Tampa Bay Lightning try to save season without their captain

The latest update on Victor Hedman won't save the Lightning in Game 6

Mar 7, 2026; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Tampa Bay Lightning defenseman Victor Hedman (77) warms up before playing the Toronto Maple Leafs at Scotiabank Arena. Mandatory Credit: Dan Hamilton-Imagn Images / Dan Hamilton-Imagn Images

The Tampa Bay Lightning have not come out of the first period with a lead in their last 20 games, dating back to the regular season.

They are locked into a titantic battle with the Montreal Canadiens, a series so tight that it has been tied for nearly 60 percent of the total minutes.

They are down to their last strike, so to speak -- with a 7pm faceoff scheduled for Game 6 on Friday night in Montreal, with the Canadiens holding a 3-2 lead even without major scoring from Montreal's top line.

The Lightning-Canadiens series has been tied or within one goal for all but 5:37.

There has been at most a one-goal margin for 98.2% of the playing time through the first five games (310:42 of 316:19).

Tied %: 58.7
MTL Lead %: 32.7
TBL Lead %: 8.6

— Chris Meaney (@chrismeaney) April 30, 2026

And they will not have their captain, again.

Not that it's stunning hat Victor Hedman is out again, but the reality hits hard, as the defenseman has been sorely missed. Jon Cooper hinted Friday morning that Hedman could be back soon from an absence that has been characterized as "personal reasons." While coach Jon Cooper said earlier in the series that Hedman was unlikely to return at all against Montreal, he made it sound possible Friday by now saying Hedman -- who hasn't played since March 19 -- will be an option "very soon."

Could that mean a Game 7 in Tampa Bay on Sunday? A chance for the Lightning to erase some recent embarrassing history? And a date with either Buffalo or Boston in the next round, with the Sabres currently holding a 3-2 series lead?

Well, the Lightning need to get there first, and there's no assurance of that.

While the defense has held up reasonably well in this series, goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy hasn't played at an elite level, which has been a problem in recent postseasons. The youngest goaltender to ever record 300 wins, while now past his prime, needs to be the one to take this series back to Tampa Bay. He's been outplayed by the much younger Jakub Dobes, who has a higher save percentge in the series, including stops of 38 of 40 shots in Game 5.

Tampa Bay hasn't won a playoff series since losing in the 2022 Stanley Cup final. The problem in recent seasons has been their cross and down state rival, the Florida Panthers, but the Panthers were ravaged by injuries this season and missed the playoffs entirely. So that excuse is gone. The Lightning can't let Hedman's unavailability be an excuse either. Tampa Bay has played without him long enough, so none of this remains a surprise.