With Darren Raddysh gone, where do the Lightning go from here?

The Bald Eagle has left the nest.

Darren Raddysh set a goal-scoring standard for Lightning defensemen this past season, and he was one of just four defensemen in the NHL with at least 20 goals and 70 points.

So whether you agree with Tampa Bay's sign-and-trade deal with the division-rival Maple Leafs ahead of free agency, the Lightning's post-Raddysh reality is that they suddenly have a much larger hole to fill this offseason.

General manager Julien BriseBois knows his players well. The Lightning plucked Raddysh out of AHL obscurity and saw that he could be an NHL contributor. But when it comes to keeping free agents, the GM is determined to make sure he doesn't drive the organization's future off a cliff with a bad contract.

And yes, with the salary cap going up by leaps and bounds, maybe $8.5 million a year isn't all that much. But that same cap spike will make some of the long-term deals BriseBois has signed - Brandon Hagel, Anthony Cirelli and even J.J. Moser and Nick Paul come to mind - become even bigger bargains over time and grow as prime examples of BriseBois' fiscal responsibility.

Ultimately, Raddysh was seen as a luxury, but no one has his rocket shot, and few will compare to the scoring ability he showed; the few who do will command a premium on the open market. Otherwise, the Lightning will have to get more creative in reorganizing their blue line. On the power play, they'll have to hope that some players return to their production of the past.

The Lightning's defensemen corps has been a group in transition since the team dealt cornerstone left-shot blue-liner Mikhail Sergachev two summers ago. The team has long preferred its defensemen playing on their shooting side, but that changed in the 2025-25 season when injuries left them short on right-shot defensemen. Raddysh's departure leaves them with just two right-shot defensemen: Erik Cernak and Max Crozier.

The Lightning were impressed with how left-shot Emil Lilleberg handled playing the right side. Charle-Edouard D'Astous also played well on the right. And before Raddysh assumed a top-pairing role with left-shot D Moser on the right, Moser played on his off side alongside Victor Hedman before Hedman was sidelined due to injury.

There aren't many right-shot options internationally. Veteran Steven Santini returns in the second half of a two-year deal after playing 12 games this season, but he's more of a plug-and-play guy when needed.

With Raddysh off the board, Anaheim's John Carlson is the top pending unrestricted free-agent defenseman. His demand grew Friday, and that's before it was reported that he could be looking for a bigger average annual commitment than Raddysh, though on a shorter term since he's 36. Carlson could quarterback the Lightning's top power-play unit and continue to give Nikita Kucherov a dangerous one-time option to set up from his place along the right halfwall, though most of Carlson's scoring damage has been done in 5-on-5.

Even if the numbers work with Carlson, it would mean that three of the Lightning's top five defensemen would be 35 or older. The Lightning have committed the next three seasons to both Hedman, who will be 36 in December, and Ryan McDonagh, who turned 37 earlier this month.

Right-shot defenseman Rasmus Andersson, 29, could be available if he doesn't re-sign with the Golden Knights. But if the Lightning weren't going to take a chance on a big-money, long-term deal with Raddysh, they're unlikely to do it with Andersson.

The Lightning likely will go out and look for the next "Bolt," a somewhat under-the-radar player whose attributes could fit well into their system and won't break the bank.

A player like Nick Blankenburg, who seemed to pop in his age 27 season with six goals and 21 points with Nashville before he was dealt to Colorado at the trade deadline. He's undersized at 5-foot-9, 177 pounds, but a strong skater and can move the puck and jump in the rush. Combine that with some strong possession metrics and he could be an interesting fit with Moser. He'll be much cheaper than the aforementioned veterans.

Ultimately, the Lightning are a team that is a sum of its parts. They believe that if they put players in the right positions - Raddysh benefitted from playing with Kucherov on the power play as well as alongside Moser in 5-on-5 - individual and team success will follow.

The Lightning are banking on Hedman returning to form, but it will be key for him to regain his shot, especially if he's going to be a factor on the power play, after shooting a career-low 2.0%.

They'll hope that players like D'Astous, who ran the second-team power play, and Crozier, who had some power-play experience in the AHL, can take another step.

And on the power play, they'll need do everything they can to get Brayden Point back to his offensive mean. Point had just six power-play goals this past season after averaging 17 in the previous three. He struggled to find space in the bumper position, and when he did, he couldn't get shots through.

Raddysh's ascension was built on opportunity. Now it's on to the next. A breakout season could be waiting in the wings.

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This story was originally published June 20, 2026 at 5:17 PM.