Headlines

Go To MLB Trade Rumors
Go To Hoops Rumors

Lightning Rumors

Tampa Bay Lightning Activate Pontus Holmberg

at CDT | by 1 Comment

According to Erik Erlendsson of Lightning Insider, the Tampa Bay Lightning have activated depth forward Pontus Holmberg from the injured reserve. No corresponding roster move was required as the Lightning placed defenseman Erik Cernak on injured reserve a few days ago.

Although Tampa Bay’s defense is still banged up, Holmberg’s activation brings the Lightning’s forward core to full health. Holmberg had missed a little over two weeks with an undisclosed issue.

The 26-year-old native of Vasteras, Sweden, has performed relatively well in his first year with the Lightning. Leading up to the injury on November 8th, Holmberg had scored one goal and five points in 15 games, averaging 12:24 of ice time per game.

That output is relatively consistent in terms of his performance during his tenure with the Toronto Maple Leafs from 2022 to 2025. After debuting with the Maple Leafs in the 2022-23 season, Holmberg scored 19 goals and 49 points in 159 games, averaging approximately 25 points over 82 games. His output over 15 games with Tampa Bay equates to 27 points over a full campaign.

Despite the numerous injuries across the roster, the Lightning have done great work of late, making the most of their spare parts. Winning four consecutive games and seven out of their last 10, Tampa Bay has vaulted to the top of the Atlantic Division and the top three of the Eastern Conference.

Lightning’s Erik Cernak Out Week-To-Week

at CDT | by 5 Comments

Lightning head coach Jon Cooper announced to reporters, including the team’s Benjamin Pierce, that defenseman Erik Černák has sustained an undisclosed injury and is out week-to-week. It’s not related to the lower-body issue that kept Černák out of a pair of games last week. Cooper also said that center Brayden Point won’t play tonight against the Flyers after leaving Saturday’s game against the Capitals with an undisclosed injury, but he’s day-to-day and shouldn’t miss more than a couple of games.

With Černák’s injury, the Bolts recalled defender Maxim Groshev from AHL Syracuse. They’ve had an open roster spot for the last few games, so no corresponding move is necessary.

Černák’s landing back on the injured list leaves Tampa without three of its top four defenders once again. Victor Hedman has already missed six games with an undisclosed issue and won’t be back in the lineup until Dec. 2 at the earliest. Ryan McDonagh has missed the same amount of time but could be back sooner since, unlike Hedman, he hasn’t been transferred to long-term injured reserve.

Despite the pileup, the Lightning have managed to win four times in that six-game stretch. They sit second in the Atlantic Division with a 12-7-2 record, one point back of the Red Wings with one game in hand. There are plenty of reasons for optimism, considering they managed to rebound from the 1-4-2 hole they put themselves in to start the year and have largely carried that momentum through a stretch of brutal luck. Unfortunately, their top right-shot option on the blue line in Černák won’t be a part of that run for the foreseeable future.

Černák continues to be arguably Tampa’s best pure shutdown option. After recording a career-high 21 points and a +29 rating in 76 appearances last season, he’d rattled off four assists and an even rating through 19 appearances in 2025-26. While the Bolts have been outscored 16-12 with Černák on the ice at 5-on-5 this year, on pace for the worst goal share of his career, he’s been the victim of some poor goaltending. His pairing with McDonagh has controlled 57.6% of expected goals together, per MoneyPuck. With McDonagh sidelined, Černák also elevated rookie Charle-Edouard D’Astous to a 53.8 xGF%.

Groshev, who was drafted as a winger but has since converted to defense, won’t be making his NHL debut in Černák’s absence, it appears. They were already rostering six healthy defenders, so Groshev will serve as injury insurance on the blue line, who can also step in at forward if needed. A third-round pick in 2020 out of Russia, the 6’2″ rearguard is in his third season with Syracuse but has yet to make his NHL debut. He’s managed six assists through 17 games this season and has a team-high +8 rating, leaving the Bolts intrigued by the 23-year-old’s defensive upside.

As for the weekend’s news that both Point and superstar Nikita Kucherov departed the Washington game with injuries, they’ve clearly avoided a worst-case scenario. Kucherov wasn’t carrying any injury designation at today’s practice, while Point, who’s struggled this year with just three goals and 11 points in 21 games and could’ve used a reset anyway, won’t have an extended absence.

