Orlando Magic

Weekend Watch List: Lightning face injury obstacles, Whiteside returns

Published Mar. 13, 2015 11:07 a.m. ET

Hana Ostapchuk

With a month to go in the regular season, the Tampa Bay Lightning will be missing three key players -- forward Ondrej Palat (lower-body) for 2-3 weeks, forward Cedric Paquette (upper body) for 10-14 days and defenseman Braydon Coburn (lower-body) for 4-6 weeks -- as they battle the Montreal Canadiens, New York Rangers and New York Islanders for the top seed in the Eastern Conference.

On the court, Hassan Whiteside returns from a one-game suspension Friday as the Miami Heat try to maintain pace in the playoff race.

Here's a closer look at what to watch for in the Sunshine State this weekend...

FRIDAY, MARCH 13

MLB -- Cardinals at Marlins, 1 p.m. (FOX Sports Florida)

MLB -- Rays at Phillies, 1 p.m.

CBK -- SEC tournament: Florida vs. Kentucky, 1 p.m.

NBA -- Magic at Celtics, 7:30 p.m. (FOX Sports Florida)

NBA -- Heat at Raptors, 7:30 p.m. (Sun Sports)

Spotlight: The Miami Marlins meet the St. Louis Cardinals in the first of six spring training games that will be televised by FOX Sports Florida. Games on March 19, 20, 25, 26 and 31 will also be televised. Four Tampa Bay Rays games will be televised on Sun Sports, starting with their March 19 contest vs. the Minnesota Twins.

SATURDAY, MARCH 14

MLB -- Marlins at Nationals, 1 p.m.

MLB -- Rays at Orioles, 1 p.m.

CBK -- SEC tournament: Florida vs. TBD (if necessary)

NHL -- Panthers at Hurricanes, 7 p.m. ET (FOX Sports Florida)

NHL -- Jets at Lightning, 7 p.m. ET (Sun Sports)

Spotlight: The Lightning haven't won in Boston in nearly three years, so it was no surprise that the Bruins snapped the Bolts' four-game winning streak on Thursday night. Tampa Bay came up just short of taking over the top spot in the East after the Canadiens lost. They'll get another chance Saturday when they take on the Winnipeg Jets for the second and final matchup this season. Their first meeting was a 4-2 win for the Bolts in October, with 40 saves by Ben Bishop and scores by Steven Stamkos, Jonathan Drouin, Vladislav Namestnikov and Palat. Winnipeg has lost four of its past five road games.

SUNDAY, MARCH 15

MLB -- Tigers at Marlins, 1 p.m.

MLB -- Mets at Rays, 1 p.m.

CBK -- SEC tournament: Florida vs. TBD (if necessary)

NHL -- Panthers at Rangers, 5 p.m. ET (FOX Sports Florida)

NBA -- Cavaliers at Magic, 6 p.m. ET (FOX Sports Florida)

Spotlight: The Magic take on the Cleveland Cavaliers for the third and final time this season on Sunday. The last two matchups were solid wins for Cleveland -- 106-72 on Nov. 24 and 98-89 on Dec. 26. The Cavaliers head into the weekend on a three-game winning streak after Kyrie Irving's impressive career-high and NBA season-high 57-point effort led Cleveland to 128-125 victory over the Spurs in overtime. The Cavs sit at the top spot of the Central Division, while the Magic are fifth in the Southeast. Orlando is coming off of a 97-91 loss in Milwaukee, and they finish out their three-game road trip on Friday night in Boston before hosting Cleveland on Sunday.

NEWS OF NOTE

-- The Miami Dolphins released defensive tackle Randy Starks on Wednesday in preparation to sign DT Ndamukong Suh, who signed a six-year, $114 million contract with $60 million guaranteed, making him the highest paid defensive player in NFL history.

-- Former Magic center Shaquille O'Neal will be inducted into the Magic Hall of Fame on March 27 the team announced Thursday. The ceremony honors the basketball legend nearly 25 years after his selection with the first pick in the 1992 NBA Draft.

-- On Thursday, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers signed two free agents to one-year deals -- safety Chris Conte and defensive tackle Henry Melton. On Wednesday, the Bucs signed linebacker Bruce Carter to a four-year deal worth $20.5 million and cut defensive end Michael Johnson.

-- The Florida State Seminoles defeated the Clemson Tigers 76-73 in the second round of the ACC tournament on Wednesday. FSU advanced to the ACC quarterfinals on Thursday, but fell short against the No. 3 Virginia Hokies, 58-44.

-- The Miami Hurricanes defeated Virginia Tech 59-49 in the second round of the ACC tournament Wednesday night. Miami faced No. 11 Notre Dame in the quarterfinals on Thursday, but lost to against the Fighting Irish 70-63.

-- Ex-Miami Dolphin CB Cortland Finnegan used Instagram to announce his retirement on Wednesday, but took a poke at Houston Texans wide receiver Andre Johnson while doing so.

-- The Buccaneers released offensive tackle Anthony Collins on Tuesday evening, cutting his five-year, $30 million deal short. Collins was signed last March and was part of the offensive tackle that allowed an NFL-high 124 quarterback hits.

-- The Heat announced on Monday that Chris Bosh (blood clots on lung) is set to return to full basketball activities in September, banking that he will return fully healthy for the 2015-16 season.

TWEET(S) OF THE WEEK

Suh finalized his deal with Miami on Wednesday as fans, teammates and the Dolphins community used social media to send their best wishes on the move.

Suh-weet! We have offically signed DT @NdamukongSuh! #StrongerTogether pic.twitter.com/wr4IvIJHR0
— Miami Dolphins (@MiamiDolphins) March 11, 2015

"Today is a great day and there's going to be many more after that." - @NdamukongSuh MORE: http://t.co/UWjqZ5t4Qb pic.twitter.com/jK74kwW4gl
— Miami Dolphins (@MiamiDolphins) March 12, 2015