Tampa Bay was forced to shuffle the deck a little bit with the roster, but it wasn't the shakeup some fans are looking for to help turn around the team's fortunes.
The Lightning pulled off a trade, acquiring defenseman Brendan Mikkelson from the Calgary Flames in exchange for center Blair Jones. Mikkelson joined the team in Montreal, where it fell 3-1 Saturday, after a long travel day, but was held out of the lineup to allow him to absorb what it is the Lightning like to do on defense.
Looking for some size and speed on the blue line, the Lightning hope that Mikkelson, a former second-round pick of Anaheim in 2005, can provide some of that.
"He can skate the puck up the ice, and I wouldn't describe him strictly as an offensive-minded defenseman or a defensive-minded defenseman," general manager Steve Yzerman said. "I just think his game is as a guy who can skate the puck up. He makes a good first pass, so he has the ability to move it."
Tampa Bay head coach Guy Boucher, whose team next faces Vancouver on Tuesday, was hesitant to throw the 24-year-old into the lineup right away, but knows Mikkelson can provide some depth on defense.
"We would like to see him at some point, so we'll look for the opportunities," Boucher said. "He's a big boy with speed ... it's something we desperately needed and I think it was good that (Yzerman) was able to make this trade."
