TAMPA - A title can't be defended without earning a ticket back to the dance.
On Thursday, Tampa Bay put itself in that position once again by officially clinching a playoff spot and for the second consecutive postseason will try to defend its Stanley Cup title and look to join the elite of the elite teams in NHL history.
The road back is never easy, it's always littered with potholes, speed bumps and occasional detours. It's all part of the journey and Thursday's playoff-clinching victory against the Anaheim Ducks was very much like that path.
There was a scintillating start, a drop in the m...
