2023–24 Tampa Bay Lightning season

The 2023–24 Tampa Bay Lightning season was the 32nd season for the National Hockey League (NHL) franchise that was established on December 16, 1991.

On April 5, 2024, the Lightning clinched a playoff spot for the seventh consecutive season after losses by the Detroit Red Wings, Philadelphia Flyers and Washington Capitals. They were eliminated in the first round by their intra-state rival and eventual Stanley Cup champions, the Florida Panthers in five games.

April
The Lightning's off-season began after losing to the Toronto Maple Leafs in the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs in six games.

May
On May 1, 2023, the Lightning signed forward prospect Maxim Groshev to a three-year entry-level contract. Groshev was originally selected by the Lightning in the third round of the 2020 NHL Entry Draft. Groshev appeared in 34 games this past season with SKA Saint Petersburg of the KHL, recording four goals and six points. Groshev also played in the VHL with SKA-Neva St. Petersburg.

On May 2, 2023, Brayden Point was announced as a finalist for the Lady Byng Trophy. Point recorded career in both goals (51) a points (95) this past season while averaging slightly under 20 minutes a night. During the season point only recorded 7 total penalty minutes.

On May 5, 2023, the Lightning re-signed Michael Eyssimont to a two-year contract extension that careers an annual cap hit of 800k. The team acquired him this past season in a trade with the San Jose Sharks. In the playoffs Eyssimont recorded two points in the series against the Toronto Maple Leafs.

May 10, 2023, the Lightning signed free agent goaltender Matt Tomkins to a two-year contract. Notably Thomkins played in 3 games for Team Canada in the 2022 Olympics. Thomkins had spent the past two seasons playing for Farjestad BK in the Swedish Hockey League.

June
On June 5, 2023, the Lightning signed free agent forward Waltteri Merela to a one-year contract. Merela had spent the past two seasons with Tappara in the Finnish Elite League. During that time Merela helped Tappara win back to back championships.

That same day the Lightning also signed free agent defenseman Emil Lilleberg to a two-year contract. Lilleberg spent the last season playing for IK Oskarshamn of the Swedish Hockey League. Lilleberg also represented Norway in the last three World Championships.

On June 14, 2023, the Lightning re-signed forward Cole Koepke to a one-year contract extension. Koepke appeared in 17 games with the team and recorded one goal over that period of time. Koepke also played 52 games with the Syracuse Crunch. He recorded 7 goals and 19 points during his assignment with the Crunch.

On June 21, 2023, the Lightning re-signed forward Gabriel Fortier to a one-year contract extension. Fortier appear in one game with the Lightning last season which brought his career total to 11 NHL games. Fortier also appeared in 67 games with the Crunch last season, recording 11 goals and 29 points.

On June 26, 2023, the Lightning announced a change to the coaching staff of their AHL affiliate the Syracuse Crunch. Benoit Groulx was stepping down as head coach of the Crunch and taking another position within the organization. The Lightning also relieved assistant coaches Gilles Bouchard and Eric Veilleux of their duties. Groulx finishes his stint with the Crunch with a franchise record 256 wins, two division championships, and one conference championship.

The Lightning announced Joel Bouchard as Groulx's replacement in the same press release. Bouchard has previously been a head coach AHL (242 games) between the San Diego Gulls and the Laval Rocket. Bouchard is also a veteran of 364 NHL games and 293 AHL games over his playing career. The Lightning also announced that Daniel Jacob would be joining Bouchard's staff as an assistant coach.

On June 26, 2023, Steven Stamkos was selected as the recipient of the 2023 Mark Messier Leadership Award. The award is given annually to a player "who exemplifies great leadership qualities to his team, on and off the ice, during the regular season and who plays a leading role in his community growing the game of hockey."

On June 28, 2023, the Lightning traded forward Ross Colton to the Colorado Avalanche in exchange for a 2nd-round pick in the 2023 NHL Entry Draft. Colton was originally acquired by the Lightning in the 4th round of the 2016 NHL Entry Draft. Colton appeared in 190 games with the Lightning, recording 47 goals and 36 assists. Colton's biggest moment with the team came when he scored the Stanley Cup-clinching goal in game 5 against the Montreal Canadiens.

