PROJECTED LINES
Lines from Saturday's game vs. Montreal, and subject to change.
Forwards
Ondrej Palat - Brayden Point - Nikita Kucherov
Alex Killorn - Vladislav Namestnikov - Jonathan Drouin
Adam Erne - Yanni Gourde - Joel Vermin
Gabriel Dumont - Greg McKegg - JT Brown
Defensemen
Victor Hedman - Jake Dotchin
Anton Stralman - Luke Witkowski
Braydon Coburn - Andrej Sustr
Goaltender
Peter Budaj expected to start
SUNDAY'S MATCHUP
The Lightning and the Stars are playing their second of two meetings this season...Dallas was a 4-3 winner in overtime the last time the two teams met (Feb. 18), Jamie Benn notching the game-winner 3:47 into the extra session...Antoine Roussel recorded his first career hat trick for the Stars in the win, and Victor Hedman netted a pair of goals in the loss for the Bolts...Tampa Bay has lost three straight to Dallas...Three of the last four matchups between the Lightning and the Stars have been decided by a single goal...The Bolts are 4-12-1 with two ties all-time at home against Dallas, but three of those victories have come in the last five home meetings...The Lightning are 11-20-3 with three ties all-time overall versus the Stars..
LIGHTNING-STARS STORYLINES
The Lightning enter tonight's game four points behind Boston but with a game in hand for the final wild card in the Eastern Conference and five points behind Toronto and Ottawa for second/third place in the Atlantic Division...The Bolts are playing their final game against a Western Conference opponent tonight...Since Feb. 4, Tampa Bay is 16-5-4 and owns the third-best point percentage in the NHL (.720) over that span behind only Chicago (.800) and Calgary (.729)..The Lightning lead the league for power-play goals with 60 (second: Buffalo - 57).
INJURIES
2016-17 Regular Season Man Games Lost: 249
Ryan Callahan - Follow up surgical procedure on right hip (OUT INDEFINITELY; INJURED JAN. 7) 36 Games
Jason Garrison - Lower-body injury (DAY-TO-DAY; INJURED MARCH 24) 4 Games
Tyler Johnson - Lower-body injury (DAY-TO-DAY; INJURED MARCH 9) 11 Games
Cedric Paquette - Lower-body injury (DAY-TO-DAY; INJURED MARCH 9) 11 Games
Steven Stamkos - Lateral meniscus tear in right knee (OUT APPROXIMATELY 4 MONTHS; INJURED NOV. 15) 60 Games
TRANSACTIONS
April 1 -- Recalled F Joel Vermin from AHL Syracuse
April 1 -- Re-assigned F Joel Vermin to AHL Syracuse
March 29 - Recalled F Joel Vermin from AHL Syracuse
March 28 - Re-assigned F Joel Vermin to AHL Syracuse
March 24 - Re-assigned D Slater Koekkoek to AHL Syracuse
March 24 - Recalled D Slater Koekkeok from AHL Syracuse
HED OF THE CLASS
Tampa Bay defenseman Victor Hedman tallied his team-leading 52nd assist of the season April 1 vs. MTL and ranks tied for fifth in the NHL for assists and second among league defensemen, trailing only OTT's Erik Karlsson (53)...Hedman's 52 assists are the most in a single season all-time for a Lightning defenseman...Hedman's 52 assists are the most by a Lightning player since Martin St. Louis put up 68 in 2010-11...Hedman passed Roman Hamrlik (16-49--65 in 1995-96) on Thursday for most points in a single season by a Bolts blueliner...Hedman has set career highs for goals (15), assists (52) and points (66) this season...Hedman ranks tied for 17th in the league for scoring and third among league defensemen.
