The Bolts
Victor Hedman was sick and missed three games. When he returned, Jason Garrison came down with the same illness and it looks like things are only getting worse as the bug spreads throughout the locker room. “It’s leaking through our team and staff,” coach Jon Cooper said. [Tampa Bay Times]
The Bolts continue to hold out hope that they can turn this season around and make the playoffs, but history is not on their side.
Re: #tblightning. Only 2 teams since ’93-94 season made the playoffs after being last in the conference Jan 22. The ’97 Senators + ’09 Blues
— Joe Smith (@TBTimes_JSmith) January 23, 2017
Elliotte Friedman speculated that GM Steve Yzerman may be thinking along those lines. “One guy told me on the weekend that Tampa may not be as active as everyone thinks because Steve Yzerman could just say, ‘You know what? Our team isn’t good enough. Why would I start to make moves and trade stuff away when our team isn’t good enough.’ So I’m kind of wondering what Yzerman is thinking here.” [Fanrag Sports]
Things aren’t much better on the farm as the Syracuse Crunch have had a rough week and dropped seven spots in the power rankings. [Chirps From Center Ice]
The League
The NHL went contemporary with their musical choices this year. “Fifth Harmony, Nick Jonas and Carly Rae Jepsen will all perform at the Honda NHL All-Star Game on Sunday at the Staples Center in Los Angeles.” So watch it, maybe? Sorry. I couldn’t help myself. [Billboard]
The Washington Capitals are really good at hockey. “Washington has won 12 of its past 13 games and earned at least a point in 14 straight, maintaining its position as the league’s top team with 70 points through 47 games.” [Washington Post]
As a reward for your continued devotion to reading things about the Bolts, here is yet another Nikita Kucherov video. In this edition, he’s wearing a neck pillow while singing Adele alongside Tanner Richard. Enjoy!
