Vasilevskiy returns for matchup of NHL's top two teams

The Tampa Bay Lightning will get a big lift tonight when Vezina-finalist goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy returns after missing the past 14 games with a left foot fracture suffered November 14 during a practice session in Pittsburgh.
The Lightning thrived despite Vasilevskiy's absence, going 12-2 with him sidelined and creating more separation between themselves and tonight's opponent, the Toronto Maple Leafs, ranked second in the league standings behind the Bolts.
Vasilevskiy's return gives tonight's already-hyped matchup an added layer of intrigue.

"He's got to get that first one in at some point," Lightning head coach Jon Cooper said about the decision to start Vasilevskiy tonight. "There was a thought we might play him the prior game, but get him a really good practice yesterday, he did really well so tonight's the night."

Vasilevskiy will get thrown right into the fire. Toronto is six points back of the Lightning and looking to make up ground against the league-leading Bolts. The Maple Leafs are probably the one team in the NHL that can match the Lightning's forward depth. The Leafs have four players - John Tavares (19), Auston Matthews (16), Kasperi Kapanen (11) and Morgan Rielly (10) - with over 10 goals on the season and about five or six more right on the cusp. Plus, they've recently welcomed dynamic young forward William Nylander back in the fold, Nylander signing a six-year contract extension with Toronto on December 1.
"Two of the best teams in the league, so we're looking forward to this challenge," Lightning captain Steven Stamkos said. "We've been on a pretty good run here ourselves as have they. It should be a great atmosphere. I know when Buffalo came in here the other day and they were on that 10-game win streak, you could just kind of sense the great atmosphere in this building. Obviously, with Toronto coming in with the caliber of team that they are, it should be a good one tonight."
Two of the top offenses in the NHL will be on display when the Bolts host the Leafs tonight. Tampa Bay ranks first in the league for goals (128) and goals per game (4), and over the last two seasons, no other team has tallied more goals than the Lightning (418). Toronto is right behind the Lightning in second place (383) for goals over the last two seasons. The Maple Leafs rank tied for second in the NHL for scoring this season with 113 goals.
Of course, with two of the top goalies in the league matching up tonight - Toronto's Frederik Andersen with his 17 wins, second-most in the league, against Vasilevskiy - tonight's contest has the potential to be a low-scoring duel as well.
"I don't know what tonight will be," Cooper said. "It's one of those probably expect the unexpected. As this season's gone on, I'm sure this one's been circled on the calendar. It's probably coming at a really good time as both teams are sitting in a pretty good spot in the standings. It's one of 82 but it should be a good one."

"A big test for us trying to shut down their group, their offensive guys," Brayden Point added. "They play a 200-foot game as well, and they've got a lot of guys that can skate. It's going to be tough to get time and space out there so hopefully we can generate some stuff off our cycle game and the pucks are going to go in."
The Lightning have won seven straight coming into the Toronto game, the third-longest win streak in franchise history and the longest active streak in the NHL currently. The challenge for the Lightning then becomes, by adding Vasilevskiy, the team can't get away from what's allowed them to have so much success, particularly of late. The Bolts are the only team in the league yet to lose a game in the month of December.
"We can't have that let down now just because (Vasilevskiy's) back," Stamkos said. "Obviously, he's an elite goaltender, but we want to maintain the play that we've had. We can't just think that he's back and he's got it covered. He does most of the time, but we'll look to continue playing the right way."