Anton Stralman and this group of Tampa Bay Lightning have not yet matched the feat of the 2003-04 team in winning the Stanley Cup championship.

But the defensemen and his talented teammates have not been far off, and have earned all sorts of honors along the way.

The Swede earned a nice career honor on Thursday night and celebrated by needling his kids a little.

Stralman's four kids came to the game to wish their father luck, bringing "600" balloons and surprising him during the warmups before Thursday's game against the Calgary Flames, his 600th career NHL game.

The Swede then seemed like he was going to reward the kids with a puck in return for the nice surprise.

They were in for a surprise of their own.

There are important lingering questions about the video: On the first attempt, does the puck hit the top of the glass on the way down?

If so (or even if not), is it possible Stralman was actually trying to give them the puck on that first attempt?

And then, if that's true, did he switch course and turn it into a joke to save himself from ridicule of not being able to get the puck over the glass on the first try?

Is it a crazy thought? Maybe. But crazy enough to be true? What do you think?

If the season ended Friday, Stralman and the Lightning actually would not be not playoff qualifiers, despite making the Stanley Cup Finals two years ago.

The biggest reason for that is Steven Stamkos, the team's captain and best player, has been injured most of the season, appearing in only 17 games.

The good news is Stamkos practiced with the Lightning on Tuesday for the first time since suffering a knee injury in November.

If he returns, the team still has a little time to get hot and possibly return to the Eastern Conference finals for the third straight year.

Or beyond.