Lightning’s Nikita Kucherov, Brayden Point Leave With Injury

at CDT | by 16 Comments

The Tampa Bay Lightning’s injury woes could be getting worse. Star forwards Nikita Kucherov and Brayden Point left Saturday night’s game against the Washington Capitals with injuries. Kucherov was hurt in the second period after getting knocked around in a scrum. Point also left in the second period with an undisclosed injury, though he made a brief return before leaving again in the third. Head coach Jon Cooper said that it was too soon to make a statement on either injury, per team reporter Gabby Shirley.

Rookie Dominic James also left the game in the second period with an apparent injury, but managed to return for the third.

Kucherov scored one goal and three points in the first period, helping set Tampa up for an eventual 5-3 win. It was the 44th time he has scored multiple points in the first period, a new Lightning record above Steven Stamkos’ 43 per the NHL Public Records. He ranks second on the Lightning in scoring on the year, with 19 points in 18 games. The superstar Russian has lost no momentum in his 12th NHL season, and would leave a major hole in the lineup and on the scoresheet should he need to miss time.

Point also remains a core piece of the Lightning’s offense. He has had a down year by his standards, with 11 points and a minus-10 in 20 games, though that mark still ranks fifth on the team in scoring. The Lightning lean on Point’s ability to play both between, and off of, star scorers Kucherov and Jake Guentzel. His absence would force the team to find another adaptable second-line center. It would also bump rookie Jack Finley back into the lineup. Finley has two points and a plus-one in eight games this season. He made his NHL debut last season, after scoring 28 points in 40 AHL games.

Tampa Bay is already facing injuries to top defenders Victor Hedman and Ryan McDonagh. Despite that, Saturday night’s win earned the Bolts a three-game win streak, and a 11-3-0 record over their last 14 games.

Latest On Erik Cernak

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

  • When Tampa Bay Lightning defenseman Erik Cernak stepped onto the ice for practice this morning, most observers assumed he’d be fit to play in the team’s game tonight against the Edmonton Oilers. That didn’t come to fruition though, as his injury kept him from taking on the Oilers tonight, meaning he’ll miss a second game with an undisclosed ailment. Cernak has been Tampa Bay’s No. 4 defenseman in terms of ice time this season, averaging 19:05 time-on-ice per game including 2:48 on average on the penalty kill, second-highest on the team.

Lightning Place Victor Hedman On IR, Activate Nick Paul From LTIR

at CDT | by 2 Comments

The Lightning have shifted star defenseman Victor Hedman to injured reserve with the undisclosed injury that’s already kept him out for nearly two weeks, according to Erik Erlendsson of Lightning Insider. His roster spot is going to forward Nick Paul, who’s been activated from long-term injured reserve and will make his season debut Thursday against the Oilers. Hedman is eligible to be activated at any time but will remain sidelined for “probably a couple [of] more weeks,” head coach Jon Cooper told the beat this morning (including the team’s Benjamin Pierce).

Losing a No. 1 defenseman for any stretch of time is always worrisome, but an extended return timeline for Hedman is especially disappointing because of the Bolts’ other injury woes in their top four. Ryan McDonagh remains on IR with an undisclosed injury, while Erik Černák sat out Tuesday’s game against the Devils with a lower-body injury, although he’s expected back tonight. With all those absences, Emil Martinsen Lilleberg is the only Lightning rearguard to play in all 19 games this season.

Hedman’s current absence is also tracking to be one of the longest ones in his incredibly durable career. If he’s out for another two weeks from today, that would bring him to 12 games missed. He hasn’t missed that much time since various injuries limited him to 70 out of 82 appearances in the 2018-19 campaign. Before the injury, Hedman had been left without a goal through 15 games but had still racked up 12 assists, a figure that still leads Tampa’s blue line in scoring. He’s continued his dominance on the possession front, controlling 53.8% of shot attempts at even strength, and his pairing with J.J. Moser has outscored opponents 7-5 at 5-on-5.

His absence his perhaps most felt on Tampa’s power play, where he had half of his point production. They’re already at an underwhelming 17.7% on the year and have gone 2-for-12 in the four games Hedman’s been out. Darren Raddysh is now quarterbacking the top unit in Hedman’s place, but he’s got just two assists with the man advantage in 13 games.

While the Bolts’ defense group remains in disarray, they’ll trade that for having a fully healthy top-nine forward group for the first time this season. Only depth piece Pontus Holmberg remains on the injured list. Paul missed the first six weeks of the year and comes back a couple of weeks behind schedule after undergoing an upper-body procedure extremely late in the offseason. The versatile 6’4″ forward will make his season debut on the wing on a line with Jake Guentzel and Brayden Point, per Pierce. That unit has been downgraded to Tampa’s de facto second line because of Point’s sluggish start to the year, with only three goals and 11 points through 19 games and a -9 rating.

