The Tampa Bay Lightning held a brief practice before jumping on a plane to the Twin Cities yesterday. Noticeably absent were Gage Goncalves and Dominic James, both of whom left the game against Buffalo with injuries. Unfortunately, it doesn’t look like they’ll be in the line-up for the near future.
Injury updates: #GoBolts Coach Jon Cooper said Goncalves and James are still being evaluated, will miss some time. Recalls are possible.
“They won’t be playing in the next game or two, but we’...
9 days ago
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The six games played by the Lightning in the month of February were the fewest they’ve played since April of 2022-23 when they went 2-4-0. So, there isn’t much to be gleamed from the numbers, especially considering the long break between the first three games and the last three games, but at least, for the most part, everything trended in a positive direction.
5v5 stats and league-wide rankings October 5-4-2 November 11-3-0 December 7-6-1 January 11-1-1 February 4-2-0 GF/60 2.48 (1...
10 days ago
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The Lightning’s 7-0 loss to the Florida Panthers in the final game of the preseason will probably be best remembered for a player assisting on a goal after he was kicked out of the game. Niko Mikkola was originally granted an assist on a goal in the third period before everyone realized he wasn’t even supposed to be playing since he had received a game-misconduct earlier in the penalty-filled contest. The goal was taken off the board and the Panthers had to be content with the 7-0 win.
In...
10 days ago
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If losing to the team chasing them in the standings wasn’t bad enough, the Tampa Bay Lightning are also facing the possiblity that two more players on their roster may be injured. In their uninspired 6-2 loss to the Buffalo Sabres, Gage Goncalves and Dominik James went to the locker room early. Goncalves was shaken up by hit along the boards in the second period and James had his leg twisted underneath (similar to the Brayden Point injury against Philadelphia) late in the third.
The injur...
12 days ago
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Game Fifty-Eight: Buffalo Sabres (34-19-6) at Tampa Bay Lightning (38-15-4)
Time: 7:00 PM EST
Location: Benchmark International Arena, First event hosted there – Royal Hanneford Circus
TV/Stream/Radio: The Spot, MSG-B ESPN+, 102.5 FM, Lightning App
Odds: Lightning -238
Know the Opponents: Die By the Blade
Unlike their game against the Carolina Hurricanes on Thursday, the Tampa Bay Lightning are the beneficiaries of the compressed schedule tonight as they take on a...
12 days ago
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The Syracuse Crunch are hosting the Laval Rocket at Upstate Medical University Arena tonight in what could be a pivitol game in the division standings. It’s also Hall of Fame night for the Crunch. Prior to the game a ceremony will be held for the newest inductees: Gabriel Dumont, Mike Angelides, Zenon Kenopka, and George McPhee.
Dumont retired last season as the Crunch’s longest-serving captain in franchise history. The two-time AHL All-Star played in 747 career games which is tied for 60...
12 days ago
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Let’s start this off by stating the chances of Steven Stamkos ending up in Tampa between now and next Friday are extremely low. If we were betting people, we would put it at a 17.5% chance, but it’s an off day, it’s the height of trade deadline craziness, and you’re probably bored at work on a Friday, so why not spend a few minutes diving a little deeper into a Stamkosian reunion.
[Ed. Note. After this was published Steven Stamkos himself clarified the situation by stating that there was ...
13 days ago
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It was a tough night for goaltenders and public address announcers in Raleigh last night as the two teams combined for nine goals. For the Lightning, who were on the wrong end of the 5-3 score, it meant an end to their latest winning streak. After six victories, the Bolts were on the losing side for just the third time in 2026.
During the winning streak they scored 25 goals while allowing just 12 (and 5 of those came in one game) with Nikita Kucherov (who else) leading the way. The winger...
13 days ago
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For a red-hot moment, it looked like the Tampa Bay Lightning were going to duplicate their 6-4 win over the Carolina Hurricanes from back in December. They went down 3-0 before rallying back to tie it. Then they gave up a fourth goal before tying it. Unfortunately, they couldn’t find the fifth goal before the Hurricanes did and Sebastian Aho’s power play goal in the third period proved to be in the difference in the 5-4 win for the Hurricanes.
