The Lightning are one of several teams around the NHL dealing with a revolving door of injuries. On Saturday, coach Jon Cooper confirmed captain Victor Hedman was placed on long-term injured reserve.
“It’s a tough one for him,” Cooper said. “The big thing here is the longevity, having him be better in the long run.”
The Lightning have also been without veteran defenseman Ryan McDonagh since Nov. 8, when he blocked a shot with his left leg. He’s expected to be out at least another two weeks. Rookie defenseman Max Crozier was placed on injured reserve after sustaining an undisclosed injury against Vancouver on Nov. 16.
On Monday, the team added Brayden Point and Erik Cernak to the injured list, and both will be out against the Philadelphia Flyers.
Cooper said Cernak is week-to-week and clarified the injury is not related to his previous one, adding the defenseman will miss “significant time.” Cernak logged 23:24 against the Capitals on Saturday and finished the game without leaving early.
Point went down the tunnel late in the second period Saturday. He returned to start the third but left after just one shift. Cooper said Point will miss Monday’s game and is “dicey” for Wednesday’s home matchup against Calgary.
Nikita Kucherov also left Saturday’s game with an injury, but was back on the ice for Monday’s morning skate. Pontus Holmberg is getting closer to a return, appearing in just 15 games prior to sustaining his injury.
“It’s definitely different going in the locker room every night because you’re seeing somebody different,” Cooper said of the injuries. “But you know, it’s hard to cry foul… there are injuries in this league all the time.”
Cooper added the situation reminds him of 2017, the last time the team dealt with this many significant injuries. In the meantime, the Lightning have relied on several players from the Syracuse Crunch. Max Groshev was the latest player to be recalled, though he is not expected to play against the Flyers.
“There's light at the end of the tunnel for other guys and they get to come up here,” said Cooper. “There's an opportunity for them that they may not have received had guys not gotten hurt. It's good for us to see what we have is depth in the organization.”