The Tampa Bay Lightning have officially traded defenseman Nikita Nesterov to the Montreal Canadiens in exchange for defenseman Jonathan Racine.
The Tampa Bay Lightning has spent a good portion of the season desperately searching for the chemistry the team had in the beginning of the season. While the Bolts would have a glimmer of hope every now and then, it would only be a matter of time before the team would revert to bad habits and fall face-first down the hole.
The fans here in the Bolts Nation remained on the edge of their seats just waiting for the shakeup to come. Whether it meant making a move between the Syracuse Crunch and the main roster or making a trade to another team, something had to be done.
Well, it seems as if the latter is the choice the Tampa Bay Lightning elected to go with. During the pregame warmups tonight at the BB&T Center in Sunrise, it was announced that Tampa Bay Lightning Vice President and General Manager Steve Yzerman had made a trade.
Tampa Bay Lightning play-by-play announcer Rick Peckham announced the Lightning have officially traded defenseman Nikita Nesterov to the Montreal Canadiens in exchange for defenseman Jonathan Racine and a 6th Round Pick in the 2017 NHL Entry Draft.
What kind of impact does this have on tonight’s game with the Florida Panthers, you may ask? In lieu of the last minute trade, Lightning forward Erik Condra will be suiting up and joining the team on the ice tonight as Lightning Head Coach Jon Cooper has elected to go with six defensemen and 12 forwards.
Unfortunately for Nesterov, the writing has been on the wall for quite some time. While he is not a horrible defenseman, a series of small yet consistent mistakes would leave Lightning fans giving Nesterov the stink eye on many occasions.
Jonathan Racine has played just one game in the NHL. This game came as a member of the Florida Panthers on April 1, 2014 as the Panthers took on the New York Islanders.
This season, Racine has played in a total of 26 games with the St. John’s IceCaps, the American Hockey League affiliate of the Montreal Canadiens. Offensively, Racine has picked up three assists along with a total of 58 penalty minutes.
While Nikita Nesterov was generally liked both in and outside of the locker room, this could very well be a good thing for the Tampa Bay Lightning. As we mentioned previously, the team was in desperate need of a change.
So…what does this change mean for the Tampa Bay Lightning? While there has been no official announcement from the Lightning in regards to their plans for the 23-year-old defenseman, one could easily assume he will be sent to the Syracuse Crunch. This would give the Lightning room to utilize someone like Slater Koekkoek or Luke Witkowski on the blueline on the main roster.
At this point, it’s unknown what the future holds for each of these players. We here at Bolts By The Bay would like to wish Nikita Nesterov the best of luck with his new team. (Well…except when the Canadiens play the Lightning, of course.) We would also like to welcome Jonathan Racine to the Bolts Nation.
Next: Lightning Reach A Turning Point In Season
Our advice to the Bolts Nation, buckle your seatbelts and prepare for a wild and crazy ride. Steve Yzerman has gotten to work much earlier than he has in past seasons, and there is still plenty of time between now and the NHL Trade Deadline for Yzerman to really make some waves.