The Tampa Bay Lightning should be busy this off-season. While they undoubtedly had a strong regular-season, they struggled in the playoffs, losing in five games to the Florida Panthers in the first round. With this, it would not be particularly surprising if the Lightning looked to make some tweaks to their roster this summer.

One specific area the Lightning could look to address this off-season is their bottom six. It is fair to state that they would benefit by adding more secondary scoring, and one pending unrestricted free agent who could give them just that is Ottawa Senators forward Adam Gaudette.

Gaudette, 28, signed a one-year, two-way contract with the Senators during this past off-season and proved to be a complete steal for Ottawa in 2024-25. In 81 games, he scored a career-high 19 goals and recorded 26 points and a plus-12 rating. He was also impactful for the Senators during this short post-season run this spring, recording one goal, three points, and a plus-2 rating in six games.

With numbers like these, Gaudette demonstrated that he can be an impactful depth scorer in the NHL, and the Lightning could certainly use another of those. If the Lightning signed him this off-season, he would give them a very solid option for their fourth-line center role, at a minimum. However, he can also play the wing, so the Lightning could fit him anywhere in their bottom six.

Overall, with the Lightning needing more production from their bottom six, taking a shot on a player like Gaudette could be worthwhile. It will be interesting to see if they make a push for him this off-season from here.

Recent Lightning News 

Lightning Facing Decision With Veteran Forward After a quick first-round playoff exit, the <a href="https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/tampa-bay-lightning">Tampa Bay Lightning</a> are entering what should be a busy off-season. The Lightning have multiple pending free agents heading into the summer, and one of them is veteran forward Luke Glendening.

Former Lightning Pat Maroon Gets New Gig After Retiring Pat Maroon was known for his entertaining personality during his days with the<a href="https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/tampa-bay-lightning"> Tampa Bay Lightning</a>. It was a significant reason he was such a fan favorite while with the Atlantic Division squad.

Former Lightning Forward Had Career Year With New Team During this past off-season, forward Cole Koepke moved on from the <a href="https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/tampa-bay-lightning">Tampa Bay Lightning</a> after signing a one-year, two-way contract with the Boston Bruins. This was after he appeared in nine games for the Lightning during the 2023-24 season, posting two assists and 23 hits. He also had 20 goals and 39 points in 53 AHL games with the Syracuse Crunch that campaign.

What Lightning's Latest Move Means For Andrei Vasilevskiy Following the <a href="https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/tampa-bay-lightning">Tampa Bay Lightning</a>'s 2025 playoff exit, one of the questions surrounding the team was what they would do regarding their backup goalie spot. Jonas Johansson was eligible to become an unrestricted free agent on July 1, but now that will not happen. This is because the Bolts announced on May 7 that <a href="https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/tampa-bay-lightning/latest-news/lightning-sign-goaltender-jonas-johansson-to-two-year-contract-extension">they have signed Johansson</a> to a two-year, $2.5 million contract extension.