2008–09 Tampa Bay Lightning season
| 2008–09 Tampa Bay Lightning | |
|---|---|
| Division | 5th Southeast |
| Conference | 13th Eastern |
| 2008–09 record | 24–40–18 |
| Home record | 12–18–11 |
| Road record | 12–22–7 |
| Goals for | 210 |
| Goals against | 279 |
| Team information | |
| General Manager | Brian Lawton |
| Coach |
Barry Melrose (Oct/Nov) (Nov-Apr) interim |
| Captain | Vincent Lecavalier |
| Alternate captains |
Andrej Meszaros (Oct/Nov) Jeff Halpern (Nov-Apr) Martin St. Louis |
| Arena | St. Pete Times Forum |
| Average attendance | 16,054 (82.3% total) |
| Team leaders | |
| Goals | Martin St. Louis (30) |
| Assists | Martin St. Louis (50) |
| Points | Martin St. Louis (80) |
| Penalties in minutes | Evgeny Artyukhin (151) |
| Plus/minus | Richard Petiot (+5) |
| Wins | Mike Smith (14) |
| Goals against average | Mike Smith (2.62) |
The 2008–09 Tampa Bay Lightning season was the 17th season for the franchise in Tampa Bay. After a season of turnover in ownership, management and players, the team had a turbulent regular season. The Lightning failed to qualify for the Stanley Cup playoffs.
On June 3, it was announced that Head Coach John Tortorella would not return to the team despite having one year remaining on his contract.
The NHL Board of Governors on June 18 approved the sale of the Tampa Bay Lightning. The sale of the Lightning was made to movie and television producer Oren Koules. The deal depended the closing of the financial deal of US$200 million to buy the team and lease the St. Pete Times Forum. Koules, 47, played in Medicine Hat and Calgary in the Western Hockey League (WHL) in the early 1980s. In more recent years, he achieved success with the Saw movie franchise and the television sitcom Two and a Half Men. Among his business partners in the Lightning deal is former NHL player Len Barrie.
On June 24, the Lightning announced that Barry Melrose was hired as the team's new head coach. Melrose had not coached in the NHL since 1995 with the Los Angeles Kings. Since that time, he had served as an analyst for the ESPN networks.
Goaltender Marc Denis' contract was bought-out by the Lightning on June 25, almost two years to the date after his acquisition from the Columbus Blue Jackets. Denis had one year remaining on his contract.
The Lightning acquired the rights to left wingers Ryan Malone and Gary Roberts from the Pittsburgh Penguins in exchange for a conditional draft pick in 2009. Malone then agreed to a seven-year contract with the Lightning two days before he was scheduled to become an unrestricted free agent.
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