New Tampa Bay Lightning star Jake Guentzel is set to play in the team’s season opener on Friday night, shares Bally Sports Florida’s Gabby Shirley. Guentzel will return to the team’s top line and top powerplay unit after missing parts of multiple practices this week with an undisclosed injury.
Guentzel will fill the role of Lightning legend Steven Stamkos after the latter moved to Nashville in his first trip to unrestricted free agency this summer. It’s Guentzel’s second move of the year after being traded from Pittsburgh to Carolina at the 2024 Trade Deadline. He proved incredibly productive with the Hurricanes – totaling eight goals, 17 assists, and 25 points in 17 regular-season games, then adding four goals and nine points in 11 postseason games. The hot production continued his streak of point-per-game scoring that dates all the way back to his 2019-20 campaign, when Guentzel notched 20 goals and 43 points in 39 games. He more formally stamped his high-scoring in 2021-22, netting 40 goals and 84 points in 76 games. The recently-turned 30-year-old now sits with two 30-goal seasons, and two 40-goal seasons, throughout his eight-year career in the NHL. Those numbers should only continue as he prepares for a role next to Brayden Point and Nikita Kucherov in Tampa Bay.
Other notes from out East:
- John-Jason Peterka continues to ramp up his workload at the Buffalo Sabres’ practices after missing time with a concussion, shares Lance Lysowski of The Buffalo News. Peterka has now practiced in each of the last three skates, though he sat out of Buffalo’s home opener on Thursday. Lysowski adds that Peterka’s availability won’t be confirmed until the team sees how he responds to practice. The 22-year-old stands as one of Buffalo’s most exciting up-and-comers, after posting 28 goals and 50 points last season. That includes eight goals and 12 points in 17 games to end the season – production Peterka will look to build on when he’s able to return.
- Boston Bruins head coach Jim Montgomery has shared that there’s a “possibility” that forward Matthew Poitras will make his season debut tomorrow, per Steve Conroy of the Boston Herald. Poitras has been on injured reserve since training camp and became eligible to be reinstated on Thursday. Poitras was a hot-topic rookie last season – winning a roster spot out of camp and posting 15 points through his first 33 NHL games, though a shoulder injury ended his season in February. He’ll now look to bounce back from injury in a big way, set to fill the final spot on Boston’s roster.