Lightning Reassign Scott Sabourin

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

The Lightning announced Wednesday that they’ve reassigned forward Scott Sabourin to AHL Syracuse. Forwards Pontus Holmberg and Nick Paul are eligible to come off IR and LTIR, respectively, before tomorrow’s game against the Oilers, and one of them will presumably get Sabourin’s roster spot.

Sabourin, 33, has only played three games and has been rostered for 11 days since last clearing waivers, so he doesn’t need them to return to the minors today. He was summoned on multiple short-term occasions in October to serve a four-game suspension he was assessed in the preseason, meaning he didn’t make his season debut until his latest recall, which came on Nov. 12. The depth enforcer managed to rattle off a goal and an assist in his first two games – his first NHL points since April 2022 – before racking up 16 penalty minutes (three minors and a misconduct) and going pointless against the Canucks last Sunday. He was then scratched for Tuesday’s 5-1 loss to the Devils to make way for Dominic James’ return to the lineup, making it apparent he’d be the odd man out when Tampa needed to open its next roster spot at forward.

It was still a much better offensive showing than expected from the 6’4″, 207-lb fighter, who’s now up to a 3-7–10 scoring line in 50 career NHL appearances. While his NHL resume doesn’t offer much more than his fights, he’s had enough offensive utility in the AHL in the past to work his way into a middle-six role there. This season, Sabourin’s logged three goals and two assists for five points in 11 contests.

After spending his last two seasons in the Sharks organization, this is Sabourin’s first in Tampa after they signed him to a two-way deal with a $350,000 guarantee last summer. It’s the 14th season of Sabourin’s professional career, which began as a free agent signing by the AHL’s now-defunct Manchester Monarchs.

Lightning’s Erik Cernak Out On Tuesday

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

The Tampa Bay Lightning will be without defenseman Erik Cernak in Tuesday’s game against the New Jersey Devils, per Eduardo A. Encina of the Tampa Bay Times. Cernak joins Victor Hedman, Ryan McDonagh, and Maxwell Crozier on the list of injured Lightning defenseman.

With Cernak’s absence, Tampa Bay will now be without two of their top four defenders as they go up against a Devils squad that ranks 14th in the NHL in goals. As is usual, Cernak has been the lowest-scoring of Tampa Bay’s top-four, with only three assists in 18 games this season. He does, however, lead the Lightning in both blocked shots (40) and hits (39). No other Bolt has blocked more than 13 shots.

Cernak’s impact may come away from the scoresheet, but his absence will nonetheless leave a major hole for Tampa Bay to fill. Declan Carlile will step back into the lineup for the first time this season in place of Cernak. He will operate behind rookie Charle-Édouard D’Astous, who himself will grow into a top-four role.

Carlile leads the Syracuse Crunch’s blue-line in scoring with 10 points in 15 games this season. He scored one goal in four NHL games over the last two seasons. D’Astous has posted five points in his first 11 NHL games, making him Tampa’s highest-scoring, healthy defender. The Lightning will need to lean on both rookies, with major holes at even-strength and on special teams.

Tampa Bay Lightning Make Multiple Roster Moves

at CDT | by 1 Comment

There are hardly any teams currently dealing with as many injuries as the Tampa Bay Lightning. Needing additional depth for their contest tonight against the New Jersey Devils, the Lightning announced they’ve recalled defenseman Declan Carlile and Steven Santini from the AHL’s Syracuse Crunch.

Additionally, Tampa Bay has swapped two players around its injured reserve, albeit an expected one. Erik Erlendsson of Lightning Insider reports that Tampa Bay has activated forward Dominic James from the injured reserve and placed defenseman Maxwell Crozier on it. 

After all the movement on the active roster, it leaves Tampa Bay with 13 forwards and eight defensemen available for tonight’s contest. It’s expected that one of Carlile or Santini will suit up tonight, though there’s no guarantee either defenseman will participate.

If Carlile plays, it’ll be his fifth career performance in the NHL. The former undrafted collegiate free agent is in his fifth season with the Lightning organization and has primarily played for the Crunch since the 2021-22 season.

For the first few years of his career, Carlile had been expected to put up between 20 and 30 points in the AHL with a relatively high +/-. However, this season, his offensive game has taken a significant jump, scoring two goals and 10 points in 15 games. He’s the highest-scoring defenseman on the team by a four-point margin and the fifth-highest scorer overall.

