This is one of the worst times for an injury bug to hit the Lightning. Tampa Bay may be without star defenseman Victor Hedman and core forward Alex Killorn on Tuesday night in Columbus. Hedman, who hasn’t practiced since leaving Game 2 in Tampa after a scrum with Columbus’ Josh Anderson and sat out Game 3, missed Monday’s optional skate. Coach Jon Cooper said it’s doubtful that Hedman will return for Game 4. Killorn, meanwhile, came off the ice limping Sunday and tested out some hard stops during a timeout with about 10 minutes remaining in the third period. Cooper said it’s too soon to tell if Killorn will be unavailable Tuesday. Anton Stralman also remains questionable. The defenseman has not skated in the lineup since the last games of the regular season against the Canadiens and the Maple Leafs. Contact Mari Faiello at mfaiello@tampabay.com. Follow @faiello_mari.<doc-sep>The Tampa Bay Lightning are facing a potential sweep in Game 4 on Tuesday (7 p.m. ET; CNBC; Live stream), and they’re going to have to find a way to win without Victor Hedman and Anton Stralman. Head coach Jon Cooper announced that Hedman and Stralman are out, while Alex Killorn is a game-time decision. Of course, the biggest lineup note is that Nikita Kucherov is back in the mix after sitting out Game 3 thanks to his one-game suspension, but these are big absences on the defensive side. Via The Athletic’s Joe Smith, the Lightning will continue to roll with: Mikhail Sergachev – Dan Girardi Ryan McDonagh – Erik Cernak Braydon Coburn – Jan Rutta [NBC 2019 STANLEY CUP PLAYOFF HUB] In a detailed, fantastic piece for The Athletic (sub required), Alison Lukan detailed how the Blue Jackets’ forecheck (by way of a 1-2-2 setup) has been giving the Lightning fits so far in this Round 1 series. “(We are) trying to find ways to limit their opportunities through their speed and their skill,” Brandon Dubinsky said. “That’s making sure we play disciplined and stay above the puck. When you go, it’s about not getting beat up the ice, and if (a Lightning player) moves the puck and your partner goes, you have to make sure you get back and get ahead of that guy and reload for him.” Earlier in Round 1, much was made about Hedman being on the ice for some glaring Blue Jackets goals, particularly a David Savard goal that was key in Columbus’ Game 1 comeback. It was tough to shake the impression that injury issues limited Hedman’s mobility, and the big Swede missing big games only strengthens that possibility. Yet, as much as Hedman’s missed on the defensive side, his absence really hurts the Lightning’s ability to break Columbus’ system with crisp, clean passes (and also the ability to skate the puck up the ice, when that makes sense). The Hedman loss stings, as you’d frankly expect when a team is missing a Norris-level defenseman. It also might push someone useful like Sergachev a little out of their (or Cooper’s) comfort zone. On the bright side, Lukan points out that Kucherov isn’t just a great weapon for Tampa Bay in the offensive zone, but is also one of the Lightning’s best players when it comes to the transition game. Heading into Game 4, the Lightning played into typical cliches by talking about taking things “one period at a time,” and there might be some wisdom within the well-worn words. More than anything else, the Lightning could really benefit from starting Tuesday’s contest with a lead, preferably an early one. If Columbus is chasing a score, the Blue Jackets might be a little bit more willing to “cheat” or get too aggressive, potentially opening up lanes and other opportunities for the Lightning to really get rolling. Still, between the Blue Jackets’ commitment to clogging things up, officials generally putting away their whistles when it comes to obstruction, and Sergei Bobrovsky‘s bank-account-fattening brilliance, Columbus is unlikely to make this easy on the Lightning. Not having Hedman, Stralman, and possibly Killorn only makes the mountain taller. The Lightning hope to avoid being swept by Columbus Tuesday night at 7 p.m. ET on CNBC (Live stream) — James O’Brien is a writer for Pro Hockey Talk on NBC Sports. Drop him a line at phtblog@nbcsports.com or follow him on Twitter @cyclelikesedins.<doc-sep>
COLUMBUS — The Lightning is without one of its top defensemen in addition to its leading scorer for Game 3. Victor Hedman is not in Sunday’s lineup. Jon Cooper called it a game-time decision that morning and Hedman did not take warmups. He missed Saturday’s practice, which Cooper attributed to a combination of body maintenance and being banged up. He was involved in the scrum that resulted from the hit for which Nikita Kucherov was suspended. Hedman paired off with Josh Anderson; they exchanged jabs, having grabbed each other by the jersey’s neck hole. Asked if this was the same upper-body injury that kept Hedman out of the final four games of the regular-season, Cooper said he didn’t know. "You know how Tortorella is, he's trying to get to your best guys, he's trying to hit them,” Mikhail Sergachev. “That's his approach, I think, because I've heard it from a lot of guys who were coached by him. Their tough guys are trying to go after Heddy because he's our best defenseman. But he hasn't changed his game, he's been playing the way he is, it's tough to see that he's a little banged up and may not play tonight. We hope he comes back soon.'' With Nikita Kucherov serving the one-game suspension, the Lightning’s power play is already missing one major piece. Losing Hedman would be another hit. Sergachev filled in for Hedman at the point when he was out, but it’s also possible the Lightning will reconfigure the whole unit down two big players. Defenseman Cameron Gaunce was recalled, presumably to have a seventh healthy defenseman if Hedman is not ready to play.