Lightning's Wojciech Stachowiak: Secures one-year deal
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Stachowiak signed a one-year, entry-level contract with Tampa Bay on Thursday.
After going undrafted coming out of Michigan State, Stachowiak spent the last five seasons playing in the Deutsche Eishockey Liga. With Ingolstadt ERC this season, the 25-year-old Polish national registered 10 goals and 20 assists in 52 regular-season contests before adding another 11 points in 12 playoff games. Given the one-year deal, Stachowiak should be given a good shot at earning a roster spot coming out of training camp.
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Lightning's Harrison Meneghin: Grabs entry-level deal
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Meneghin agreed to terms on a three-year, entry-level contract with Tampa Bay on Monday.
Meneghin saw action in 35 games with WHL Medicine Hat this season, in which he posted a 23-9-2 record and 2.56 GAA. The 2024 seventh-round pick also went 14-1 in the postseason with a .906 save percentage. With his contract in hand, Meneghin figures to make the jump to the professional ranks next year, likely spending several seasons developing in the minors with AHL Syracuse.
Lightning's Jonas Johansson: Inks two-year extension
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Johansson signed a two-year, $2.5 million contract with the Lightning on Wednesday, Gabby Shirley of FanDuel Sports Network Florida & Sun reports.
Johansson was set to become an unrestricted free agent after completing his two-year, $1.55 million deal. He had a 9-6-3 record, 3.14 GAA and .895 save percentage across 19 regular-season appearances with Tampa Bay in 2024-25. The 29-year-old is expected to continue to serve as Andrei Vasilevskiy's understudy over the life of this new contract.
Lightning's Charle-Edouard D'Astous: Signs with Tampa Bay
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D'Astous signed a one-year, two-way contract with the Lightning on Monday.
D'Astous played in the Swedish Hockey League this year and logged 12 goals and 39 points over 49 appearances with Brynas IF. It wouldn't be surprising to see him spend most of the 2025-26 season in the minors.
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Lightning's Brandon Hagel: Diagnosed with concussion
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Hagel suffered a concussion in Monday's Game 4 against the Panthers that led him to missing Wednesday's Game 5, Benjamin Pierce of the Lightning's official site reports.
The Lightning were eliminated from the playoffs Wednesday, and Hagel wasn't on the ice due to his injury, which has now been revealed to be a concussion. Although he missed Tampa Bay's season-ending loss, he should make a full recovery ahead of training camp in the fall.
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Lightning's Oliver Bjorkstrand: Had surgery during absence
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Bjorkstrand underwent surgery after suffering from compartment syndrome, Benjamin Pierce of the Lightning's official site reports Friday.
With the news that Bjorkstrand had surgery, it seems unlikely he would have been available for the rest of the postseason. In his 18 regular-season games with the Bolts, the 30-year-old winger registered five goals, four assists and 30 shots while averaging 14:03 of ice time. The 30-year-old winger will enter the 2025-26 campaign in the final year of his contract and should be capable of reaching the 40-point threshold for the sixth straight year.
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Lightning's Luke Glendening: Puts up assist Wednesday
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Glendening recorded an assist and five hits in Wednesday's 6-3 loss to the Panthers in Game 5.
Glendening managed two points, one shot on goal, 13 hits and five blocked shots over five playoff outings. The 36-year-old was limited to just seven points in 77 regular-season games, the third time in six years he's failed to log double-digit points. He's an unrestricted free agent this offseason, and it's unclear if he'll be back with the Lightning or if he'll continue his playing career at all moving forward.
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Lightning's Victor Hedman: Earns two assists in Game 5 loss
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Hedman provided two assists, three shots on goal, two blocked shots and a minus-2 rating in Wednesday's 6-3 loss to the Panthers in Game 5.
Hedman put up a decent three helpers (two on the power play) over five playoff contests. The top-pairing defenseman added 10 shots on net, six blocked shots, three hits and a minus-6 rating this postseason. Hedman was strong with 66 points in 79 regular-season outings. At 34 years old, a decline is likely drawing near, but Hedman's part of a strong offense and power-play unit. He'll be in the first season of a four-year, $32 million contract extension in 2025-26, so he remains a big part of the Lightning's plans moving forward.
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Lightning's Gage Goncalves: Opens scoring in loss
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Goncalves scored a goal on four shots and added two hits in Wednesday's 6-3 loss to the Panthers in Game 5.
Goncalves' postseason should be considered encouraging, as the 24-year-old put up four points, four shots on net, 15 hits, four blocked shots and a minus-2 rating over five games. That follows his 20-point effort over 60 regular-season contests in his first full NHL campaign. Goncalves was mostly a bottom-six forward this year, but he averaged 16:54 of ice time in the playoffs compared to 12:48 per contest in the regular season. All signs point to him playing a larger role to begin 2025-26 once the pending restricted free agent gets a new deal signed.
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Lightning's Nick Paul: Deposits goal in Game 5 loss
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Paul scored a goal on five shots and added two hits in Wednesday's 6-3 loss to the Panthers in Game 5.
Paul put up two goals over the last three games, but his tally Wednesday wasn't enough to help extend the Lightning's season. The 30-year-old forward added 12 shots on net, 18 hits and a minus-4 rating over five playoff contests. He's signed for four more years at an affordable $3.15 million cap hit. Expect Paul to continue in his usual middle-six role in 2025-26 after a strong 41-point effort over 76 regular-season games in 2024-25.
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Lightning's Jake Guentzel: Nets power-play marker in loss
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Guentzel scored a power-play goal on four shots, added two PIM and went minus-2 in Wednesday's 6-3 loss to the Panthers in Game 5.
While the Lightning were unable to advance out of the first round, Guentzel was fantastic this postseason. He put up three goals, three assists, 16 shots on net, six hits and a minus-3 rating over five playoff outings. This was the first season of his seven-year deal with the Lightning, and the winger was a factor in all situations. He set career highs in goals (41) and power-play points (28) while reaching the 80-point mark for the second time in nine years. Guentzel is a part of the Lightning's core and will be a big contributor again in 2025-26.
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Lightning's Conor Geekie: Sent to AHL
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Geekie was reassigned to AHL Syracuse on Thursday.
The Lightning were knocked out of the playoffs by the Panthers on Wednesday in a 6-3 loss, and Geekie will head to the minors a day later to help Syracuse in the Calder Cup Playoffs, as the Crunch face a 2-0 deficit heading into Thursday's game against Rochester. The 20-year-old Geekie made 52 regular-season appearances for Tampa Bay this year and recorded eight goals, six assists, 97 hits, 25 blocked shots and 16 PIM while averaging 12:20 of ice time.
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Lightning's Max Crozier: Reassigned to AHL
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Crozier was loaned to AHL Syracuse on Thursday.
Crozier was recalled Wednesday ahead of Game 5 versus Florida, but was a healthy scratch. Crozier failed to hit the scoresheet in five regular-season games with the Lightning in 2024-25. The defenseman had nine goals and 25 helpers in 52 regular-season AHL games before his promotion.
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Lightning's Andrei Vasilevskiy: Concedes five in loss
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Vasilevskiy gave up five goals on 30 shots in a Game 5 loss to Florida on Wednesday.
Vasilevskiy was subpar by his standards in the postseason, registering a 1-4 record, 3.27 GAA and .872 save percentage in five games versus the Panthers. Nominated for the Vezina Trophy, the 30-year-old netminder was fantastic again in the regular season, going 38-20-5 with six shutouts and a 2.18 GAA in his 63 outings. Vasilevskiy will look to continue his run of eight straight 30-win seasons as he heads into the 2025-26 campaign.
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