Lightning at Red Wings preview

LIGHTNING (53-13-4) at RED WINGS (24-36-10)
7:30 p.m. ET; FS-D, SUN, NHL.TV

The Lightning, who won 54 games last season, lead the San Jose Sharks by 16 points for the Presidents' Trophy, which is awarded to the team with the best record in the NHL. Tampa Bay is 14-2-0 in its past 16 games while outscoring opponents 63-33.
Center Steven Stamkos is one goal from tying Vincent Lecavalier (383) for most in Lightning history.
The Red Wings have lost three straight and 11 of 12 (1-8-3). They have been eliminated from Stanley Cup Playoff contention for a third straight season.

Players to watch

Lightning forward Nikita Kucherov has 30 points (11 goals, 19 assists) in his past 15 games and leads the NHL with 111 points (33 goals, 78 assists).
Red Wings forward Filip Zadina has two points (one goal, one assist) in his first eight NHL games. Zadina will return to Grand Rapids of the American Hockey League after playing against Tampa Bay to avoid using up a year of his entry-level contract.

They said it

"There is still stuff we need to work on, and I think that's where we are focusing. That's our motivation, because we know how hard the playoffs are going to be." -- Lightning center Brayden Point
"Playing these nine games in the NHL will give him a good measuring stick to take back with him and say, 'I have to get better at this, this and this.' If he can get a little quicker and a little stronger that's going to help." -- Red Wings coach Jeff Blashill on Filip Zadina

Lightning projected lineup

Ondrej Palat -- Steven Stamkos -- J.T. Miller
Tyler Johnson -- Brayden Point -- Nikita Kucherov
Alex Killorn -- Anthony Cirelli -- Mathieu Joseph
Adam Erne -- Cedric Paquette -- Yanni Gourde
Victor Hedman -- Mikhail Sergachev
Ryan McDonagh -- Erik Cernak
Braydon Coburn -- Anton Stralman
Andrei Vasilevskiy
Louis Domingue
Scratched:Danick Martel, Ryan Callahan, Jan Rutta
Injured: Dan Girardi (lower body)

Red Wings projected lineup

Anthony Mantha -- Andreas Athanasiou -- Tyler Bertuzzi
Thomas Vanek -- Frans Nielsen -- Filip Zadina
Luke Glendening -- Darren Helm -- Michael Rasmussen
Justin Abdelkader -- Jacob de la Rose --
Christoffer Ehn
Danny DeKeyser -- Filip Hronek
Niklas Kronwall -- Jonathan Ericsson
Luke Witkowski -- Trevor Daley
Jimmy Howard
Jonathan Bernier
Scratched:Madison Bowey
Injured:Evgeny Svechnikov (knee surgery), Mike Green (virus), Dylan Larkin (back)

Status report

The Lightning did not skate Thursday. … The Red Wings hope to get Larkin back this weekend.

Stat pack

Point has 17 points (six goals, 11 assists) in his past 15 games. … Mantha has scored one goal in his past five games.