Tampa Bay Lightning F Jonathan Drouin Has A Lot To Prove

Tampa Bay Lightning left wing Jonathan Drouin has a lot to prove to the team and to fans as he makes his return to the Lightning’s main roster.

The Tampa Bay Lightning has definitely had more than its fair share of dramatic storylines this season. The Lightning has experienced everything from a multitude of injuries to contract negotiations and even trade requests, but there has been one storyline that has seemingly outshined all the rest and remained at the forefront of the minds of Lightning fans; the drama surrounding left wing Jonathan Drouin.

We’ve all heard the story before. Drouin spent more than a few games away from the ice due to an injury. As per the norm, Tampa Bay Lightning Vice President and General Manager Steve Yzerman decided to assign Jonathan Drouin to the team’s American Hockey League affiliate, the Syracuse Crunch, on a conditioning stint. Apparently, Drouin had other ideas about the course of his career.

As the Tampa Bay Lightning made their way to the Scotiabank Saddledome to take on the Calgary Flames, Jonathan Drouin’s agent Allan Walsh made a very public statement that his client had requested a trade from the team back in November, a quest which had yet to be granted. Despite the flurry of media attention this announcement garnered, Drouin reported to the Crunch as requested.

Jonathan Drouin spoke to the media once he arrived in Syracuse. Unfortunately, the young Quebec forward had no intentions of speaking on the one topic everyone wanted to know more about. This started to draw the ire of Lightning fans all around the Bolts Nation; however, at this point, Drouin was doing what had been asked of him.

Unfortunately, after scoring a pair of goals in his first game with the Crunch, Drouin’s production was nothing to shake a stick at. This is not the kind of play you bring forward if you are looking to make your way back to the big time. Somehow, Drouin came to the conclusion that he no longer needed to play for the Crunch as it was not worth risking an injury while he waited for the Lightning to make a trade.

As you can imagine, this was in direct violation of his contract with the Tampa Bay Lightning. Steve Yzerman had no other viable option but to suspend Jonathan Drouin indefinitely without pay. Months went by and we heard absolutely nothing from Drouin. Was this the last time we would ever see the potential star forward on the ice, let alone in a Tampa Bay Lightning uniform? Thankfully not.

On March 2^nd, Drouin and the Tampa Bay Lightning seemed to come to a mutual understanding and Jonathan Drouin’s suspension was lifted and he returned to the Syracuse Crunch. Since then, he has been lighting up the scoreboard. In the 17 games he’s played with the Crunch this season, Jonathan Drouin has scored 11 goals and two assists for a total of 13 points.

Unfortunately for the Tampa Bay Lightning, as they approach the final two games of the season still searching for the two points needed to give them home-ice advantage in the first round of the 2016 Stanley Cup Playoffs, they have been absolutely nailed with injuries.

Right now, the Tampa Bay Lightning are down captain Steven Stamkos (blood clot), defensemen Anton Stralman (fractured fibula) and Victor Hedman (Upper Body Injury), and alternate captain Ryan Callahan (Lower Body Injury.) Making matters worse, it is highly unlikely we will see any of these players return to the ice before the start of the postseason.

Keeping all this in mind, the Tampa Bay Lightning has come to a point where a call-up simply had to be made. At this point, Jonathan Drouin has proven he is worthy of a second chance at the Lightning’s main roster. The thing is, the journey back to the main roster is going to be a long and arduous one for the young forward. The coaches and players welcomed Drouin back with open arms, but the fans are a little more difficult to win over.

Given everything that has transpired over the course of the 2015-16, Jonathan Drouin has a lot to prove in his most recent return to the Tampa Bay Lightning’s main roster. We all know Drouin has the skill set to be successful on the ice. Yzerman wouldn’t have drafted him as highly as he did if Drouin didn’t. If Drouin can remain focused on the task at hand and truly works to make the Lightning a better team, he may have found his way back to the main roster. Of course, he has a lot of competition for that spot on the roster.

Next: Tampa Bay Lightning Recall Jonathan Drouin

The next chapter in Jonathan Drouin’s story starts tonight as the Tampa Bay Lightning take on the New Jersey Devils at the Prudential Center in Newark. The Lightning needs just two more points to secure home-ice advantage in the first round of the playoffs. Maybe, just maybe, Jonathan Drouin could be the spark the team needs to get back on track and finish off the regular season right.

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