Lightning At Blues Morning Open Thread: Fabbri Returns

One of last year's matchups between the Blues and Lightning was a tighter affair than many expected. The Blues' first win was a 2-1 overtime victory on February 4th. The game winning goal that night was scored by Jaden Schwartz, who is of course out for the next three months at the very least with a broken ankle.

The other was a 6-3 blowout in Tampa Bay. Brian Elliott was victorious in both games, but he was helped significantly by the 43 shots on net that the Blues attempted in game two. Game one, the Blues were outplayed and stole two points.

Saturday night, the walking wounded Blues were outplayed in the first, picked up strength as they picked up consistency and familiarity in their lines as the game progressed, but lost in their first 3-on-3 overtime. The team will be getting Scottie Upshall back tonight as he should be recovered from whatever ailed him on Saturday. They will also be getting Robby Fabbri back. Fabbri had not played since the second game of the season, when an errant elbow from Chris Porter felled him.

Kevin Shattenkirk, however, will aim for a Thursday return.

With the return of Fabbri, Upshall, and Thursday Shattenkirk, the Blues will still be without three of their top nine forwards in Patrik Berglund, Schwartz, and Paul Stastny. Stastny, who will be re-evaluated in about four weeks, will be the earliest to return.

This season isn't going to be easy, and the Bolts won't cut the Blues any slack. Three periods like the last two regulation periods on Saturday would go a long way to getting the Blues two points.

This is your morning open thread. Check back later for a Lighting the Lamp, your preview, and any other game day stuff we may come across. While you're waiting for puck drop and the GDT, head to Raw Charge and say hi to our friends and fans of the team that we all rooted for in June.