July
On July 1, 2023, the Lightning were involved in the following player signings during the first day of NHL free agency.

The Lightning signed Conor Sheary to a three-year contract valued at $6 million. This past season Shear appeared in 82 games with the Washington Capitals, recording 15 goals and 37 points. Sheary has appeared in 531 NHL games between stints with the Capitals, Pittsburgh Penguins and Buffalo Sabres.

The Lightning signed Josh Archibald to a two-year contract with an annual cap hit for $800,000. Last season Archibald appeared in 62 games, recording six goals and six assists. Archibald is also a veteran of 305 career NHL games, recording 45 goals and 38 assists.

The Lightning signed Luke Glendening to a two-year contract worth $1.6 million. Glendening was a member of the Dallas Stars the prior two seasons. Glendening has appeared in 148 career games between the Stars and the Detroit Red Wings, recording 69 goals and 79 assists.

The Lightning signed Jonas Johansson to a two-year contract with a $775,000 annual cap hit. This past season Johansson appeared in three games with the Colorado Avalanche, recording 2 wins and a .932 save percentage.

The Lightning signed Logan Brown to a one-year contract valued at $775,000. Brown was a member of the St. Louis Blues the past two season. This past season Brown skated in 69 games, recording six goals and 17 points. Brown was previously a first-round pick of the Ottawa Senators. Brown enters the season one game shy of reaching 100 career NHL games.

The Lightning signed Mitchell Chaffee to a one-year contract that carries a cap hit of $775,000. Chaffee has appeared in two NHL games, all which came with the Minnesota Wild.

On July 2, 2023, the Lightning signed Calvin de Haan to a one-year contract, which carries a $775,000 cap hit. De Haan appeared in 53 games last season with the Carolina Hurricanes, recording 2 goals and 10 assists. De Haan has 131 career points in his NHL career between the New York Islanders, Hurricanes and Chicago Blackhawks.

On July 15, 2023, the Lightning signed Tanner Jeannot to a two-year contract extension which carries an annual cap hit of $2.66 million. Jeannot was acquired by the Lightning in a trade with the Nashville Predators the previous season.

August
On August 22, 2023, the Lightning announced the signing of Brandon Hagel to an eight-year contract extension with an AAV of $6.5 million. Hagel posted 30 goals, 34 assists and 64 points in his first full season with the team, all of which were career highs for Hagel.

On August 23, 2023, the Lightning announced the signing of Darren Raddysh to a two-year contract extension valued at $1.95 million. Raddysh recorded a goal and three assists in 17 appearances with the Lighting this past season. Raddysh also skated in 51 games with the Crunch last season.

September
September 9, 2023, the Lightning announced that it had placed Josh Archibald on waivers for the purposes of termination of his contract. While the exact reason is unknown, Archibald indicated that he did not intend on attending training camp or play this season. On the same day, the Lightning announced that it had signed Tyler Motte to a one-year contract valued at $800,000. Motte skated in 62 games last season, recording 8 goals and 11 assists for 19 points.

Training camp
On September 19, 2023, the Lightning announced its training camp roster.

Forwards

Tristan Allard, Alex Barre-Boulet, Logan Brown, Joe Carroll, Mitchell Chaffee, Anthony Cirelli, Gabriel Dumont, Jaydon Dureau, Lucas Edmonds, Shawn Element, Mikey Eyssimont, Jack Finley, Gabriel Fortier, Ethan Gauthier, Luke Glendening, Gage Goncalves, Maxim Groshev, Brandon Hagel, Ethan Hay, Tanner Jeannot, Cole Koepke, Nikita Kucherov, Bennett MacArthur, Waltteri Merela, Tyler Motte, Nick Paul, Brayden Point, Felix Robert, Conor Sheary, Steven Stamkos Gabriel Szturc, Ilya Usau, Daniel Walcott, Daniel Walker and Austin Watson.

Defensemen

Zach Bogosian, Declan Carlile, Erik Cernak, Maxwell Crozier, Sean Day, Calvin de Haan, Haydn Fleury, Dyllan Gill, Victor Hedman, Louka Henault, Emil Lilleberg, Philippe Myers, Nick Perbix, Darren Raddysh, Roman Schmidt, Mikhail Sergachev, Devante Stephens, Jack Thompson and Scott Walford.

