"It's hard for me to say right now because I don't even know when this next round is going to start," Cooper said Friday before it was announced the Lightning will open the Eastern Conference Final on Wednesday. "Is Point closer to playing in round three than he was in round two? No question. He's progressing. We've just got to see."
Tampa Bay will face the New York Rangers in the conference final. The Rangers won 6-2 against the Carolina Hurricanes in Game 7 of their second-round series Monday.
Point was injured in the first period of Game 7 of the first round against the Toronto Maple Leafs on May 14. The forward was chasing a puck to the boards in the offensive zone when Maple Leafs defenseman Mark Giordano tried to get a stick on the puck and Point's right leg twisted as he slid in the wall. Point returned to the game before leaving and hasn't played or practiced since.
"There's a plan," Cooper said about when Point would start skating. "We'll let you know when it gets going."
Forward Steven Stamkos can relate to Point; he missed the first 16 games of the 2016 playoffs before returning in a loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins in Game 7 in the conference final.
Stamkos also was out for almost the entire playoffs in 2020 after aggravating a core muscle injury. He returned for Game 3 of the Cup Final against the Dallas Stars and played five shifts, scoring a goal on his only shot in a 5-2 win.
"It's the worst feeling as an athlete, is not being able to perform, especially at this time of the year," said Stamkos, the Tampa Bay captain. "Those things happen. It's unfortunate. The group, obviously we felt bad for 'Pointer.' We know how important he is to our team and the caliber of player that he is and what he's done in these past couple of runs. … He's got so much respect in the dressing room. He's a warrior out there on the ice and he's working his butt off to come back."
Point has four points (two goals, two assists) in seven playoff games. He led the NHL in playoff goals each of the past two seasons, scoring 14 in each to help the Lightning win back-to-back Stanley Cup titles, and was second in points (56) behind teammate Nikita Kucherov (66).
Tampa Bay proved it could win without Stamkos in 2020. So far this postseason, the Lightning have continued to show they can adjust without a top player in the lineup.
"We just hope there's enough time [for Point] to get back and play this playoffs," Stamkos said. "This rest is certainly nice. The crazy thing is, we lose him early in that Game 7 and probably not a lot of people thought we'd be sitting here winning that Game 7 and sweeping Florida without one our best players and one of the best players in the world. It's a credit to the group for sticking together, buckling down and playing a certain way."
Though Point isn't playing, forward Alex Killorn said that he has been around the team and has provided a positive presence.
"Pointer is just a guy that's around and he's great to be around," Killorn said. "The longer we play, the better chance he has of joining us. I don't know if that's the focus, but we understand that that's a possibility. So for sure, we think about that."
