TAMPA, Fla. — The Olympic break is over, which means the Tampa Bay Lightning hockey is back.
None of the Lightning players who played in the medal round of the Olympics in Milan, Italy, were on the ice for Tuesday’s practice — that includes Jake Guentzel, Brandon Hagel and Erik Cernak.
Most of the team got to sit back and enjoy a thrilling gold medal game between the United States and Canada.
“Obviously, we’ve got relationships on both sides there,” defenseman Ryan McDonagh said. “You go through a mix of emotions. We watched it, can’t help be entertained by that kind of hockey. The real thought is, ‘Why did it take so long to get back to playing in the Olympics. Best-on-best. If that’s the product that it showed, the passion guys played with, how honored they are to represent their country. It’s great we were able to make that happen for the guys.”
Lightning captain Victor Hedman, who played for Sweden, took the family to the Milan Cortina winter games.
“The kids got to see some now and focus on something else instead of hockey for a couple of days,” Hedman said. “They got their first snow experience. Seeing the joy on their face made it easy for me to flip the switch as well.”
Tampa Bay hit the Olympic break on a five-game winning streak and some decent separation in the Atlantic Division. It will now be a sprint to the finish with 27 games in 50 days.
“We put ourselves in a great spot. The way we played, the consistency we’ve had,” Hedman said. “It’s been a lot of fun to be a part of. Just keep doing what we did before the break. We played a lot of good hockey. The good thing about the break is that we get some bodies back. Guys are getting closer to playing again.”
Forward Brayden Point is expected to make his return from a knee injury when the Lightning host the Toronto Maple Leafs on Wednesday at 7:30 p.m.
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