Victor Hedman injury: What happened to Tampa Bay Lightning defenceman?

Victor Hedman did not play in tonight's Tampa Bay Lightning against Vancouver Canucks, more than a week after playing his 1000th NHL game.

Victor Hedman's injury status was defined as day-to-day with an upper-body injury by the team. Hedman had exited during the second period when the Lightning took on Seattle Kraken on December 10th.

Hedman missed team practice on Monday and head coach Jon Cooper commented on the defenseman's status after practice and said,

"We'll give him a go in the morning and see where he's at. I'd say he's game time (decision)."

Victor Hedman has five goals and 22 assists in 29 games for the Lightning this season. In Hedman's absence, Mikhail Sergachev took his spot in the starting lineup.

Anthony Cirelii was seen wearing the 'A' on his jersey indicating he will be the alternate captain for the Bolts in Hedman's absence.

Victor Hedman's absence felt in loss to Canucks

The Tampa Bay Lightning went up against the Canucks without their starting defenseman Victor Hedman. Tonight was his first game out of the Tampa lineup this season.

Mikhail Sergachev took his place in the starting lineup and immediately showed impact. Brayden Point scored the first goal 1:25 into the first period with an assist from Hedman's replacement Sergachev.

Andrei Kuzmenko, involved in trade rumors due to his slow start to the season, scored a goal during the powerplay to tie it up 1-1 for the Canucks. This was the Russian forward's first goal in five games.

Brock Boeser scored his second hattrick of the season with two goals in the second period and an empty netter in the last minutes of the third period. Captain Quinn Hughes had a three-point game from his three assists.

In the goalie battle, Canucks' Thatcher Demko made 28 saves with Andrei Vasilevskiy making 18 behind the Bolts' net.

Per Kevin Woodley on Kevin Woodley, Bolts head coach Jon Copper summed up his team's performance and said,

“We had some looks and we had we had enough scoring chances to get more than one goal, but we didn't. It's tough in this league at times. They kind of shut it down, the goalie was dialed in and we kept pushing.”

The Tampa Bay Lightning will face off against Connor McDavid and Edmonton Oilers on Thursday. The Oilers are currently in a 8-0 winning streak and are in formidable shape as opposed to their early season.

Victor Hedman's status before tonight was day-to-day, His availability for the Oilers game is currently unknown but the Bolts would like their veteran defenceman back on the first line at the earliest.