Tampa Bay Lightning superstar goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy remains on track in his recovery after undergoing offseason back surgery, coach Jon Cooper confirmed on Thursday.
“The schedule hasn't changed,” Cooper explained, per the Associated Press. “He's a workaholic in how he prepares and how he looks after his body. So, sometimes you have to pull the reins back a little on him and just let nature take its course and your body takes its course. Everything is going according to plan.”
It's certainly great news for Bolts fans; the team is off to a decent start to the 2023-24 campaign, compiling a 2-2-1 record through five contests. They defeated the Vancouver Canucks 4-3 at home on Thursday night.
Vasilevskiy underwent a microdiscectomy to address a lumbar disk herniation just over three weeks ago, per AP. He remains on target to return to the lineup in late November or early December.
In the meantime, Jonas Johansson has been solid if unspectacular between the pipes, making 26-of-29 saves in Thursday's win against Vancouver. He also made 28-of-31 stops in a 3-2 overtime loss to the Buffalo Sabres earlier this week.
It's a fine start for a Tampa team that was reeling after the news of Andrei Vasilevskiy's surgery broke. It looks like Johansson will be able to fill in just fine until the Russian star is ready to return.
Vasilevskiy won the Vezina Trophy in 2019 as the league's best goaltender, and captured the Conn Smythe Trophy in 2021 as the Most Valuable Player of the postseason, helping the Lightning win their second straight Stanley Cup.
Stamkos back in the lineup
Steven Stamkos also rejoined the lineup against the Canucks on Thursday after missing two games with an undisclosed lower body injury. He scored a goal in his return, while ripping sevens shots at Thatcher Demko. The captain is 40th on the NHL career goal list with 518 after his snipe on Thursday.
The Lightning will be back in action with the Toronto Maple Leafs in town on Saturday night; it's the first matchup between the two Atlantic Division clubs since the Leafs beat the Bolts in six games in the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs.
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