Lightning make no callups on Friday despite injuries, so who dresses on Saturday?

by Erik Erlendsson | @Erik_Erlendsson | Like us on Facebook
March 10, 2017

TAMPA, Fla. – Making a best-case scenario out of the worst-looking situation.

That was the feel, at least, as the Lightning returned to the ice for practice on Friday, less than 24 hours after seeing three of the team’s centers lost to injury during a victory against Minnesota.

Tyler Johnson, Vladislav Namestnikov and Cedric Paquette all had to be helped off the ice with left leg injuries and did not return, leaving Tampa Bay with just eight forwards for the remainder of the game and 10 on the active roster . All three injured players were not on the ice for practice, which was not a surprise.

But what was a surprise is Tampa Bay did not make any call ups from Syracuse of the American Hockey League on Friday, ahead of Saturday’s critical game against the Florida Panthers and any potential callups were on the ice for the Crunch ahead of their game against Springfield Friday night, though a call up can still be made after the game or Saturday morning Update: Matt Peca was recalled Saturday morning.

So what does that mean for the Lightning lineup and does it have any effect on the status of captain Steven Stamkos?

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First, it’s clear that Friday’s situation has no bearing on Stamkos. Though there are plenty of signs that Stamkos is possibly nearing a return to the lineup, that certainly is not going to be on Saturday as the Tampa Bay captain was not on the ice.

When Lightning associate coach Rick Bowness was asked about all the questions surrounding the possibility of Stamkos being available, he said “At this point, I wouldn’t even go there.’’

While Stamkos has been taking part in some parts of practices and doing some extensive skating on his own, it has not been four months since his knee surgery to reattach a partially torn meniscus. The early end of his recovery period is four months and that benchmark is March 17. And despite the seemingly dire situation, Stamkos is not going to be rushed back in to the lineup. There is no reason to risk his long-term health.

Beyond that, the team officially listed Johnson, Namestnikov and Paquette as day-to-day with lower body injuries.

Both Johnson and Namestnikov were spotted around the locker room on Friday after receiving treatment. Neither were wearing any sort of brace or walking aid, though Johnson had a noticeable limp as he made his way down the hallway near the locker room.

Paquette, though listed as day-to-day, is not expected back any time soon based on the nature of his injury, which looked eerily similar to the play that Anton Stralman suffered a fractured leg on near the end of last season. No other prognosis was provided on Paquette other than day-to-day, though when one is given, it would be a surprise if he returns anytime soon.

But the fact Johnson and Namestnikov were around the locker room area – it’s assumed they went for additional testing such as an MRI in the morning – in the afternoon is possibly the most encouraging news possible for Tampa Bay given how it looked after the game on Thursday when head coach Jon Cooper said the outlook did not look good on any of the three players.

So how was the mood around the team on Friday?

”It was good,’’ Bowness said. “If there’s one thing we’ve all been around it’s injuries. They are part of the game and you keep moving on. You hate to see anyone get hurt, you do, and you hate to see you lose teammate. But there are still games to be played, there is a playoff position we are fighting for and the focus can never be taken off of that.’’

During practice, the team had reshuffled line combinations with some players moving positions and others taking on expanded roles.

The lines were: Ondrej Palat-Brayden Point-Nikita Kucherov; Alex Killorn-Yanni Gourde-Jonathan Drouin; Gabriel Dumont-J.T. Brown-Adam Erne; Greg McKegg-Luke Witkowski

Those combinations were pretty much how things looked at the end of Friday’s games, though Drouin took shifts at center instead of Gourde. How they look when the puck drops on Saturday against the Florida Panthers (7 p.m., Fox Sports Sun, 970-AM, tblpowerplay.com is a mystery.

But with just 11 forwards (10 if you still count Witkowski as a defenseman) the Lightning figure to have to bring somebody up before the game, barring a miracle recovery from any of the three injured forwards, and even then, Tampa Bay would likely be looking for insurance as they start a stretch of three games in four nights.

No matter who is in the lineup, however, the approach does not change when the puck drops.

”It’s important for us to play our systems and play together and make sure there is a tight, cohesiveness among our units that go out there,’’ defenseman Braydon Coburn said. “Make sure everybody is working together. Those three guys are important players on our team, but we have the collective group to pick up the slack.’’

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