By By Ken Filler | Tampa Bay Sports Journal
TAMPA — The Tampa Bay Lightning do not need Victor Hedman to turn back the clock eight years.
They do not need him to recreate his Norris Trophy season, play half the game every night, or carry an entire defense on his 6-foot-7 frame.
But they do need their captain back.
Not simply back in the lineup. They need Hedman healthy, confident, and playing like the defenseman who can still change a game with his skating and vision.
After everything Hedman endured last season, that distinction matters.
The 2025-26 season was the most difficult of Hedman’s remarkable career.
A broken foot suffered during the previous playoffs disrupted his summer training.
A hip injury followed during the preseason. Then came an undisclosed injury, elbow surgery, another physical setback at the Winter Olympics, and, eventually, a leave of absence to address his mental health.
Hedman played only 33 games, finishing with one goal and 16 assists.
He missed the final 22 games of Tampa Bay’s season, including its seven-game first-round playoff loss to Montreal.
Those numbers barely resemble the player who produced 76 points in 2023-24 and followed that with 66 points, including 15 goals, during his first season as Lightning captain.
But that is also why it would be a mistake to look at last season and assume Hedman suddenly reached the end.
A season that became too much
Hedman has always been one of the Lightning’s most dependable players. He played through pain during championship runs, accepted enormous workloads, and rarely made excuses when his performance dipped.
Last season became different.
The injuries affected his skating, and once Hedman no longer trusted his body, the mental strain became increasingly difficult to manage.
Mistakes that he would have forgotten stayed with him. Game days brought performance anxiety and pressure.
Following a March 19 game in Vancouver, Hedman recognized he needed to step away.
“I wasn’t myself on the ice,” Hedman told NHL.com.
That may be the most important sentence when evaluating what happened.
This wasn’t simply an aging defenseman losing a step; it was a player trying to compete without being physically or mentally himself. Eventually, Hedman made the difficult but correct decision to put his health first.
No criticism should be attached to that decision.
Hedman has given nearly two decades of his life to this organization.
He helped bring two Stanley Cups to Tampa Bay, won a Norris Trophy, and captured the Conn Smythe Trophy during the 2020 championship run.
He has played through injuries that would have sidelined plenty of other players.
Stepping away did not make him less of a captain. It showed enough self-awareness to realize he could not help the Lightning until he helped himself.
The encouraging signs
The most important offseason development for Tampa Bay may not have been a trade or free-agent signing. It was Hedman reporting that he feels healthy again—both physically and mentally.
He told NHL.com in August that he was skating every day, training in the gym and feeling like his body was where he wanted it to be. He described himself as “super fresh, hungry and super motivated.”
That does not guarantee an injury-free season or another Norris Trophy nomination.
Hedman will turn 36 in December, and expecting him to become the 27-year-old version of himself would be unreasonable.
But a healthy Hedman remains capable of being one of the NHL’s better defensemen.
We don’t have to dig deep into his past to find the evidence.
In 2023-24, he recorded 13 goals and 63 assists in 78 games. A year later, he delivered 15 goals and 51 assists in 79 games while averaging a team-high 23:05 of ice time.
That was not ancient history. It was the season immediately before his body began breaking down.
Hedman may need several games to regain his timing after such a long absence.
He hasn’t played an NHL game since March. His reads, puck movement and power-play decisions should return quickly, but finding the right pace against live competition could take time.
Tampa Bay can manage his workload differently
One reason for optimism is that the Lightning should not have to lean on Hedman as much as they did in the past.
Adding John Carlson gives coach Jon Cooper another experienced defenseman who can move the puck, run a power-play unit, and handle serious situations.
Carlson wasn’t brought in to become Hedman, and he doesn’t have to replace what Darren Raddysh provided last season.
But his presence can still make Hedman’s life easier.
Carlson gives the Lightning options. He can take some offensive-zone starts, absorb power-play minutes, and give Cooper another trusted veteran late in games.
Ryan McDonagh can continue handling difficult defensive assignments, while Erik Cernak provides a physical, stay-at-home presence when healthy.
That depth could allow Tampa Bay to keep Hedman closer to 21 or 22 minutes on many nights instead of automatically pushing him beyond 24.
Those saved minutes matter across an 84-game season.
The Lightning should also resist the temptation to treat every regular-season game like a playoff elimination game.
Hedman’s value will not be measured by whether he plays all 84.
It will be measured by whether he is healthy, effective, and available when Tampa Bay reaches the postseason.
This team has learned the painful difference between qualifying for the playoffs and being properly built for them.
What should the Lightning expect?
A realistic expectation would be somewhere between 55 and 65 points if Hedman remains healthy for most of the season.
The offense should still be there.
Hedman remains an exceptional passer who can start the rush, create shooting lanes, and find Nikita Kucherov, Brayden Point, and Jake Guentzel on the power play.
His shot still commands respect, and few defensemen his size can move the puck as smoothly through the neutral zone.
The larger question will be his movement defensively.
When Hedman skates well, he closes gaps with his reach, recovers when plays break down, and turns defensive stops into immediate offense.
When his mobility is compromised, those recoveries get harder, and his mistakes become more noticeable.
That is why his comments about feeling healthy carry more weight than any offseason workout video or optimistic projection.
Hedman knows his skating is the foundation of his game. If the legs are back and the elbow is no longer restricting him, the Lightning should get a significantly different player than the one who struggled through last season.
Can he be the Hedman of old?
That should not be the standard.
The Lightning are unlikely to get the peak Hedman who won the Norris Trophy in 2018 or dominated the 2020 postseason.
Age eventually changes every player, even the greatest defenseman in franchise history.
But the Lightning can still get a highly productive No. 1 defenseman who controls possession, quarterbacks the power play, provides leadership, and delivers elite stretches of hockey.
More importantly, the Lightning could get a healthier and more balanced version of their captain.
General manager Julien BriseBois said in May that Hedman was in a good place and that he expected him to have a good season. Teammate Ryan McDonagh said Hedman seemed like “his old self again.”
That is what Tampa Bay needs—not a replica of the past, but the return of the confidence, joy, and command that have defined Hedman’s career.
Last season should not be viewed as evidence that Victor Hedman can no longer be Victor Hedman.
It should be viewed as a season in which injuries and mental-health struggles prevented him from having a fair chance.
Now he gets that chance.
The Lightning’s Stanley Cup hopes may depend on how much of the old Hedman remains.
After a summer devoted to healing his body and mind, there is every reason to believe there is still plenty left.
