Tonight at 10:30 p.m. ET, the Tampa Bay Lightning (14-7-0, 28 points) and San Jose Sharks (13-3-5, 31 points) faceoff live from the SAP Center in San Jose in the first of two meetings against each other this season. The game can be live streamed here. Tampa Bay fans can hear all of the hard-hitting action by tuning their dials to 970 WFLA while San Jose fans can do the same on KFOX 98.5.
Tampa Bay started out 7-0-0 this season against Western Conference teams, but has dropped back-to-back games to the Los Angeles Kings and Phoenix Coyotes to kick off its trip while San Jose returns home after a 3-1-1 road trip, but lost 5-1 to the Chicago Blackhawks Sunday.
Tampa's loss to Phoenix on Saturday dropped it from the top of the Eastern Conference behind the Boston Bruins, and the team will look to claw their way back to the top of the heap.
''This hasn't happened in back-to-back games for us this year,'' coach Jon Cooper said per NHL.com. ''This was the first time we've been on the wrong end of the score twice in a row. Coming out West is a tough trip. There are some good teams out here."
San Jose will hope that the return of Brent Burns (facial injury) who is slated to return after being activated from the injured reserve, will give the team a boost.
"We'll see how he is when he comes to the rink, but he's telling me now that he's ready," coach Todd McLellan said Thursday, according to NHL.com. "He looks ready, and right now he is. You don't take a 6-foot-5, 230-pound player out of your lineup that can skate and shoot like that and not miss him. It's as simple as that. He is a big, big part of our team."
The Sharks have been led offensively by Joe Pavelski and Joe Thornton, who each have 22 points. Pavelski has eight goals and 14 assists while Thornton has two tallies and 18 helpers while Patrick Marleau (10 goals, 10 assists) and Logan Couture (eight goals, 12 assists) each have 20 points.
For Tampa Bay, with Steven Stamkos (broken tibia) sidelined indefinitely, Martin St. Louis carries the team with eight goals and 13 assists for 21 points while Valtteri Filppula has found the back of the net nine times and added seven helpers for 16 points and Alex Killorn has lit the lamp six times and added nine assists for 15 points.
Ben Bishop has been one of the NHL's elite goaltenders thus far this season for Tampa Bay, notching a 13-3-0 record along with a 2.29 goals-against average and a .921 save percentage while Antti Niemi is 10-3-5 with a 2.29 GAA and a .912 save percentage.
The Lightning will look to avoid a third straight loss in the west coast while the Sharks look to start its homestand off strong when these two teams hit the ice tonight at the SAP Center in San Jose.
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