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Lightning recall goaltender as Jonas Johansson is day-to-day with an injury

Syracuse Crunch goalie Matt Tomkins (90) in net against the Hershey Bears in American Hockey League (AHL) action at the Upstate Medical University Arena in Syracuse, New York on Friday, December 8, 2023. Syracuse won 4-1. Photo by Scott Thomas (Scott Thomas Photography)

Prior to their win against the Los Angeles Kings, the Tampa Bay Lightning made a roster move as they recalled Matt Tomkins from the Syracuse Crunch. They also announced that Jonas Johansson was day-to-day with an undisclosed lower-body injury.

Roster move: #GoBoltsĀ have recalled G Matt Tomkins from AHL Syracuse. Tomkins is 6-8-3 with a .900 SV% with the Crunch this season.

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— Benjamin Pierce (@boltsben.bsky.social) January 30, 2025 at 12:16 PM

It’s been an up-and-down season for Tomkins in Syracuse this season as he is 6-8-3 with a .900 SV% and 2.53 GAA, but has ceded the starter’s role to Brandon Halverson who is having an all-star season for the Crunch. Tomkins has one shutout on the season, a 25-save performance against Utica on November 16th.

Tomkins had a couple of tours of duty with the Lightning last season as he started as the back-up when Andrei Vasilevskiy was recovering from season-opening back surgery, and then finished the season with the team after Johansson injured his quad. Overall he appeared in six games and posted a 3-2-1 record with an .892 SV% and 3.33 GAA.

Checking the schedule, the Lightning have five games remaining before the tournament break, with one back-to-back. Chances are Vasilevskiy will get most of the starts, especially considering all of the games are against teams bunched around the Bolts in the standings. There is one back-to-back just prior to the break that could see Tomkins get the call if JoJo isn’t ready to go by then.

So, if Halverson is playing at an all-star level, why wasn’t he recalled instead of Tomkins? Simply put, because he doesn’t have a NHL contract. The former New York Rangers second-round pick signed a two-year, AHL deal with Syracuse in October of 2023 after getting recalled on a PTO from the Orlando Solar Bears. There was some speculation that, based on his play over the past two seasons, he might earn a NHL-level deal, especially with the lack of goaltenders currently in the system, but that hasn’t happened quite yet for the 28-year-old.

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