Part of the Tampa Bay Lightning’s summer to-do list is to find a top-six forward. That is why general manager Steve Yzerman, at the world championship in Helsinki, Finland, is keeping a close eye on Swiss forward Damien Brunner.

“Highly skilled and fast,” Yzerman wrote Tuesday night in a text message, adding Tampa Bay isn’t the only team interested in the 5-foot-11, 187-pound right-handed shot.

Brunner, 26, has three goals, seven points and is plus-2 in seven games at the world championship. He had 24 goals, 60 points and was plus-17 in 45 games for Zug.
 

By Damian Cristodero, Times Staff Writer
Tuesday, May 15, 2012

When Dan Lacroix and Marty Raymond recently visited Wayne Fleming, their ailing colleague, at his Calgary home, the three Lightning assistant coaches spent the day watching and talking hockey.

"Hockey is what gets his eyes open wide," Lacroix recalled this week. "He listened mostly but he was engaged. He talked to us and we laughed and we had a really good day with him. It was nice to see his spirit."

Even so, Fleming "is not seeing a lot of improvement right now" in his 13-month fight with brain cancer, Lightning general manager Steve Yzerman said.

The Tampa Bay Lightning might hire a coaching consultant to take some of the work load off coach Guy Boucher and assistants Dan Lacroix and Marty Raymond. The move, only a consideration at this point, is taking shape because it is clear assistant Wayne Fleming, in the 13th month of his fight with brain cancer, is not returning to the team. His absence last season created added responsibilities for the remaining staff.

General manager Steve Yzerman said he has no plans at this time to hire another full-time assistant. A decision on whether to hire a consultant will be made when Yzerman and Boucher talk after the world championship, which ends May 20 in Helsinki, Finland, where Boucher is an assistant with Team Canada.

By Damian Cristodero, Times Staff Writer
Sunday, May 13, 2012

TAMPA — Every now and then, Mattias Ohlund admitted, he ponders the possibility his career might be over.

But then Ohlund remembers how it is "truly a blessing" to be a pro hockey player, and the Lightning defenseman, who in February had major surgery on his left knee in an attempt to save his career, gets back to the brutal task of rehabilitating the joint.

"I have to, for my own peace of mind, give myself a chance to do this," Ohlund said. "I'd like to play again. I don't know if it's going to happen, but I hope so."

Tampa Bay Lightning defenseman Mattias Ohlund is at the Tampa Bay Times Forum five days a week rehabbing from February’s major surgery on his left knee. Doctors used a layer of titanium to resurface Ohlund’s femur at the patellofemoral joint behind his knee cap. The titanium created a cushion where the cartilage that usually covers the bone had worn away and created painful bone-on-bone rubbing.

Ohlund on Friday said he wants to play again but knows there is no guarantee he can revive his 14-season career. “I want to give myself another chance to play and I’m hoping that’s going to happen, but who knows?” he said.

Want to talk about the NHL or NBA playoffs, the Rays-Yankees series, the Bucs' offseason, sports on TV/radio? Join Times sports personality Tom Jones for a live chat today, from 12:30-1:30 p.m. Can't make it? No problem. Leave a question in advance in the "Comments'' area below, then check back afterward to replay the chat.

Tom Jones chat (May 2012)

Alex Ovechkin rebounded from a rare zero-shot performance by scoring after 88 seconds Wednesday night, Braden Holtby made 30 saves, and the Washington Capitals recovered from a potentially devastating loss by beating the top-seeded New York Rangers 2-1 to force a Game 7 in the Eastern Conference semifinals.

At age 51, Steve Ludzik has ended a decade of silence and revealed his ongoing battle against a brain disorder that also afflicts Muhammad Ali and actor Michael J. Fox.

While a story on a Swedish newspaper site Tuesday set off speculation Mattias Ohlund is retiring, the veteran Tampa Bay Lightning defenseman said he hopes to be able to play again.

It started with a twitch.