“We allowed them to get behind us,” is how Ro...
14 days ago
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There have been a lot of factors contributing to the success of the Tampa Bay Lightning this season. Andrei Vasilevskiy is putting up a Vezina-like performance. Nikita Kucherov is collecting multi-point games like Pokemon. One of the differences between this year and previous ones is the amount of unexpected players that have stepped up when injuries have forced them into a bigger role. Darren Raddysh elevating his game to new levels, Charle-Edouard D’Astous becoming a one-man breakout machine...
14 days ago
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Game Fifty-Seven: Tampa Bay Lightning (38-14-4) at Carolina Hurricanes (36-15-6)
Time: 7:00 PM EST
Location: Lenovo Center, 19 minutes from where Nuke Laloosh pitched to Crash Davis
TV/Stream/Radio: The Spot, FDSNSO, ESPN+, 102.5 FM, Lightning App
Odds: Lightning +130
Know the Opponents: Canes Country
The Tampa Bay Lightning did what they had to do against the Toronto Maple Leafs and picked up a 4-2 victory on Wednesday night. Now, it’s on to Carolina to meet a we...
14 days ago
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The Tampa Bay Lightning’s talented winger continued his assault on the record books as he became the first member of the organization to eclipse the 700 assist mark. Just for fun, he got started on the next milestone as he added his 701st later in the game. As with every helper he racks up, he sets a new franchise record in assists, and he continues to creep closer to Steven Stamkos’ record of 1,137 points overall (Kucherov sits at 1,088).
With 701 apples he is currently tied all-time wit...
14 days ago
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Welcome back, Brayden Point (2 goals, 1 assist).
Welcome back, Charle-Edouard D’Astous (2 assists).
Welcome back, Tampa Bay Lightning hockey.
The Lightning returned to the ice from the Olympic break with a 4-2 win over the Toronto Maple Leafs, spearheaded by a two-goal performance from Brayden Point, who had been out of the line-up since suffering a lower-body injury in mid-January against Philadelphia. Nikita Kucherov also posted a three-point night which included his 700th car...
15 days ago
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After yesterday’s check-in on the first half of the Lightning’s Top 25 Under 25 for 2025 there are thirteen spots left. Thanks to a trade and some waiver activity, there are only ten players left to take a look at. Roman Schmidt (#12), Niko Huutannen (#9), and Jack Finley (#4) are all now in other organizations. Still, some pretty good names are left, so let’s take a look at how they’re doing this season.
13 Dyllan Gill – Orlando Solar Bears – ECHL
46 games, 2 goals, 9 assists
...
15 days ago
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Game Fifty-Six: Toronto Maple Leafs (27-21-9) at Tampa Bay Lightning (37-14-4)
Time: 7:30 PM EST
Location: Benchmark International Arena, Home of Gold Medalist Jake Guentzel
TV/Stream/Radio: TNT/ HBO Max/ Tru TV, 102.5 FM, Lightning App (audio)
Odds: Lightning -230
Know the Opponents: Pension Plan Puppets
Twenty-seven games in the next fifty days. Buckle up Bolts’ fans, there is about to be a lot, and we mean, a lot of hockey. Fresh off of the Olympic break, the T...
15 days ago
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After talking about the “dream come true” of playing in the Olympics, Tampa Bay Lightning captain Victor Hedman spoke to reporters about returning to action. He confirmed that he is good to go as the team returns to action against the Toronto Maple Leafs tonight.
Assistant Coach Rob Zettler also confirmed that all of the Olympic players will be playing and that Emil Lilleberg and Charle-Edouard D’Astous should be ready to go. Even with Max Crozier out and Nick Paul likely out, this may be...
