Lightning’s Erik Cernak expected to return after 17-game absence

A veteran rearguard is set to return to the lineup.

On Wednesday, the Tampa Bay Lightning activated defenseman Erik Cernak from long-term injured reserve. According to Lightning Insider Erik Erlendsson, Cernak is expected to return to the lineup for the team’s New Year’s Eve clash with the Anaheim Ducks.

It would be Cernak’s first game since Nov. 22, as the right-handed rearguard has been out of action for the past 17 games with a hand injury.

The 28-year-old had missed a game due to a lower-body injury in mid-November, only to get hurt just a few days later. He has missed 19 of the Lightning’s first 38 games this season due to various ailments.

In the 19 games he has played in, Cernak has yet to find the back of the net himself. He has just four assists thus far, grabbing helpers in each of his past two appearances. He has registered a plus/minus of zero while averaging 19:19 of ice time.

With Cernak back in the lineup, expect to see some shuffling on the back end. With a depleted D-Corps that’s still missing captain Victor Hedman, Cernak is most likely to jump into the top four, with the possibility of seeing a pair of Cernak and J.J. Moser on New Year’s Eve.

The Slovakian defender is in the third season of his eight-year contract that he signed in July 2022. The deal carries an AAV of $5.2 million through the 2030-31 campaign.

The Lightning (22-13-3) is trying to stay in the hunt for first in the Atlantic Division. With four wins in a row, the Bolts remain third in the division, three points back of the Detroit Red Wings for first.