Some question Tampa Bay for scratching Drouin again

If the Tampa Bay Lightning get bumped from the playoffs after struggling to score against the Detroit Red Wings in Game 6, many might linger on Jonathan Drouin being a healthy scratch once again.

The third pick of the 2013 NHL Draft sits at one game played in this series, and it wasn’t pretty. He was a -2 in Game 4 and received just 8:42 of ice time.

That argues for a lack of trust at this point from head coach Jon Cooper, although perhaps some could point to circumstance a bit.

Still, many wonder if the skilled playmaker might help the Lightning get over the hump. Here are a few arguments in that regard.

Thought Drouin might play for pp. Of TB's last 18 power-play goals, he's been on for six of them — with Stamkos.

— Elliotte Friedman (@FriedgeHNIC) April 27, 2015

J.Drouin 5v5 points per 60 minutes among 2013 draft picks this season. Mackinnon – 2.0 Drouin – 2.0 Horvat – 1.8 Barkov – 1.7 Monahan – 1.7

— Renaud Lavoie (@renlavoietva) April 27, 2015

Jonathan Drouin is a healthy scratch in Detroit for the Lightning. For a team that needs scoring and speed…interesting decision.

— John Shannon (@JSportsnet) April 27, 2015

Tyler Johnson put the Lightning ahead early with a nice burst of speed, so it might be a moot point. Still, make a note of these doubts if things go sour for the Bolts.

(Whether those criticisms are fair or not, they’re there.)