15 days ago
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While it might feel like we just wrapped up this countdown (because it’s true) it seems like a good time to revisit the Top 25 Under 25 just to see how the kids are doing. With the trade deadlines in the rearview mirror for the Canadian Hockey League, and the college hockey teams starting to wind down their regular seasons it’s a good time to see how things are shaping up for the prospects.
Today, we’ll tackle the bottom half of the list (which contains a couple of players that might be t...
16 days ago
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Well, all the fun is over. The Stadium Series Game. The Olympics. The glorious Olympic Break. Now it’s time to get back to the grind of making the playoffs and competing for the Stanley Cup. The good news is that, standings-wise, the Tampa Bay Lightning are in pretty good shape. The bad news is that they can’t seem to shake the injury bug.
As play is set to resume, the Lightning sit atop the Atlantic Division with 78 points, a six-point edge over second-place Montreal. More importantly, t...
16 days ago
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Jake Guentzel may not have had the biggest impact on the stat sheet, but he has the ultimate bragging rights in the locker room as he was part of Team USA’s historic win in Milan. Guentzel comes back to Tampa with the gold medal as the Americans defeated Team Canada in overtime, 2-1, on Jack Hughes’ goal less than two minutes into the bonus session.
Forty-six years to the day of the Miracle on Ice, the United States pulled off the win. It wasn’t quite a “Do you believe in miracles?” level...
17 days ago
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It’s time for the ultimate locker room bragging rights as Jake Guentzel and his USA teammates take on Brandon Hagel and Team Canada for the gold medal in hockey. The two powerhouses didn’t disappoint as they bring perfect records into the gold medal game with Canada coming back from a 2-0 deficit to beat Finland 3-2 and the Americans blowing open a close game against Slovakia with three second period goal on the way to a 6-2 final.
Finland took the bronze medal on Saturday with a 6-1 win ...
18 days ago
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It took overtime, but Megan Keller’s overtime goal proved to be golden as Team USA took down Canada , 2-1, in the women’s gold medal game at the Olympics. Unlike the 5-0 blowout in the preliminary rounds, the two hockey powerhouses battled all game long with Canada taking the early lead on a Kristin O’Neill short-handed goal. Hilary Knight, playing in her final Olympic game, dialed up the heroics as she scored with just over two minutes to go in the game and the American net empty.
That s...
20 days ago
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While the pressure is ramping up in Milan for the four teams left in the Olympic tournament, things are starting to wind back up in Tampa (well, Brandon to be exact). The Tampa Bay Lightning were back on the ice on Wednesday as practice resumed for the players not over in Italy.
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It’s good to see Charle-Edouard D’Astous in a regular sweater based on some of the news from yesterday in regards to so...
21 days ago
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The day started out pretty nice. It was in the mid-70s in the Tampa Bay area with a bright blue sky and a light breeze stirring the fronds of the palm trees. The type of day Northerners relish as they descend upon the beaches to escape the bitter cold back home. Even better, the Lightning were back on the ice. Over at the practice facility in Brandon, the non-Olympic players were practicing as they prepared to return to NHL action.
Then things took a turn for the worse. First the Lightnin...
22 days ago
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The quarterfinals are all set and there are some intriguing match-ups as teams look to push through to the semifinals and a chance to reach the medal round. We mentioned the first two wins in yesterday’s post as Germany and Switzerland advanced. Czechia held off Denmark as Oliver Bjorkstrand became the first member of the Lightning to see his gold medal dreams dashed. Sweden handled Latvia with ease to set up a date with the United States.
So today’s games are:
Slovakia vs. German – ...
22 days ago
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In early Tuesday action over in Milan Switzerland defeated Italy 3-0 and Germany ended France’s run in the Olympics. Both outcomes were expected and the two victors will move on to the quarter-final round. J.J. Moser was held off the scoreboard, but registered two shots in his 17:38 of action. Meanwhile, Wojciech Stachowiak was a healthy scratch in Germany’s 5-1 victory over France.
The lone goal by the French was scored by old friend Pierre-Edouard Bellemare, who announced his retirement...
23 days ago
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