There was a positive sign for the Tampa Bay Lightning defense yesterday at practice. Defenseman Erik Cernak was on the ice taking a regular rotation with Calvin de Haan, an indication that the big blueliner might be back in the line-up tonight against the Los Angeles Kings.
Cernak missed the last three games after taking a big hit behind the net from Josh Anderson.
It wasn’t all good news from practice as there was a new face missing from practice – Tanner Jeannot. He was injured in the game against the Bruins when he took a hit along the boards. When asked after practice, Coach Cooper indicated that it could be a “week-to-week” issue for the forward. In his absence, Alex Barre-Boulet was taking rushes with Nick Paul and Conor Sheary.
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Lightning re-assign Jack Thompson [Tampa Bay Lightning]
The 21-year-old’s first call-up lasted one game as the team re-assigned him to Syracuse on Monday. It’s another good sign that Cernak is tracking to return to action.
TRRRRRRRAAAAADDDDE [NHL.com]
The Flyers and Ducks swapped prospects on Monday as Philly sent Cutter Gauthier west in exchange for Jamie Drysdale and a second round pick in the 2025 draft. Drysdale, in his third NHL season, has 1 goal and 4 assists in 10 games for the Ducks. Gauthier just returned to Boston College with a gold medal from the World Juniors. However, there were some rumors that he wasn’t interested in signing with the Flyers.
Nylander signs 8-year, $92 million extension [Toronto Sun]
The Leafs lock in one of their more dynamic forwards. It’s going to be interesting to see how they fill out the roster moving forward with all of the big deals on the books (or what they can get for Mitch Marner on the trade block).