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Lightning Team Report (Yahoo! Sports)

Sun, 08 Nov 2009 02:16:07 PST

Defenseman Matt Smaby appeared to establish himself as a reliable and regular No. 5 or No. 6 defenseman with a strong showing in the final month of last season, including a lengthy stretch in which he played with a broken foot when the Lightning were decimated by injuries.

But a month into the 2009-10 season, the fourth-year pro has yet to see a game. Tampa Bay has been carrying nine defensemen throughout most of the season, and Smaby has been slotted in as the ninth guy. Not even an injury that kept rookie Victor Hedman out of the lineup was enough for Smaby to get his shot.

"I showed that I can play last year and make a difference in a game," Smaby said. "It's frustrating, because I know I can play."

While the Lightning have been trying to move Lukas Krajicek and...

Saturday's Three Stars: Nabokov blanks Pens in rout (Yahoo! Sports)

Sat, 07 Nov 2009 23:20:37 PST

No. 1 Star: Evgeni Nabokov, San Jose Sharks The Sharks netminder was solid against the defending champions making...

Cherry's 5 rules to safer hockey (CBC.ca)

Sat, 07 Nov 2009 22:27:27 PST

A rash of injuries has swept through the NHL and junior hockey, and Hockey Night in Canada's Don Cherry says they can easily be prevented if the league and its players make some tweaks in their game.

Tampa Bay ends trip with 3-1 win over Canadiens (AP)

Sat, 07 Nov 2009 20:15:04 PST

The Tampa Bay Lightning celebrated as though they had scored a key goal. And after further review, they had. Ryan Malone and Alex Tanguay each had a goal and an assist to lead Tampa Bay to a 3-1 win over the Montreal Canadiens on Saturday night. James Wright also scored for the Lightning, which went 2-0-1 after dropping the opener of a four-game road trip at Philadelphia on Monday.

Malone, Tanguay lead Lightning to 3-1 win over Canadiens (The Canadian Press)

Sat, 07 Nov 2009 20:14:00 PST

MONTREAL - The Tampa Bay Lightning began the NHL season with Mike Smith as their No. 1 goaltender, but Antero Niittymaki is making a serious bid for the job.

HHOF inductees praise veterans (CBC.ca)

Sat, 07 Nov 2009 16:48:19 PST

Steve Yzerman, Brian Leetch, Brett Hull, Luc Robitaile and Lou Lamiorello make up the 2009 Hockey Hall of Fame induction class.

Injuries are a pain to NHL (CBC.ca)

Sat, 07 Nov 2009 15:05:11 PST

Hockey Night in Canada's senior online reporter looks at the league's spate of injuries this season, which will no doubt be a hot topic among the general mangers at their meeting in Toronto this week.

Montreal homecoming for Lightning stars (CBC.ca)

Sat, 07 Nov 2009 11:42:04 PST

There will be a few familiar faces on the visitors bench at the Bell Centre on Saturday night when the Montreal Canadiens host the Tampa Bay Lightning on Hockey Night in Canada (7 p.m. ET, CBC, CBCSports.ca).

Plenty to 'see' from Steven Stamkos this season (Yahoo! Sports)

Sat, 07 Nov 2009 11:15:00 PST

Through the first 35 games last season, Tampa Bay Lightning center Steven Stamkos scored just four times.

The 10 most brutal NHL injuries of the last decade (Yahoo! Sports)

Sat, 07 Nov 2009 09:24:59 PST

(No, the first decade of the 21st century doesn't technically end until 2011. Save your bellyaching.

Leafs, Red Wings battle in Hall of Fame Game (CBC.ca)

Sat, 07 Nov 2009 07:27:46 PST

The Toronto Maple Leafs and Detroit Red Wings will renew their Original Six rivalry in front of an illustrious crowd on Saturday on Hockey Night in Canada (6:30 p.m. ET, CBC, CBCSports.ca).

Puck Previews: The battle for the basement; Hedman hurt (Yahoo! Sports)

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 16:00:50 PST

Here are your Puck Previews: Spotlighting the key games in NHL action, news and views as well as general...

Senators centre Spezza hopes to convince Hockey Canada he deserves Olympic spot (The Canadian Press)

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 15:06:00 PST

OTTAWA - Jason Spezza's load got a little lighter Thursday night when he scored for the first time this season.

