Joseph was banged up early in Sunday's game in Minnesota and he is not expected to play Tuesday in St. Louis. With Joseph out, Gabriel Fortier was recalled from the AHL and will make his NHL debut in Joseph's place.
After a solid rookie season, Joseph struggled in his first 34 NHL games this season. Since going down to Syracuse, the 23-year-old has scored five goals with nine assists (14 points) in 20 AHL games.
Joseph appeared in three straight games, playing 11:03 ATOI but failing to record a point. It's been a tough season for the 22-year-old, who played the entire 2018-19 season with Tampa Bay. He heads back to Syracuse, where he has one goal in two games.
Joseph scored one goal in two games with the Crunch after being sent down. He comes back up with Tyler Johnson out with a lower-body injury. The 22-year-old has just four goals and three assists (seven points) in 31 NHL games this year.
Joseph started the season at a decent pace, posting seven points (4G / 3A) while playing 12:36 ATOI in his first 21 games but has no points and a minus-4 rating while playing just 9:43 ATOI in his last 10. He'll go back to Syracuse to get his game back in order, which means that Mitchell Stephens will remain with the Lightning and play on the fourth line on Thursday.
Joseph has not scored a goal in 12 games and has just one assist over that span. The winger took two penalties (six PIMS) in Saturday’s game and will be replaced by Mitchell Stephens, who will be making his NHL debut.
As expected, Joseph’s stint with the Crunch was very short-lived, he likely never actually left the team. The move was made to give the Lightning an extra defenseman for Tuesday’s game and Joseph is waiver-exempt.
Joseph was a late scratch from Thursday’s game vs. the Maple Leafs and missed Friday’s practice. Joseph is listed as day-to-day, which makes him questionable for Sunday’s game in Winnipeg.
