The Tampa Bay Lightning got a real scare when Steven Stamkos sprawled into Alexei Emelin’s knee in the second period of Game 3, but the star player remarkably returned to the ice in the final frame on Sunday.
He’s already skated in a couple shifts as of this writing, although with the Montreal Canadiens widening their lead, the Bolts might decide to mostly keep him on the bench for the rest of the game.
Either way, it was a bit surprising to see Stamkos return so quickly. It’s somewhat common to see players return hastily only to miss time later on, so we’ll need to wait and see.
Take another look at the sprawl that left the 24-year-old looking troubled: