If there was one thing apparent watching Johan Holmqvist and the Lightning defense against the Florida Panthers on Friday, it was the fact that they drove home the idea things would be different this season early on. How many odd-man breaks Holmer thwarted and how many times the Defense swept in from behind to rescue Johan is beyond count for me. Indeed, something was different tonight.

Holmer stops 30 of 31, Chris Gratton scores twice and the Lightning hang on to win 2-1.

The most disturbing thing about this game was the M-V-P line being pass-happy while the Panthers were clouding passing lanes rather well. Add to the fact that the Lightning tended to shoot low on Craig Anderson — resulting in Lightning shots eating goalie padding — and the teams 23 shot performance doesn’t particularly wow those who have seen the Bolts offensive surge the past two games.

This game was won on defense and between the pipes — hats off to Johan and company for doing what the Bolts failed to do last season and (mostly) shutting down the Panther offense. Their lone goal being a flukey, bouncy, roll-around tip in that got through Holmqvist’s pads. The team improves to 3-0 and heads on the road to Miami.

Johan Holmqvist starts in net tonight for the Lightning against Florida…

…

Let me say it again, maybe this will register for some of your die hards and some of you non-die-hards. Johan Holmqvist starts in net tonight versus the Florida Panthers. In six games versus the Kitties in 2006-07, he was 1-2 with a 4.88 GAA and a .841 save percentage. Do I need to go on? To put it shortly, Johan was a disaster versus the Panthers for one reason or another. Versus numerous opponents last year, he looked fine if not great in net. But when it came to the Panthers it wasn’t the greatest performance that he could put up… And that’s putting it lightly.

18 Goals allowed and 113 shots faced in six games. That’s only close to 19 shots a game for the mathematically challenged. That’s unacceptable.

But here we are, it’s a new season, a new start… Will Johan make the most of this tonight or will we see Marc Denis getting his first action of the season to spell Holmer? I’m hoping for the former and fearing the latter. I made a big deal about the Lightning playing a division rival on Saturday and this is just as big… Division rival trying to reverse it’s losing ways with a new backstop with a reputation all his own. If the Lightning fall into the same trap as last year against the Panthers, this could end badly.

That’s why I’m wariest about Holmer regressing into 2006-07 form for tonight.

Greg Wyshynski over at AOL’s FanHouse alerted me to this, uh, video…

I’ll let Greg do the talking and then let Courtney the Hockey Fan further do the, um,talking?