By A Healthy Victor Hedman Could Be the Lightning’s Biggest Addition This Season
By Ken Filler | Tampa Bay Sports Journal
TAMPA — The Tampa Bay Lightning made changes this offseason. They added pieces. They reshaped parts of the roster and will head into training camp believing another Stanley Cup run is possible.
But perhaps the biggest addition isn’t really an addition at all.
It could be the return of Victor Hedman. And not simply Hedman returning to the lineup.
A healthy Victor Hedman.
The Lightning captain is preparing for his 18th NHL season after a difficult 2025-26 campaign that led him to step away from hockey to address both his physical and mental health.
Now, with training camp approaching, Hedman says he feels like himself again.
That could be huge for the Lightning.
“For me, it’s just feeling healthy and feeling like my body is where I want it to be,” Hedman told NHL.com.
Hedman also described himself as “super fresh, hungry, and super motivated” as he prepares to return.
Those are encouraging words for Lightning fans.
Because Tampa Bay knows exactly what a healthy and confident No. 77 can do.
Last Season Wasn’t the Victor Hedman We Know
Anyone who watched Hedman last season could tell something wasn’t right.
The numbers certainly backed that up.
Hedman played just 33 games, finishing with one goal, 16 assists,and 17 points.
But the story ran much deeper than the stats.
Hedman missed 12 games earlier in the season with an undisclosed injury before eventually undergoing an elbow procedure. He missed another 22 games before returning late in the season.
He played four games for Sweden at the 2026 Winter Olympics before another injury kept him out of the quarterfinal against the United States.
Hedman returned to Tampa Bay and played 12 games following the Olympic break.
Then came March 19 against Vancouver.
Hedman played just six shifts and 4:44 before leaving the game.
He hasn’t played an NHL game since.
Hedman later revealed that he was dealing with performance anxiety along with his physical problems.
“I wasn’t myself on the ice,” Hedman told NHL.com.
That might be the most important sentence in this entire story.
Lightning fans know what Hedman looks like when he is himself. He controls games.
He moves the puck out of the defensive zone. He joins the rush. He quarterbacks the power play. He uses that 6-foot-7 frame to defend, yet still skates like a much smaller player.
When those things weren’t happening consistently, Hedman knew something was wrong.
He said the elbow injury left him behind on plays and affected one of the biggest strengths of his game: his skating.
So Hedman did something extremely difficult for a professional athlete, particularly the captain of a team preparing for the playoffs.
He stepped away.
Hedman Made the Right Decision
Some people didn’t understand Hedman’s decision at the time.
The Lightning were heading toward the Stanley Cup Playoffs, and their captain wasn’t playing.
But knowing what we know now, how can anyone argue with it?
Hedman wasn’t healthy physically. More importantly, he wasn’t healthy mentally.
He knew he couldn’t help his team the way he wanted.
So he made the decision that was best for him and, ultimately, best for the Lightning.
“I felt the best thing for the team was for me to focus on myself away,” Hedman told NHL.com. “I don’t regret that decision at all.”
Hedman also decided to speak publicly about what he experienced.
Social media has programmed us to believe professional athletes aren’t supposed to admit they’re struggling.
They’re supposed to play through pain, block everything out, and somehow perform every night.
That’s not reality.
Hedman acknowledged there is still a stigma surrounding mental health, but said it is getting better.
His willingness to discuss what happened may help someone well beyond a hockey rink.
And now he can turn his attention back toward hockey.
What Does a Healthy Hedman Mean for Tampa Bay?
This is where things become really interesting for the Lightning.
Hedman is 35 years old.
Nobody should expect him to become the 25-year-old version of himself.
The Lightning need something much closer to the Victor Hedman we’ve seen for most of his career.
This is a former Norris Trophy winner, a Conn Smythe Trophy winner, a two-time Stanley Cup champion, and one of the greatest players ever to wear a Lightning sweater.
And even before last season’s struggles, Hedman showed he could still produce at an elite offensive level.
In 2024-25, Hedman recorded 15 goals, 51 assists, and 66 points in 79 games.
That’s 66 points from a defenseman.
Getting anything close to that production back would dramatically change Tampa Bay’s blue line.
But Hedman’s impact goes beyond points.
The Lightning need him to play big minutes and move the puck. They need him on special teams.
And they need him playing against the opponent’s best forwards.
And perhaps most importantly, they need their captain.
Tampa Bay’s Blue Line Looks Much Different With Hedman
The Lightning added veteran defenseman John Carlson this offseason, giving Tampa Bay another experienced puck-moving defenseman with a championship pedigree.
Now imagine Carlson and a healthy Hedman on the same blue line.
That’s a considerably different-looking defense.
It also gives coach Jon Cooper more flexibility with his pairings and potentially takes some of the burden off Hedman.
That’s important at this stage of his career.
The Lightning shouldn’t need Hedman to play 26 or 27 minutes every night to be successful. They need him healthy in April, May, and, if everything goes right, June.
Managing his workload could become just as important as what Hedman does when he’s actually on the ice.
There May Be Some Rust
Lightning fans should probably be patient early.
Hedman understands there could be an adjustment period. He hasn’t played since March.
Training camp practices and preseason games can’t completely duplicate the speed and intensity of an NHL regular-season game.
Hedman admitted it could take a few games before he gets completely comfortable again.
The Lightning don’t need Hedman playing his best hockey in October. They need him playing his best hockey when the games matter most.
And after everything he went through last season, getting through training camp healthy and gradually finding his game would be a successful start.
Don’t Underestimate What This Could Mean
There are plenty of storylines heading into Lightning training camp.
Can Tampa Bay’s new additions make an immediate impact?
Can the Lightning get another elite season from Nikita Kucherov?
Can Andrei Vasilevskiy continue to be one of the NHL’s best goaltenders?
Can Tampa Bay make another legitimate run at the Stanley Cup?
All of those questions matter.
But Hedman’s return belongs near the top of the list.
Because if Victor Hedman walks into training camp physically healthy, mentally refreshed, and skating the way he knows he can skate, Tampa Bay suddenly has something it didn’t have down the stretch last season.
Their No. 1 defenseman and their captain.
Hedman certainly doesn’t sound like someone questioning whether he can still play at a high level.
“I have zero doubt in my mind,” Hedman told NHL.com.
After 17 seasons, two Stanley Cups and nearly two decades as one of the faces of this franchise, Hedman has earned the right to believe in himself.
Lightning fans should be excited to see what a healthy No. 77 looks like again.
Because the Lightning didn’t really have Victor Hedman last season.
This season, they get Victor Hedman back, and that could change everything.
