you realize “You don’t have this,” it’s too late.

“There’s no easy hockey games here, no matter who you’re playing and whether it’s here or on the road,” the captain said. “You have to be prepared for that.”

It gives us a sense of hope to know that our captain knows what something like this could cost us. The Tampa Bay Lightning are heading into the final 20 games of the season, and while their spot in the playoffs is all but assured at this point, there is no reason to not shoot for the moon and bring home as many wins as you can.

This is the point in the season where a simple mistake can ruin your entire season and be the difference maker between heading into the post season or heading to the golf course. Steven Stamkos knows this, and this knowledge will allow him to lead the team into the home stretch and give them a real shot at the post season.

The team has earned that much with the hard work and dedication they have put in all season long, and it will be nice to see what the Lightning plan to do with the games in front of them, and the way that Steven Stamkos plans to lead his team into the playoffs for his first full season with the “C” on his chest.