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Tampa Bay Lightning News

Hagel (upper-body) will be a game-time decision vs. Los Angeles on Thursday.

Tampa Bay has faced a myriad of injuries to key players this season, with Hagel being the latest, suffering an upper-body injury that leaves him uncertain for Thursday against the Los Angeles Kings. The 27-year-old Hagel is putting together another fantastic season with 31 points (18G / 13A) in 31 games. That said, he has been held off the scoresheet in five of his last six games.

Brandon Hagel
Vasilevskiy (undisclosed) is expected to return vs. Los Angeles on Thursday.

Vasilevskiy was activated from Injured Reserve on Wednesday and seems set to return on Thursday against the Los Angeles Kings. The 31-year-old Vasilevskiy has not played since December 2nd, but his team has treaded water without him, going 2-4-1 in seven games. Before his injury, Vasilevskiy was having a season worthy of Vezina consideration, posting a 2.31 GAA and .916 SV% in 19 games (11-6-2).

Andrei Vasilevskiy
Hagel is day-to-day with an upper-body injury.

Tampa Bay has faced a myriad of injuries to key players this season, with Hagel being the latest, day-to-day with an upper-body injury. The 27-year-old Hagel is putting together another fantastic season with 31 points (18G / 13A) in 31 games. That said, he has been held off the scoresheet in five of his last six games.

Brandon Hagel
Vasilevskiy (undisclosed) has been activated from IR.

On Monday, Tampa Bay Head Coach Jon Cooper announced that Vasilevskiy is aiming to return before Christmas. However, with Vasilevskiy activated from Injured Reserve and Brandon Halverson reassigned to Syracuse (AHL), his return appears imminent. The 31-year-old Vasilevskiy has not played since December 2nd, but his team has treaded water without him, going 2-4-1 in seven games. Before his injury, Vasilevskiy was having a season worthy of Vezina consideration, posting a 2.31 GAA and .916 SV% in 19 games (11-6-2).

Andrei Vasilevskiy
Halverson has been reassigned to Syracuse (AHL).

Halverson has been with the Tampa Bay the past two weeks, but his reassignment to Syracuse (AHL) is an indication that Andrei Vasilevskiy could be nearing a return from injury. The 29-year-old Halverson has only played two NHL games in his career. He has a 2.58 GAA and .901 SV% in 13 games (9-4-0) with the Syracuse Crunch (AHL) this season.

Brandon Halverson
Sabourin is expected to draw back into Tampa Bay's lineup vs. Florida on Monday.

Gage Goncalves and Dominic James will serve as healthy scratches on Monday against the Florida Panthers, allowing Curtis Douglas and Scott Sabourin to re-enter the lineup. The 33-year-old Sabourin is averaging 9:15 time-on-ice and has three points (1G / 2A) in six games this season.

Scott Sabourin
Douglas will draw back into Tampa Bay's lineup vs. Florida on Monday.

Gage Goncalves and Dominic James will serve as healthy scratches on Monday against the Florida Panthers, allowing Curtis Douglas and Scott Sabourin to re-enter the lineup. The 25-year-old Douglas, in his first NHL season, is averaging 5:53 time-on-ice and has two assists in 24 games.

Curtis Douglas
Vasilevskiy (undisclosed) will not return on Monday and is hopeful to return before Christmas.

Vaslievskiy was originally expected to return early this season, but his timeline has seemingly been pushed back slightly. The 31-year-old Vasilevskiy has not played since December 2nd, but his team has managed to tread water without him, going 2-3-1 in six games. Before his injury, Vasilevskiy was having a season worthy of Vezina consideration, posting a 2.31 GAA and .916 SV% in 19 games (11-6-2).

Andrei Vasilevskiy
Johansson will start vs. Florida on Monday.

Andrei Vasilevskiy (undisclosed) was back at practice on Monday, seemingly nearing a return from injury, but Johansson will continue his reign of the Lightning crease during his absence. The 30-year-old Johansson has been reliable while starting six straight (2-3-1), posting a solid 2.25 GAA and .916 SV%. He has a 2.59 GAA and .904 SV% in 14 appearances (7-5-1) and is playing well above his career-average 3.30 GAA and .890 SV% from 80 games (32-26-12) heading into the season. Tampa Bay enters Monday's contest as -132 home favorites against a Florida Panthers team coming off a dominant 4-0 win over the Dallas Stars.

Jonas Johansson
James is expected to be a healthy scratch vs. Florida on Monday.

With Curtis Douglas and Scott Sabourin drawing into the lineup on Monday against the Florida Panthers, Gage Goncalves and Dominic James will head to the sidelines as healthy scratches. The 23-year-old James, a first-year NHLer, is averaging 12:11 time-on-ice and has five points (2G / 3A) in 20 games this season.

Dominic James
Goncalves is expected to be a healthy scratch vs. Florida on Monday.

With Curtis Douglas and Scott Sabourin drawing into the lineup on Monday against the Florida Panthers, Gage Goncalves and Dominic James will head to the sidelines as healthy scratches. The 24-year-old Goncalves is averaging 11:53 time-on-ice and has seven points (2G / 5A) in 29 games this season.

Gage Goncalves
Lilleberg (undisclosed) has been placed on IR.

Lileberg was limited to 13:30 time-on-ice in Tampa Bay's 3-2 shootout loss to the New York Islanders on Saturday, and has been placed on Injured Reserve. The 24-year-old defenseman will be sidelined for, at minimum, one week before he is eligible to return. He has six points (2G / 4A) in 32 games this season.

Emil Lilleberg
Johansson is in the starter's crease at Tampa Bay's morning skate.

Andrei Vasilevskiy (undisclosed) was back at practice on Monday, seemingly nearing a return from injury, but Johansson will continue his reign of the Lightning crease during his absence. The 30-year-old Johansson has been reliable while starting six straight (2-3-1), posting a solid 2.25 GAA and .916 SV%. He has a 2.59 GAA and .904 SV% in 14 appearances (7-5-1) and is playing well above his career-average 3.30 GAA and .890 SV% from 80 games (32-26-12) heading into the season. Tampa Bay enters Monday's contest as -132 home favorites against a Florida Panthers team coming off a dominant 4-0 win over the Dallas Stars.

Jonas Johansson