Meanwhile, Santini has far more NHL experience from his playing days, although it has been limited in recent years. Since the beginning of the 2019-20 campaign, Santini has appeared in 10 NHL games. Before then, from 2016 to 2019, Santini had suited up in 113 regular-season contests for the New Jersey Devils. He’s spent the last two years in the Lightning organization, scoring six goals and 21 points in 71 games.

Lightning Reassign Boris Katchouk

at CDT | by 1 Comment

The Lightning announced they’ve reassigned winger Boris Katchouk to AHL Syracuse. They now have two open roster spots, leaving the option for multiple IR activations ahead of tomorrow’s game against the Devils.

Katchouk was recalled last Wednesday in the wake of injuries to depth forwards Pontus Holmberg and Dominic James. It marked the 27-year-old’s first time on an NHL roster since April 2024. The second-round pick of the Lightning in 2016 spent last year on a minor-league contract with AHL Wilkes-Barre/Scranton after being non-tendered by the Senators the previous offseason.

The Ontario native returned to the Bolts for his second stint in Tampa over the summer on a two-way deal and cleared waivers during training camp. After the 6’2″ grinder had 21 goals and 49 points in 67 games for Wilkes-Barre/Scranton last year, he got off to a similarly strong start in Syracuse with four goals and nine points through his first 12 games.

With Holmberg, James, and Anthony Cirelli all unavailable for each of the Bolts’ last three games (in addition to the LTIR-bound Nick Paul), Katchouk was never scratched and played each game of his call-up. He didn’t make much of an impact, though. He was held without a point and managed just one shot attempt despite averaging over 12 minutes of ice time per game. Tampa’s injuries forced him to slot in down the middle instead of on the wing, though, a potential explanation for why he looked so overmatched offensively. He went 36.8% in the dot on 19 attempts and recorded five hits.

Katchouk’s recall burned three games and five days off his temporary waiver exemption. After passing through them unscathed in October, Katchouk can remain on the Lightning’s roster for 25 more days or play seven more games until he needs them again to head back to Syracuse.

Lightning Reassign Jakob Pelletier

at CDT | by 1 Comment

Nov. 16: The Lightning announced they’d reassigned Pelletier back to Syracuse ahead of today’s game against the Canucks. He was replaced in the lineup by Brandon Hagel, whose absence due to an upper-body injury lasted just one game. Pelletier logged just 6:12 of ice time in his Lightning debut, managing three shot attempts, one block, and one hit.

Nov. 15: The Tampa Bay Lightning have recalled forward Jakob Pelletier from their AHL affiliate, the Syracuse Crunch.

Today’s move marks Pelletier as the third forward recalled from Syracuse over the last two days. Yesterday, the Lightning recalled forwards Boris Katchouk and Scott Sabourin.

Out of the three newly-recalled Lightning forwards, it’s Pelletier who has had the most successful season so far. The 24-year-old leads the Crunch in scoring with 14 points in 13 games. He’s proven to be a quality AHL scorer, hovering at around a point-per-game scoring rate since he made his professional debut in 2021-22 with the Stockton Heat, who have since been relocated.

The 2019 first-round pick hasn’t been able to translate that AHL success to the NHL level so far, though. In 86 career NHL games, Pelletier has 29 points. It was Pelletier’s inability to earn consistent, productive NHL minutes that led to him being non-tendered by the Philadelphia Flyers this past summer.

As an undersized winger without dynamic skating ability, Pelletier has always faced an uphill battle to earn a regular role in the NHL. So far, he hasn’t yet been able to stick in the world’s top league on a full-time basis, though he did get into almost 50 games last season.

With today’s recall, Pelletier gets his latest chance to prove himself at the NHL level. At this moment, it remains to be seen whether he’ll draw into head coach Jon Cooper’s lineup for the team’s contest this evening.

Taking a moment to look at the financial ramifications of this recall, it’s worth noting that this is the only year of Pelletier’s three-year, $775K AAV deal with the Lightning that carries a two-way structure. In each of 2026-27 and 2027-28, Pelletier is set to make $775K regardless of whether he’s on Tampa’s roster or in Syracuse.

But for 2025-26, Pelletier stands to make $250K in the AHL, $775K in the NHL, and carries a $350K total guarantee. While it’s unclear at this point how long Pelletier will remain on the Lightning’s NHL roster, this recall does at least enhance the player’s chances of eventually exceeding his $350K guarantee by the end of the season.

Pro Hockey Rumors is not affiliated with National Hockey League, NHL or NHL.com

Do not Sell or Share My Personal Information

scroll to top