Hedman returns tonight as Bolts close out homestand

The Tampa Bay Lightning get a major piece of their roster back when they close out a three-game homestand tonight against the Ottawa Senators at AMALIE Arena.
Defending Norris Trophy-winning defenseman Victor Hedman will return to the lineup Lightning head coach Jon Cooper announced following the Bolts' morning skate Saturday. Hedman was sidelined for seven games with an upper-body injury sustained when he was hit by Vegas' Ryan Reaves and helicoptered into the boards during Tampa Bay's 3-2 victory in the desert on October 26.

"I know it's going to be a little bit different playing in a game than it is in practice, but my conditioning feels well, my body feels good and I'm ready to go," Hedman said. "It should be a fun challenge against a fast team that plays with a lot of pace, divisional rival, should be a lot of fun."
Tampa Bay didn't miss a beat with Hedman out of the lineup and the lower-body injury to Ondrej Palat that will sideline the two-way forward for another four weeks. The Lightning went 5-2-0 in the seven games that Hedman and Palat have sat.

That's a testament to the depth the Lightning have created not only at the NHL level but throughout all levels. Slater Koekkoek stepped in to replace Hedman in his absence and performed admirably, chipping in a goal against Nashville and averaging nearly 15 minutes a game.
"He did a great job," Cooper said of Koekkoek. "It's a tough situation for him in the sense that you go so many games without getting in the lineup and all of a sudden you're thrust in there. He did everything we asked of him. Your depth gets tested, but it's great when the guys come through for you."
Others on the Lightning blueline have contributed more offensively to make up for Hedman's lost production. Ryan McDonagh has recorded five assists over his last three games and is putting up career-best numbers through 16 games with a goal and 11 assists on the season. Anton Stralman has registered four assists over his last five games. Mikhail Sergachev provided a timely no-look assist to J.T. Miller in the Bolts' last game versus the New York Islanders that allowed the Lightning to pull into the lead in a contest they would eventually win 4-2 for their fourth-consecutive victory, their longest win streak of the season.

"You lose two top guys like that, it shows to our depth and how guys are willing to come in and take on bigger roles and come in and contribute in the lineup," Lightning forward Ryan Callahan said. "We have a lot of depth in this organization, I think you can see that. It's important through an 82-game schedule. You're going to lose guys, guys are going to be out. Unfortunately, with the amount of games we play, there are a lot of injuries. If you don't have depth, you're not going to be successful in this league and thankfully we do. We have guys that can step in and make an impact."
With Hedman back in the lineup, the Lightning will look for a smoother effort tonight against Ottawa than the last time the two teams hooked up seven days ago. The Bolts allowed a pair of power-play goals to the Senators - the first time this season they've given up multiple power-play goals - and fell behind 2-0 in the first period and 3-2 late in the game before Brayden Point's heroics tied the game with less than 30 seconds to go and Yanni Gourde won the game :14 seconds into overtime.
"We're familiar with this team. We know what they bring," Lightning captain Steven Stamkos said. "They got off to a really quick start against us last time, so we'd like to correct that. They've got some dynamic players. If we play the right way like we did against them in the second and most of the third, we can see that we'll have some success. You can't go chance for chance with them. They've got some very quick forwards, some D that will jump in the rush and they work hard. It's going to be another good test for us here and we're looking to close out this homestand with another win."