Former Hab Pouliot shining in Tampa Bay
SUNRISE, FLA. — If you want to locate Benoit Pouliot on the ice, best to look to the slot in front of the net.
The Tampa Bay Lightning winger lives there, enduring the congestion, the heavy contact, getting hit by pucks.
“I don’t mind it at all,” Pouliot said. “I want to do it and disrupt the goalie a little bit. Most goals are scored from there. It’s a challenge, but it’s nice.”
And it paid off big time for Tampa Bay last Saturday. Pouliot scored twice — including the winner, 1:19 into overtime — in a badly needed 6-5 victory over the Florida Panthers at the BB&T Center that broke the Lightning’s sixgame losing streak.
It was a front-and-centre moment for a player who has flown under the radar.
That said, the 26-year-old has shown flashes of why the Minnesota Wild made him the No. 4 overall pick of the 2005 draft and why, though still considered a project, he has potential to be one of last summer’s most significant Lightning acquisitions.
Pouliot continued his fine play with three assists in a 4-2 win over visiting Toronto on Tuesday night. His five goals are tied for third on the team. He has 13 points in 15 games, is plus-7 and has done all that in a relatively meagre 12:53 of average ice time.
Not a bad return for a player acquired from the Boston Bruins for a fifth-round draft pick and minor-leaguer Michel Ouellet.
“Every day I see him getting better and giving us something we were lacking last year,” coach Guy Boucher said. “But he’s got a lot more to offer. I know it.”