The Tampa Bay Lightning may be getting a big boost for their Stadium Series game at Raymond James Stadium tomorrow night against the Boston Bruins.
The Lightning’s captain, Victor Hedman, has been out of the lineup since mid-December following surgery on his elbow. According to Lightning head coach Jon Cooper though, it sounds like he’ll be making his return to game action tomorrow night during one of the Lightning’s most meaningful regular season games.
According to Benjamin Pierce, Cooper said it’s highly unlikely that Hedman doesn’t participate in tomorrow’s game:
Hedman, 35, has long been considered a top defenseman in the NHL and his return would massively help the Lightning, who have had their blue line decimated by injuries this season.
The Swedish defenseman has appeared in 18 games this season for the Bolts, recording 12 assists during that time span.
Assuming all goes well in his return, Hedman will be heading to Milan, Italy to represent his home country in the 2026 Olympic Games in just a couple of weeks’ time.
Considering he captained the Swedish team at the Four Nations Faceoff, Hedman is expected to be a big part of Sweden’s leadership group during the event this year.