Midway through the 2024-25 hockey calendar, Bolts writers Benjamin Pierce and Thompson Brandes get together to hand out trophies to the players and memorable moments of the first half of the season. Some accolades will be real—awarded to the memorable performances and milestones of note.

The Lightning's pool is in a slightly better position than it was a year ago, though it does remain fairly thin on talent/upside.

Every team in the NHL has depth issues, but the Lightning have so little depth in their forward ranks that if you shut down their top six, you basically win the game.