Stamkos calls out Preds' work ethic after loss to Lightning

Nashville Predators veteran Steven Stamkos was fed up with his club's unwillingness to create offense following Friday's overtime loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning.

"We're a team that struggles to score goals," Stamkos told The Tennessean's Alex Daugherty. "When you're a team that struggles to score goals, you can't afford to take nights off. You can't afford to not work."

Nashville scored only two goals in the contest and was outchanced 23-16 at five-on-five, according to Natural Stat Trick. The Predators rank 31st in the NHL in goals per game at 2.33.

"It's OK to be frustrated because we're not scoring," Stamkos said. "But you counter that by work ethic and getting into the game in different ways. If you're not scoring, what else are you doing out there? What else can you do to help your team win? I've just felt like, for whatever reason, in these stretches, we tend to go the other way."

Nashville signed Stamkos and Jonathan Marchessault over the summer to bolster its attack, but they've only notched seven and four goals so far, respectively.

Stamkos is one of the best goal-scorers of his generation, with 562 tucks since being drafted first overall in 2008. In his opinion, the Predators' big guns aren't creating looks often enough.

"(We've) got guys that can put the puck in the net, for sure, but we need to find ways to generate," he said. "Guys getting open, seeing things, finding seams. It's tough ... it's the hardest thing to do in the NHL is score goals. Obviously, we've got guys that have done it. But we need to find a way, myself included."

The Predators rank last in the league with seven wins in 24 games and are 30th with a minus-20 goal differential. General manager Barry Trotz said earlier this month that he'll consider accelerating the club's rebuild plan if the incumbent roster doesn't get the season on track.