At the end of the day, it doesn’t matter that the Tampa Bay Lightning played an almost perfect Game 7.

The Lightning put up a masterclass in defensive structure when it mattered most, limiting the Canadiens to zero shots on goal in the second period, and only nine in 60 minutes.

Blame poor puck luck in Game 7 or Jakub Dobes’ excellence — both were unquestionably difference-makers here.

But those aren’t the only reasons why the Lightning’s season ended on Sunday night.

What if Nikita Kucherov made better puck touches with the clock ticking on the season? What if Andrei Vasilevskiy had a better start to the series? What if Oliver Bjorkstrand was trusted to play in Games 1-2, since his line with Dominic James and Gage Goncalves was the most effective in Game 7? What if Victor Hedman were ready to return sooner?

What if this version of the Lightning showed up more consistently throughout the series?

Tampa Bay has all the time in the world to ‘what if’ the elimination away, but it won’t change the final result: a fourth consecutive first-round exit. And now it’s time to face the reality that their Stanley Cup window is closing.

As much as the winning side of every matchup should get the spotlight, there is something to learn about the losing side after every series, whether it’s the good and promising, or the bad and ugly that put the team in that position.

So as eight teams shift into offseason mode, let’s take a look at what we learned about them from Round 1.

Tampa Bay Lightning

The window is closing

The Lightning’s strategy has revolved around its star-studded core. But despite putting up game-breaking regular seasons, versions of this core haven’t gotten it done in four straight postseasons now.

Kucherov and Brayden Point didn’t hit that next gear in Round 1. It took six games for Playoff Vasy to round into form, too. And despite some real efforts from the supporting cast, it wasn’t enough to advance to Round 2.

So the question isn’t just what’s next for Tampa Bay, it’s whether there is still a way to maximize this core for another run before it’s too late. The problem is, there’s a cost to contending: a depleted pipeline, limited trade assets and little cap flexibility.

Some teams spend all that with less to show for it, while the Lightning have two Stanley Cups plus a third trip to the final. And to Tampa Bay’s credit, management has found creative ways to deal with a rotating cast of substitutions. The Lightning may not have a ton of draft capital, but they still find hidden gems to develop through the system. James was the latest example of that, along with Darren Raddysh and J.J. Moser.

But even if Tampa Bay spots and develops that talent, retaining it is another challenge. Raddysh’s glow-up may be the most recent price-out of Tampa Bay, with Moser’s extension kicking in next year.

Even with more graceful aging curves for star talent, Father Time spares no player or team. So the pressure is on to find a way to extend this window, or take a step back altogether to reset before it’s too late.

Edmonton Oilers

The clock is ticking

When Connor McDavid signed a two-year extension, it put the Oilers on the clock. It gave management up to three years to build a real contender around the best player in the world, or at least prove this team is trending in the right direction.

Instead, as Leon Draisaitl succinctly put it on breakup day, this team is “not trending in the right direction” and has taken a “big step backwards.”

The star players seem to grasp both the team’s current standing and the pressure surrounding McDavid’s contract. But does the front office?

As easy as it is to chalk up this year’s disappointing Round 1 exit to injuries, their shortcomings stemmed a lot deeper than that. The defense, which only improved post-Olympics after Paul Coffey returned behind the bench, collapsed in front of an incredibly cautious goaltending tandem. A lack of footspeed was glaring, too. But it’s going to be incredibly difficult to get out of this jam.

Bringing in a full-time defensive coach would help. Shaking up the personnel on the back end would go a long way, too. But the Oilers don’t have a lot of cap space or trade assets. And there aren’t a ton of movable contracts, either. This year’s moves — from acquiring Tristan Jarry and two more years of his contract, to extending Trent Frederic for eight years, to sending out draft picks to move Stuart Skinner and Andrew Mangiapane — put the Oilers in an impossible situation. So before figuring out how to get out of this jam, it’s worth talking about who should be trusted to spearhead this.

Dallas Stars

Jason Robertson is a star

Robertson was on another level all season long, answering any questions on whether he was truly franchise-caliber. He shot the puck more often and efficiently, and boosted his puck-moving play between his breakouts and primary passes. It just had to translate in a playoff environment, especially with looming contract talks ahead.

The narrative around Robertson’s playoff pedigree tends to get overblown because he has legitimately made an impact in postseasons past for Dallas. Even last year, coming off an injury, he gave his team a much-needed spark.

Making an impact isn’t the same as having clutch signature performances to help the Stars move further than years past, though. And that’s pretty much fueled the question around whether he has the chops to truly be a No. 1 forward — and paid like one.

Robertson answered any lingering questions this spring, though. He was by far the Stars’ best and most consistent player in Round 1. Not only did he contribute on the power play, he was one of the few much-needed five-on-five producers despite being without his mainstay center. That added up to a 2.63 average Game Score that not only leads Dallas but ranks 10th among all players in Round 1.

That should be enough to answer any questions around his game, and whether he’s worth a raise this summer — especially since it’s only getting harder to acquire stars around the NHL.

Pittsburgh Penguins

It’s the end of an era

There were basically two ways for this to play out. If the Penguins went on a deep run after unexpectedly reaching the playoffs, it was going to be this magical Last Dance moment for Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Kris Letang. But if Pittsburgh flamed out early, it was always going to open the door to questions about the long run.

It could have been worse this spring; the Penguins were almost swept by a rebuilding Flyers team that went on a late-season push to make the postseason. Pittsburgh, at least, won two games to make it a series. But extending the series doesn’t do enough to change the big picture. It could be time to officially turn the page on this chapter and look forward to the next.