Goaltenders

Hugo Alnefelt, Evan Fitzpatrick, Ben Gaudreau, Jonas Johansson, Matt Tomkins and Andrei Vasilevskiy

On September 27, 2023, the Lightning announced that it had reduced it training camp roster by four players. Ethan Gauthier, Ethan Hay and Dyllan Gill were release from camp to join their junior teams. Scott Walford was released from his tryout agreement. The cuts reduce the camp roster to 56 players.

On September 28, 2023, the Lightning announced that Andrei Vasilevskiy underwent a microdiscectomy to repair a lumbar disc herniation. Vasilevskiy is expected to miss the first two months of the season due to the surgery. The team stated that it will continue with Jonas Johansson and Matt Tomkins while Vasilevskiy recovers.

On September 30, 2023, the Lightning announced that it had reduced its training camp roster by 30 players. The following players where either assigned to Syracuse or their respective junior clubs: Tristan Allard, Hugo Alnefelt, Logan Brown, Declan Carlile, Joe Carroll, Mitchell Chaffee, Maxwell Crozier, Sean Day, Gabriel Dumont, Lucas Edmonds, Shawn Element, Jack Finley, Evan Fitzpatrick, Ben Gaudreau, Gage Goncalves, Maxim Groshev, Louka Henault, Cole Koepke, Emil Lilleberg, Bennett MacArthur, Philippe Myers, Felix Robert, Roman Schmidt, Devante Stephens, Gabriel Szturc, Jack Thompson, Ilya Usau, Daniel Walcott and Daniel Walker.

On October 8, 2023, the Lightning placed Zach Bogosian and Gabriel Fortier on waivers. Both players cleared the following day and are eligible to be assigned to the Syracuse Crunch.

On October 9, 2023, the Lightning announced that it had signed Austin Watson to a one-year deal. Watson was previously on a PTO agreement prior to signing. The contract will carry a cap hit of $776,655.

That same day the Lightning finalized its roster for opening night. The below forwards, defensemen and goalies were named to the finalized roster.

Forwards

Alex Barre-Boulet, Anthony Cirelli, Mikey Eyssimont, Luke Glendening, Brandon Hagel, Tanner Jeannot, Nikita Kucherov, Waltteri Merela, Tyler Motte, Nick Paul, Brayden Point, Conor Sheary, Steven Stamkos and Austin Watson

Defensemen

Erik Cernak, Calvin de Haan, Haydn Fleury, Victor Hedman, Nick Perbix, Darren Raddysh and Mikhail Sergachev

Goaltenders

Jonas Johansson, Matt Tomkins and Andrei Vasilevskiy (IR)

Preseason

 * Lightning score listed first;
 * Lightning score listed first;

Regular season













 * Lightning score listed first;
 * Lightning score listed first;

Playoffs

 * Lightning score listed first;
 * Lightning score listed first;

Player stats
Final

Goaltenders
†Denotes player spent time with another team before joining Tampa Bay. Stats reflect time with Tampa Bay only.

‡Traded from Tampa Bay mid-season.

Bold/italics denotes franchise record

Transactions
The Lightning have been involved in the following transactions during the 2023–24 season.

Signings
Key:

Contract is entry-level.

Draft picks
Below are the Tampa Bay Lightning's selections at the 2023 NHL Entry Draft, which was held on June 28 and 29, 2023, at the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tennessee.

Notes:
 * 1) The Montreal Canadiens' second-round pick went to the Tampa Bay Lightning as the result of a trade on June 28, 2023, that sent Ross Colton to Colorado in exchange for this pick.
 * 2) The Tampa Bay Lightning's fourth-round pick was re-acquired as the result of a trade on June 29, 2023, that sent Chicago's fourth-round pick in 2024 to Tampa Bay in exchange for this pick.
 * 3) The Anaheim Ducks' seventh-round pick will go to the Tampa Bay Lightning as the result of a trade on March 24, 2021, that sent Alexander Volkov to Anaheim in exchange for Antoine Morand and this pick (being conditional at the time of the trade). The condition—Tampa Bay will receive a seventh-round pick in 2023 if the pick is available at the time of the selection—was converted when the pick became available after earlier conditional trades with Columbus and Edmonton were resolved on April 8, 2021.