Tampa Bay Lightning defenseman Anton Stralman was cleared for contract on Saturday but is likely to miss his eighth straight game Sunday because of an upper-body injury. Coach Jon Cooper said it's possible Stralman will return during Tampa Bay's three-game road trip. The Lightning have lost two of their past three games. "This group is a proud group," Cooper told the Tampa Bay Times. "They've been together for some time now and they have found an ability to bounce back after games where we weren't our best. ... I have no doubt, you can't predict the final score [Sunday], but I know our effort level will be at a peak."
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Bruins team scope
Boston Bruins forward Brad Marchand left practice Saturday after taking a shot off his knee from defenseman Adam McQuaid. Coach Claude Julien didn't have an update on Marchand's status for Sunday. The Bruins have scored four goals in the past three games, all losses. "You find ways to try and help them get their confidence back and you try and loosen up the group a bit," Julien said. "I think they're squeezing their sticks. ... Every team goes through that at some stage during the year where they have a hard time scoring so we're trying to get out of it as quickly as we can. We did some drills today that maybe will help that." Defenseman Zdeno Chara will likely miss his third straight game because of a lower-body injury. Julien said Chara is day-to-day, but the Bruins captain has not skated since he was injured in the second period of a 4-2 loss against the St. Louis Blues on Nov. 22.
Brown, who has missed the past two games, practiced Saturday in a regular jersey. … If Marchand is unable to play, the Bruins, who do not have a spare forward on their roster, will need to promote one from Providence of the American Hockey League.
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Who's hot
Kucherov has six goals and four assists in his past seven games. ... Rask has lost his past two starts but he has five wins in his past eight with 11 goals allowed in that span.
