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Lightning make smart little deal with Erik Condra

Lightning make smart little deal with Erik Condra

Erik Condra was an usher at Tampa Bay Lightning coach Jon Cooper’s wedding. Now, he’s going to be a member of Cooper’s NHL team for the next three seasons.

Condra left the Ottawa Senators on Wednesday, and is going to cost the Tampa Bay Lightning just $1.25 million against the cap, which is outstanding.

Condra had 23 points in 68 games last season, going from a healthy scratch early in the season to being a vital part of a line with Jean-Gabriel Pageau and Curtis Lazar. Condra, 28, was a 50 percent Fenwick player last season, slightly better than average on possession for the Senators.

He’s going to be used in a defensive role down the lineup for the Lightning, able to play either wing. (One assumes this is just a straight-up younger model replacement for Brenden Morrow.)

Just a smart, smart play for GM Steve Yzerman. And of course a reunion with Cooper and Condra, whom he coached as a 17-year old with the Texarkana Bandits of the NAHL.

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