3. NEW FACES
Not all was lost in the 6-4 defeat for Tampa Bay.
Ryan Callahan returned to the lineup after missing the previous 15 games with a lower-body injury. Callahan provided some help on the penalty kill, which has struggled in his absence, and dished out five hits in 11:20 time on ice.
Callahan, however, said his game is still rounding into form.
"I felt like I missed 15 games," Callahan said. "For myself, I'll chalk it up as the first one back. I've got to be better than I was tonight. So hopefully we'll get that one out of the way and move forward."
Adam Erne made his NHL debut after being recalled from AHL Syracuse on January 1. Erne provided another physical presence up front for the Lightning, logging four hits and a shot in his 12:03 on the ice.
"It was a lot of special teams work, so he didn't get out there a ton in the first couple of periods, but he used his body," Cooper said. "He had a really good chance in the third period I think. Early in the third period, he used his speed. Obviously we didn't get him on the ice near as much as I'd like to get him on. He got on at the end, and I know he spent a lot more time in the offensive zone than the defensive zone. That was good to see."
And Matthew Peca, playing just his fourth NHL game, scored his first career NHL goal a game after recording his first point (an assist Dec. 31 vs. CAR).
"He was good tonight," Cooper said. "He was, again, somebody that is making the most of his call-up, and every game he plays, it's making it a lot tougher to send him down when, eventually, we get guys back."