Tampa Bay Lightning F Ryan Callahan leaves game with Upper-Body Injury

Tampa Bay Lightning alternate captain Ryan Callahan was forced to leave the game against the Toronto Maple Leafs after an altercation with Leafs forward Josh Leivo.

The Tampa Bay Lightning simply can’t seem to stay healthy to save their lives this season. On a night when Lightning forward Ondrej Palat made his return to the ice after missing 26 games with a Lower-Body Injury he sustained back on January 20, the Bolts potentially lose another key piece of their offensive core.

Lightning alternate captain Ryan Callahan was forced to leave the game after an on-ice altercation with Toronto Maple Leafs forward Josh Leivo. The altercation itself seemed innocent enough, but it became quickly apparent something was very, very wrong.

As soon as the altercation was over, Callahan skated for the bench. The only thing is, Callahan didn’t stop at the bench to get evaluated. Instead, he immediately headed down the tunnel and back to the Lightning locker room. As he was making his way off the ice, he seemed to be holding his shoulder.

Tampa Bay Lightning

As Joe Smith of the Tampa Bay Times pointed out, this is not the first time Cally has suffered a shoulder injury this season. If this is a recurrence of the injury, this could mean very bad things for the Lightning.

While Callahan is not their premier goal-scorer, he has an undeniable on-ice presence and is incredibly skilled at making plays happen.

Lightning fans grew increasingly nervous when Callahan was not on the bench with his teammates when the second period commenced.

Unfortunately, it would be longer than anyone would’ve hoped before an update on Callahan was provided. Even worse, when one was provided, it wasn’t exactly what fans wanted to hear.

Just beyond the halfway point in the second period, it was announced Ryan Callahan would not be returning to the game after suffering an Upper-Body Injury. It is unknown at this point whether or not Cally will be forced to miss any significant time away from the ice, but this is definitely not a good sign as the Bolts officially start their journey towards the postseason.

In the 62 games he’s played until this point in the season, Callahan has scored four goals and 11 assists for a total of 15 points. One thing Callahan offers is veteran experience and when you have a team as young as the Tampa Bay Lightning, something like this is almost irreplaceable.

Next: Gift Guide: 10 Must-Have Steven Stamkos Items

More than likely, the team will have a more in-depth description of Ryan Callahan’s injury status in the next day or two. This will allow the team’s medical staff adequate time to evaluate the situation and have a real idea as to the extent of the injury. Hopefully, it’s nothing too serious. Unfortunately, judging by the look of anguish on Callahan’s face as he left this ice, things are definitely not looking good.