The Lightning have re-assigned defenseman Matt Taormina to Syracuse and have recalled forward Mike Angelidis and defenseman Luke Witkowski.
Witkowski will replace Taormina on the roster after Taormina had only played in one game for the Lightning. Witkowski appeared in 16 games for Tampa Bay last year, but has yet to record a point in the NHL. So far this season for the Syracuse Crunch he has contributed four assists in 13 games. Witkowski is a right handed, hard hitting, physical defenseman. He will not impress you with his offensive skills and one area he really needed to work on after last season’s stint in the NHL was his first pass out of the zone. He looked good during the pre-season games he played and was showing progress in that area.
Angelidis is the captain of the Crunch and has appeared in 10 NHL games with one goal that he scored in his debut game in 2011-12. He has gotten off to a slow start in Syracuse with only three assists in 13 games. Angelidis had one of his best professional seasons last year having 38 points in 64 games. He provides the Lightning with another penalty killer and a fourth line, checking center. He also isn’t afraid to scrap and will throw down the gloves when appropriate.
This move brings the Lightning to 17 forwards, 7 defensemen and 2 goalies on the roster for a total of 26 players. Ondrej Palat is already on injured reserve. No IR move was announced with the Joel Vermin recall, but between him and Angelidis being recalled, that means that 2 more forwards need to be placed on IR to make room on the roster. Those two are likely Cedric Paquette and Jonathan Drouin who did not participate in this morning’s skate. The Lightning are quickly running out of forward depth and greatly need for some players to get healthy if they are to pull out of this early season slump they’ve found themselves in.
