Tampa Bay Lightning forward Jonathan Drouin returned to practice this morning after being forced to miss Thursday night’s game against the Calgary Flames with the flu.
The Tampa Bay Lightning received some pretty bad news right before taking on the Calgary Flames in what could’ve been their eighth-straight game bringing home much-needed points. It turned out Lightning forward Jonathan Drouin was still impacted by a case of the flu and would not be able to participate in the game.
As the regular season looms off in the distance, no team ever wants to hear one of their strongest playmakers will be forced to sit on the sidelines, but alas, it is something every team has to deal with at one point or another. While Drouin’s absence may not have been the cause, the Bolts would lose 3-2 to the Flames.
On the bright side, there is some good news coming out of the Bolts Nation today. As most Lightning fans know by now, the Lightning is digging their heels in deep in preparing to take on the Ottawa Senators in the third game of their current four-game homestand. Well, it seems as if there is another smiling face at practice.
Tampa Bay Lightning
According to Tampa Bay Lightning Beat Writer Bryan Burns, Lightning forward Jonathan Drouin was on the ice with the rest of the team today as they prepare to take on the Senators. While no one person neither makes, nor breaks, a team, having someone like Drouin back in the lineup is a definite notch in the win column.
In his last five games, Drouin has brought home both a goal and an assist for a total of two points. This is nothing in comparison to the contributions he’s made throughout the season. In the 51 games he’s played so far this season, the 21-year-old forward has scored 17 goals and 19 assists for a total of 36 points.
Even with his recent absence from the ice, Jonathan Drouin is tied for second place on the team in goals scored and is in fourth place in overall points. As most Tampa Bay Lightning fans know, this is a far cry from where we found ourselves last season. However, that’s another story for another day.
The Tampa Bay Lightning has one more day to prepare before they are set to take on the Ottawa Senators on Monday night. This will give Drouin another full day to shake off any residual effects of his illness and really get ready to bring the game to the Senators.
Given the Senators are Divisional opponents for the Lightning, this game will be one of the most important games heading down the stretch. A Lightning victory not only puts a much-needed two points in the hands of the Bolts, but it takes those same points out of the hands of their direct competition.
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Here’s hoping the Lightning can shake off their 3-2 loss to the Calgary Flames and get back to playing the kind of hockey we’ve seen from them over the course of the six previous games. If the Lightning wants to find themselves in playoff contention, it has to be full steam ahead from this point on.