Editing Tampa Bay Lightning (section)

====2011 run to the conference finals (2010–2011)====
In May 2010, Vinik hired [[Steve Yzerman]] away from the [[Detroit Red Wings]] front office to be the new general manager on a five-year contract. Yzerman then hired [[Guy Boucher]] from the Montreal Canadiens organization to succeed Rick Tocchet as the head coach two weeks later.

Yzerman's first off-season with Tampa Bay began with a splash. With the sixth pick of the [[2010 NHL entry draft]], the Lightning selected forward [[Brett Connolly]] despite a history of injuries while playing for the [[Western Hockey League]] (WHL)'s [[Prince George Cougars]]. On July 1, 2010, veteran blueliner [[Andrej Meszároš|Andrej Meszaros]] was traded to the Philadelphia Flyers in exchange for their second-round pick in [[2011 NHL entry draft|2011]]. Later that day, the Lightning signed star winger Martin St. Louis to a four-year, $22.5&nbsp;million contract extension to come into effect on July 1, 2011. On July 19, in another move with the Flyers organization, the Lightning traded defenseman [[Matt Walker (ice hockey)|Matt Walker]] and Tampa Bay's fourth-round pick in 2011 for high-scoring winger [[Simon Gagné|Simon Gagne]]. Other off-season acquisitions included the signing of forwards [[Sean Bergenheim]], [[Dominic Moore]] and [[Marc-Antoine Pouliot]], along with defensemen [[Brett Clark (ice hockey)|Brett Clark]], [[Randy Jones (ice hockey)|Randy Jones]] and [[Pavel Kubina]] and goaltender [[Dan Ellis (ice hockey)|Dan Ellis]], as well as the re-signing of restricted free agent forward [[Steve Downie]] to a two-year, $3.7&nbsp;million deal.

With starting goaltender Mike Smith injured, the Lightning called up [[Cédrick Desjardins|Cedrick Desjardins]], who played with a .950 [[save percentage]] and a 1.00 [[goals against average]] (GAA) in two games. The team then acquired veteran [[Dwayne Roloson]] from the New York Islanders for further coverage in net.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.tampabay.com/sports/hockey/lightning/tampa-bay-lightning-gets-goalie-dwayne-roloson-from-new-york-islanders-for/1143142|title=Tampa Bay Lightning gets goalie Dwayne Roloson from New York Islanders for minor-league defenseman|last=Smith|first=Joe|date=January 2, 2011|work=[[St. Petersburg Times]]|access-date=May 31, 2011|archive-date=January 5, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110105110730/http://www.tampabay.com/sports/hockey/lightning/tampa-bay-lightning-gets-goalie-dwayne-roloson-from-new-york-islanders-for/1143142|url-status=dead}}</ref>

The Lightning compiled a 46–25–11 record with 103 points in the [[2010–11 NHL season|2010–11 season]], matching a franchise record for wins in a season. After holding the first place in the Southeast Division for several months, they fell to second after a poor performance in March. However, their record was solid enough for second in the Southeast Division and fifth in the Eastern Conference, and they returned to the playoffs for the first time since the 2007. Scoring 31 goals and assisting on 68 for 99 points, [[Martin St. Louis]] finished second in the NHL in points only behind the 104 points by [[Daniel Sedin]] of the [[Vancouver Canucks]]. [[Steven Stamkos]] recorded 45 goals as the runner-up to the [[Maurice "Rocket" Richard Trophy]] only behind the 50 goals scored by [[Corey Perry]] of the [[Anaheim Ducks]] and was a finalist for the [[Ted Lindsay Award]] as the most outstanding player in the regular season as judged by the members of the NHL Players' Association, which ultimately went to Vancouver's Daniel Sedin.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.espn.com/nhl/news/story?page=11awardsfinalsits |title=NHL awards: 2011 finalists |author=ESPN |website=[[ESPN]] |publisher=ESPN |date=April 22, 2011 |access-date=January 6, 2024}}{{dead link|date=July 2024|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref>

[[File:Vincent Lecavalier OT goal 2011-05-01.JPG|thumb|Lecavalier scores the game-winning goal in game 2 of the [[2011 Stanley Cup playoffs|2011]] conference semifinals. The team went on to sweep the [[Washington Capitals]] in the series.]]
In the [[2011 Stanley Cup playoffs|2011 playoffs]], Tampa Bay played the [[Pittsburgh Penguins]] in the conference quarterfinals who finished the season as the fourth seed in the Eastern Confernence. After losing game 4 at home in the second overtime period, they fell behind in the series one game to three. However, the Lightning went on to win the next three games, including a 1–0 game 7 win on the road, taking their first playoff series since winning the Stanley Cup against the [[Calgary Flames]] in 2004. In the conference semifinals, the Lightning swept the top-seeded [[Washington Capitals]]. Tampa Bay played the [[Boston Bruins]] in the conference finals. In game 4 of the series, the Lightning trailed 3–0 at the end of the first period. When Dwayne Roloson was pulled for Mike Smith, the Bruins failed to score again, and the Lightning tied the game in the second period by scoring three goals in 3:58, going on to win the game 5–3 and tying the series at two games apiece. The series went the full seven games, though the Lightning were eliminated by a single goal, as they lost game 7 (0–1) to lose the series to the eventual Stanley Cup champion and third-seeded Bruins in seven games, one win short from reaching the Stanley Cup Finals.