The Tampa Bay Lightning will open the season without Nick Paul, who recently underwent surgery for an upper-body injury. The expectation is that Paul will be out until November.

The 30-year-old forward underwent surgery last Friday to repair the injury, which he originally suffered the previous season but continued to play through. As they approached the start of the season, the Lightning felt it was best to address it through surgery.

“It’s something he’s been dealing with for most of last season,” BriseBois said. “We tried every conservative method of getting him back to 100% over the course of summer, and everything we tried just wasn't working.”

In May, BriseBois said Paul had been playing through a wrist tear, though it has not been confirmed whether this is the same injury.

The Lightning open the regular season against the Senators on Oct. 9.