April The off-season for the Tampa Bay Lightning began on April 22, 2014, when they were eliminated in a four-game sweep by the
Montreal Canadiens. On May 6, 2014, the first off-season transaction involved the Lightning signing their highly touted goaltender
Andrei Vasilevskiy to a three-year, entry-level contract. Coming into the 2014–15 season, Vasilevskiy is rated as team's top goaltending prospect. On May 21, 2014, the Lightning signed
2012 draft pick defensemen
Dylan Blujus to a three-year, entry-level contract. Blujus had four goals and 30 points in 55 games with the
North Bay Battalion of the
Ontario Hockey League (OHL). He also had four goals and 10 points in 22 playoff games, while helping the Battalion reach the OHL finals.
May On May 23, 2014, the Lightning announced the re-signing of
Calder Memorial Trophy finalist
Tyler Johnson to a three-year contract extension. Johnson had 24 goals, 26 assists and a plus-23 rating in 82 games. Johnson led all rookies in total playing time, and was used heavily on the penalty kill. Additionally, Johnson put up five shorthanded goals, which tied for the NHL lead. Johnson was also named to the NHL All-Rookie Team for the
2013–14 season.
June On June 9, 2014, the Lightning announced the re-signing of co-Calder Trophy finalist
Ondrej Palat to a three-year, $10 million contract extension. Palat had 23 goals and a team-high 59 points during the 2013–14 season. Among all NHL rookies, he ranked second in points and third in goals. Like Johnson, Palat was also named to the NHL All-Rookie Team for the 2013–14 season. On the same day, the Lighting elected to use their final compliance buyout on forward
Ryan Malone. Malone had dealt with injury problems during his stint with the Lightning, and saw his numbers dip to five goals and ten assists in 57 games. Additionally, Malone was involved in an arrest for DUI and
cocaine possession. The team continued its busy day by re-signing forward
J. T. Brown to a two-year, one-way contract. Brown appeared in 63 games with the Lightning last season, scoring four goals and 19 points while averaging 13:02 in ice time per game. Brown also appeared in all four Stanley Cup playoff games in 2014, notching two assists. On June 27, 2014, the Lightning announced the re-signing of
Mark Barberio to one-year, one-way contract. Barberio skated in 49 games, recording five goals and 10 points during the 2013–14 season. He was tied for fourth in the NHL among rookie defensemen with a plus-10 rating. Barberio has appeared in 51 total games for the Lightning, and has recorded a plus or even rating in 40 of his career games. On the same day, the Lighting acquired defensemen
Jason Garrison from the
Vancouver Canucks in exchange for their second round draft pick (50th overall). In addition to Garrison, the Lightning received the rights to left winger Jeff Costello and the Canuck's seventh round pick in 2015. In 2013–14, Garrison had 33 points in 81 games, but saw his possession numbers fall under former Vancouver Canucks head coach
John Tortorella. On June 29, 2014, the Lightning pulled off a series of trades to free up salary cap and acquire several draft picks. First, the Lightning traded
Teddy Purcell to the
Edmonton Oilers for center
Sam Gagner. Purcell played five seasons for Tampa Bay after being acquired from the
Los Angeles Kings in March 2010. Purcell's breakout year was in
2011–12, when he had 24 goals and 41 assists, along with a great playoff run the previous season that saw the Lightning reach the Eastern Conference Final. However, in recent years, Purcell has been somewhat disappointing for the team in terms of production; over the past two seasons, he has had 23 goals combined. The Lightning then quickly flipped Sam Gagner and forward
B. J. Crombeen to the
Arizona Coyotes for a sixth round draft pick in 2015. The Lightning also had to retain one-third of Gagner's remaining salary ($1.6 million). Crombeen, a fourth-line grinder and fighter, had four goals and 14 assists in 99 games over two seasons in Tampa Bay. At midnight, on June 1, 2014, the Lightning traded forward
Nate Thompson to the
Anaheim Ducks in exchange for a fourth and sixth round pick in the 2015 Draft. As a depth player, Thompson had become a key contributor the past five seasons, including being one of team's top penalty killers. On the same day, the Lightning re-signed
Syracuse Crunch captain
Mike Angelidis to a one-year, two-way contract. Angelidis skated in 75 games with the Crunch, recording 12 goals and 33 points to go along with 161 penalty minutes. He ranked second on the Crunch in penalty minutes and fifth in points. Angelidis has played in 515 career
American Hockey League (AHL) games with the
Norfolk Admirals,
Albany River Rats and Crunch, collecting 99 goals and 207 points to go with 1,079 penalty minutes. In 2012, he was a member of the Norfolk Admirals team that won the
Calder Cup championship, skating in 18 games and recording a goal and six points.