Lightning rookie won't play against Canadiens (AP)

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 13:47:03 PST

Tampa Bay Lightning rookie Victor Hedman will not be in the lineup for Saturday's game against the Montreal Canadiens following a body check that left him flattened on the ice. Hedman says he feels OK but will skip the game as a precaution. The defenseman watched his teammates practice Friday and says he does not want to risk anything this early in the season.

Spezza returns to lineup, scores in OT to give Senators 3-2 win over Lightning. (The Canadian Press)

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 22:33:00 PST

Jason Spezza's early scoring drought appears to be over.

Undisciplined Oilers drop 3rd straight (CBC.ca)

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 22:15:03 PST

The ailing Edmonton Oilers dug their own hole Thursday night with a parade to the penalty box, giving the New York Rangers the chance they needed to put the brakes on a four-game losing skid on the road.

Spezza's OT goal lifts Senators past Lightning (AP)

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 20:42:52 PST

Jason Spezza is glad he won't have to answer any more questions about his early goal drought. Spezza got his first goal of the season on a power play 4:17 into overtime to give the Ottawa Senators a 3-2 victory over the Tampa Bay Lightning on Thursday night. Sidelined the previous two games because of back pain, Spezza drove a slap shot past Antero Niittymaki for his third point of the game...

Jason Spezza's power-play goal in overtime lifts Senators over Lightning 3-2 (The Canadian Press)

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 20:34:00 PST

OTTAWA - As Jason Spezza raised his arms in celebration Thursday night, he also let out a huge sigh of relief.

Flames hope to appease Sutter in Dallas (CBC.ca)

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 12:19:48 PST

Coach Brent Sutter sent his Calgary Flames a message during practice on Monday and he'll find out if they heard him loud and clear when the team heads to Dallas to face the Stars on Wednesday night.

Vincent Lecavalier hopes to erase slow start in time to make Team Canada (The Canadian Press)

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 12:01:00 PST

Vincent Lecavalier has had no shortage of reminders about the uphill battle he's facing to earn a spot on Team Canada.

NHL roundup: Tuesday's action on the ice (The Canadian Press)

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 22:30:00 PST

An encouraging Toronto debut from Phil Kessel couldn't save the Maple Leafs from yet another overtime loss.

Malone scores in OT to give Lightning win (AP)

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 21:46:49 PST

Antero Niittymaki shut the Maple Leafs down, and Ryan Malone rewarded him with a win. Malone scored at 2:21 of overtime, giving the Tampa Bay Lightning a 2-1 victory over the Toronto Maple Leafs on Tuesday night. "We really met the challenge tonight," coach Rick Tocchet said. "We killed five, six penalties in a row.

Leafs still winless at home with 2-1 OT loss to Lightning despite Kessel debut (The Canadian Press)

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 20:49:00 PST

TORONTO - Some 13 minutes into his Toronto Maple Leafs debut, it looked like Phil Kessel might be headed right back onto the injured list.

Thrashers deny Habs 6th home win (CBC.ca)

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 20:09:04 PST

Brian Gionta scored two goals, but it wasn't enough to give the Montreal Canadiens another victory after their five-game winning streak at home.

Expect a younger Team Canada: Yzerman (CBC.ca)

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 17:41:29 PST

Canadians should expect a bit of a youth movement when the red and white hit the ice in Vancouver in a few months, according to Steve Yzerman, Hockey Canada's executive director.

Lecavalier, Stamkos in opposite zones for Lightning (CBC.ca)

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 12:49:41 PST

The Tampa Bay Lightning arrived in Toronto for their game against the Maple Leafs on Tuesday, and their top-two centres, Vincent Lecavalier and Steven Stamkos, were getting most of the attention — for different reasons.

Is calling out Lecavalier a new hobby for Tampa's Tocchet? (Yahoo! Sports)

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 12:15:29 PST

How often is a team captain with the highest salary and most celebrity unceremoniously dropped from the top line...

The 9 best NHL teams of the last decade (Yahoo! Sports)

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 07:08:53 PST

(No, the first decade of the 21st century doesn't technically end until 2011. Save your bellyaching.

Three Stars: Richards, Smyth, and Witt double down in victories (Yahoo! Sports)

Mon, 02 Nov 2009 21:57:26 PST

No. 1 Star: Ryan Smyth, Los Angeles Kings Mr. Smyth went to the desert and had himself a night.