The Penguins really didn’t mortgage their future this year by competing, at least. Kyle Dubas and the front office made forward-thinking moves along the way that improved the team on the fly; the Stuart Skinner and Egor Chinakhov trades were prime examples. Elmer Söderblom looks like a low-key savvy add, too. But it may be time to take a more drastic approach.

Crosby isn’t going anywhere unless he chooses to. The Letang contract may be unmovable, too. Erik Karlsson had a fantastic regular season; could this be a chance to sell high on the last two years of his deal? Then there’s the Malkin situation; he had a resurgent regular season, but was a step behind in Round 1, which will be front-of-mind when his contract expires on July 1.

Los Angeles Kings

Safe is death

To the Kings’ credit, management did try to address its offensive woes. The team probably would have looked a lot different with Kevin Fiala and Artemi Panarin in the lineup at the same time. The Fiala injury situation was completely out of L.A.’s hands and just terrible luck.

But that Panarin trade doesn’t erase the team’s missteps to that point, like the decision to run it back with Jim Hiller despite last postseason’s failures. It doesn’t take away all of Ken Holland’s one-dimensional signings that made the blue line older and slower with Cody Ceci and Brian Dumoulin, while trading away Jordan Spence.

Holland didn’t build the Kings’ foundation or core. But in Year 1 of his tenure, he didn’t do enough to change what was broken, either. He leaned further into it, and it unsurprisingly burned L.A. It landed them in the worst possible playoff position for a Round 1 matchup against an even deeper and dynamic opponent. And it ended the Kings’ playoff hopes even quicker than years past. That’s why the Round 1 lesson is the same for L.A. two years in a row.

As on-brand as this direction was for an old-school GM like Holland, he of all people should have some understanding of what’s gone wrong for the Kings in the past, seeing as he was on the other side of three of those four Round 1 eliminations to the Oilers.

Boston Bruins

The Big Bad Bruins aren’t cut out for 2026

Led by an elite core trio and a high PDO, the Bruins reached the playoffs against the odds — only to crash out early against the Buffalo Sabres.

The good news is management seemed to recognize this team’s ceiling and didn’t overpay at the deadline for Band-Aids in exchange for future assets. Even if the team didn’t do anything to further a retool started last spring, the front office didn’t do anything to hamstring it, either.

The bad news is that this roster is extremely flawed and may not be built to thrive in today’s speed and skill game. The Bruins’ 1-2-2 neutral zone system, known as “The Clog,” had its moments of efficiency in the regular season and even in Round 1. But if teams like the Sabres were able to cut through with speed, Boston didn’t have the footspeed to catch up. And when there was a speed mismatch, the Bruins couldn’t always stop their opponents’ forecheck with physicality.

A blue line with players like Charlie McAvoy and Nikita Zadorov will always embrace some of that Big Bad Bruin energy, and there can still be value to that playing style even in today’s NHL. But the current trends around the league center around speed, skill and up-and-coming talent — and the Atlantic Division is the prime example, with the Sabres and Canadiens left standing. So Boston is going to have to go against the grain of some of their veteran players and identity to find defensemen who can address those weak points.

Utah Mammoth

The future is bright

A Round 1 series between the Mammoth and Vegas Golden Knights was always going to be a mismatch in experience. Unfortunately for Utah, it showed at times. The team didn’t sustain momentum enough, even after resilient comebacks. The wear and tear of lengthy overtimes also hampered the Mammoth’s skaters. So did Vegas’ ability to lock things down with a strong forecheck.

But gaining some much-needed playoff seasoning isn’t the only takeaway from this series. It’s that Utah’s core is the real deal and should have an incredibly bright future.

Clayton Keller’s star power has been a difference-maker for this franchise for years, both in Arizona and Utah. But now he has a dynamic group of young forwards around him to level up the team’s core.

Dylan Guenther and Logan Cooley both had breakthrough performances for the Mammoth. Neither one plays prototypical playoff hockey; they use their speed to their advantage to thrive off the rush and move the puck east-to-west to challenge defenders. Some teams try to move away from that style of play in the postseason, where tension amps up, and the game sometimes slows down as a result. But these two played to their strengths and made a real impact, even against Vegas’ best. In almost 38 head-to-head minutes against Jack Eichel, Cooley and the Mammoth went up 47-29 in shot attempts, earned a 72 percent xG rate and outscored Vegas 3-2.

Ottawa Senators

You need your best players to step up

Hockey is a strong link game, even in the playoffs. That puts extra emphasis on star players on both sides of a matchup.

While Ottawa has star power on the back end with Jake Sanderson emerging as one of the best all-around defensemen in the league, Brady Tkachuk and Tim Stützle are flawed No. 1 and No. 2 forwards on a team with Stanley Cup aspirations.

It’s even more challenging when those two leading forwards don’t play their best. Neither player earned a single five-on-five point in four games.

Tkachuk was the offensive spark the Senators needed last spring and even upped his regular-season scoring rate this season. But this time around, his postseason started in the penalty box for five minutes, and it set the tone for the rest of the series. The shots and scoring chances weren’t memorable; the physicality was. Stützle’s series, on the other hand, will be remembered for missed chances and opportunities.

It’s good to be lucky, but sometimes teams have to create their own luck. So the Senators need to consider if Tkachuk and Stützle have that next gear to take over games, or if it’s time to rethink the depth chart as currently constructed.

Data via Evolving-Hockey, HockeyViz, HockeyStatCards, All Three Zones,, HockeyStats and Natural Stat Trick. This story relies on shot-based metrics; here is a primer on these numbers.