July After freeing up cap space (approximately $13 million), the Lightning looked to the start of free agency. On July 1, the Lightning inked defensemen
Anton Stralman to a $22.5 million, five-year contract. Stralman had one goal and 13 assists last season with the New York Rangers, and had five assists in 25 playoff games. A few hours later, the Lightning signed forward
Brian Boyle to a three-year contract. Both Stralman and Boyle helped the Rangers capture the Eastern Conference Championship, and reach the
Stanley Cup Final last season. Later in day, the Lightning signed goaltender
Evgeni Nabokov to a one-year contract. Nabokov will serve as backup to starting goalie
Ben Bishop, after team elected not to qualify an offer to goalie
Anders Lindback, who signed with the
Dallas Stars. In 2013–14 with the
New York Islanders, Nabokov posted a .905
save percentage as their starting goaltender. On July 4, the Lightning announced the re-signing of defensemen
Andrej Sustr to a one-year, one-way contract. Sustr appeared in 43 games with the Lightning last season, posting one goal and eight points to go along with 16 penalty minutes. Sustr made his Stanley Cup playoffs debut against the
Montreal Canadiens in 2014, skating in three games. In addition, he played in 12 games with the Syracuse Crunch, recording a goal and three assists. In total, Sustr has appeared in 45 NHL games, all with the Lightning over the past two seasons, recording one goal and eight points. On July 8, the Lightning signed free agent defensemen
Matt Corrente to a one-year, two-way contract. He has appeared in 34 career NHL games, all with the
New Jersey Devils, over parts of two seasons, posting six assists and 68 penalty minutes. He also appeared in two playoff games during the
2010 Stanley Cup playoffs. This signing provides some depth and experience for the Crunch in the coming season, which will have several first-year players on defense. On the same day, the Lightning re-signed forward
Cody Kunyk to a one-year, two-way contract. Kunyk signed by the Lightning last season as an undrafted free agent. He made his NHL debut, logging 10:12 of ice time, on April 13 against the
Washington Capitals. Kunyk skated in over four seasons for the
University of Alaska Fairbanks, where he had 60 goals and 133 points. On July 10, the Lightning signed free agent forward
Jerome Samson to a one-year, two-way contract. Samson played in 68 games for the
St. John's IceCaps last season. He had 27 goals with 56 points. Samson has played in 424 AHL games with 160 goals and 336 points. Samson has also played in 46 career NHL games, all with the
Carolina Hurricanes, over parts of three seasons. Samson will likely serve as veteran forward depth for Tampa's AHL affiliate, the Syracuse Crunch. On the same day, the Lightning re-signed forward
Brett Connolly to a one-year, two-way contract. Connolly has played in 11 games for the Lightning last season, and had one goal. He has played in 84 career NHL games, all with the Lightning over three seasons. During that time, he has earned six goals and 17 points. Connolly has played in 137 AHL games, earning 52 goals and 120 points. He appeared in 66 games with the Crunch last season, totaling 21 goals and 57 points. On July 11, 2014, the Lightning signed
Brenden Morrow to a one-year contract. Morrow recorded 13 goals and 25 points in 71 games with the
St. Louis Blues last season. Over his career, he has skated in 921 career NHL games with the Dallas Stars,
Pittsburgh Penguins and the Blues. He has 262 goals and 567 points with a plus-108 rating. The Lightning also announced the signing of
Philippe Paradis to a one-year, two-way contract. Paradis played in 56 games for the Crunch last season. He had six goals and 15 points. He has played 166 career AHL games with 13 goals and 43 points. Later in the day, the Lightning announced the re-signing of forward
Richard Panik to a one-year, two-way contract. Panik played in 50 games with the Lightning last season and had three goals with 13 points. Additionally, he skated in 13 games with Syracuse and had three goals and 11 points.
August On August 2, the Lightning re-signed starting goaltender
Ben Bishop to a two-year contract extension. Bishop had a breakout season with the Lightning last year, posting a 37–14–7 record in 63 games. He had a .924 save percentage and a 2.23
goals against average (GAA). He set the Tampa Bay single season records for victories, save percentage and GAA, and was nominated for the
Vezina Trophy as the NHL's top goaltender. Bishop has played in 108 career NHL games with the Lightning,
Ottawa Senators and St. Louis Blues. He has a career record of 55–31–11 with eight shutouts, and a .920 save percentage and a 2.40 GAA. == Training camp ==