It feels extremely unusual to say, but the Tampa Bay Lightning have been seriously struggling as of late. After today's blowout in Carolina, the Lightning have now lost their last five games, were called out and benched by Jon Cooper, and have now lost Victor Hedman to injury.
Hedman later made an attempt to return to the game while it was still within reach, but upon his departure after succumbing to the injury, Carolina piled on the goals.
After the game, Cooper didn't have the incendiary comments he did in the previous game where he benched the top line, but he did provide an update on the status of Hedman. It was a positive sign he attempted to make a return, so hopefully the injury won't cause him to miss significant time.
The Lightning, desperately needing a win in their next game, will perhaps have to do so without their top defenceman in Victor Hedman. With things only getting worse for the Lightning, it'll be interesting to see how this iteration of the team responds to the adversity.
