TAMPA - Some teams have it. Some teams don't.
Some teams have it from Day One. Some teams never have it.
Some teams find it during the course of a season. Some teams lose it somewhere along the line.
But one thing is certain. If you don't have it, you won't win in the National Hockey League.
This asset goes by many names. Old-timers call it character. Others call it unity. Terry Crisp calls it identity. Whatever it's called, Crisp says if you don't have it, you might as well be playing hockey without a goalie.
"There's nothing worse than having a team with no identity," Crisp said. "I'd rather have a bad team than a team with no identity. Even if you are a bad hockey team, at least that's your identity - you're bad. But to have no identity? That's the worst."
And that's exactly what the Lightning had - or didn't have - a month ago.
The players once again known as the "Hardest Working Team in Hockey" had become something of an enigma. They could beat the NHL's best one night and lose to the bottom-feeders the next. Beat Colorado, lose to Boston. Beat Philadelphia, lose to Ottawa. Beat New Jersey, lose to Boston, again.
Tampa Bay was neither good nor bad, big nor small, young nor old, tough nor skillful, defensive nor offensive.
The Devils were known for their toughness. The Penguins for their flash. The Panthers for their grit.
"But what were we known for?" Crisp said. "We had lost our identity."
Perhaps that is why the team was working its way to a lottery pick in this summer's draft instead of wading through the playoff pool. Oddly enough, losing might have given the Lightning an identity.
"I think going through bad times helps bring a team closer together and maybe that's what happened to us," Lightning center Chris Gratton said. "When you go through tough times, you only have yourselves to rely on. We started relying on one another, and we grew closer as a group."
Team cliques were erased. Veterans started hanging around with rookies. The team's youngest player, Daymond Langkow, started playing on a line with the oldest player, Dino Ciccarelli. Players started blaming themselves for losses instead of pointing fingers at teammates.
"This team really started to jell about a month ago," assistant coach Chris Reichart said. "You could sense it, then you could start seeing the results on the ice."
So what changed?
Crisp credits the acquisition of goalie Rick Tabaracci as a pivotal moment. With captain Paul Ysebaert out of the lineup and assistant captain Brian Bradley and Jason Wiemer struggling through injury-plagued seasons, the Lightning lacked leadership.
Enter Tabaracci, who challenged teammates when they didn't perform at their best. He was more vocal than veterans such as Ciccarelli and Rob Zamuner and wasn't shy about offending anyone. And, more important, he was not afraid to blame himself for losses. He was and is a captain disguised as a goalie.
Eventaully, Tabaracci left hsi fingerprints all over the team to the point where he didn't have to speak to get his message across.
"Really, everyone took on his own leadership role and everyone began to speak in team meetings," Gratton said. "We stayed positive, and now it's a case where no one has to say anything anymore. Guys know when they've done something wrong and they correct it themselves. They don't need to be told. And now, not much is said. Everyone knows his job and goes out and does it."
Once again, Crisp said, the Lightning has reclaimed the attitude of a season ago: determined, gritty, winning.
With the trade deadline approaching, coaches said management has to be careful about disturbing the mix with a new personality, a different character.
"Look, nothing - hard work, character, an identity - beats talent and we could always use a talented player," Crisp said. "But he has to be able to fit in the group."
Crisp does not mention names, but he hints about past players who were not conducive to team unity, players who cared more about individual wants than team needs. (Do the names Petr Klima and Brian Bellows ring a bell?)
"What you want is talent and character, players who can play, but also fit in," Crisp said. "I like our mix right now. That doesn't mean I wouldn't welcome a talented player right now. And who knows? Maybe our character is strong enough that anyone we might get would have to conform to the rest of the team instead of being able to disrupt it.
"But the mix is good and we have found an identity, and that's one of the reasons we're back on track."