Just as it seemed the Tampa Bay Lightning were getting some good fortune on the injury front, it quickly became clear that they weren’t that lucky.
During the third period of Thursday night’s game, Anthony Cirelli was hit hard by Los Angeles Kings forward Kevin Fiala. Cirelli was down momentarily, and once he got to his feet, he quickly skated off of the ice and walked down the tunnel to the locker room.
The Lightning were already without Brandon Hagel, who is day-to-day following an injury suffered against the Florida Panthers, and Nikita Kucherov, a late scratch ahead of the game due to illness.
After the game, Lightning head coach Jon Cooper was unable to provide an update on Cirelli.
So far this season, Cirelli has played in 30 games and tallied 19 points. His value to the organization goes well beyond that though, as he’s a key penalty killer and overall valuable defensive asset.
Given Cooper’s lack of an update, at this time there is no timeline for when Cirelli will be available to return, however, we’ll likely find out more regarding his condition in the days ahead. While the Lightning would certainly like to have Cirelli back for their game against the Carolina Hurricanes this weekend, it seems doubtful he’ll be in the lineup at this time.