The Tampa Bay Lightning will be playing in the Stanley Cup Playoffs in a few week; the Lightning is one of four teams to have already clinched a postseason berth. Tampa still has plenty on the line right now, two points ahead of the Boston Bruins for first in the Atlantic Division and Eastern Conference, with Boston holding a game in hand.

As Tampa continues to try to hold off one of the hottest teams in the NHL and insure the Eastern Conference path to the Cup goes through Amalie Arena, they'll do so on Monday playing without their captain.

Lightning head coach Jon Cooper announced that forward Steven Stamkos will not play Monday due to a lower-body injury. Cooper said that Stamkos is considered day-to-day.

Cooper didn't specify if he thought Stamkos would miss any additional games beyond Monday, the major question mark sitting on Thursday when the Lightning travel to TD Garden to take on the Bruins in one of two remaining matchups against Boston this season that will go a long way in determining who finishes first in the conference.

Stamkos has been one of Tampa Bay's most productive forwards this season, returning to the lineup after missing virtually all of 2016-17 due to a knee injury. It's unclear what this new injury is, and if it has anything to do with what kept him out a year ago. On Saturday, Stamkos logged 20:45 during Tampa Bay's 2-1 loss against the New Jersey Devils Saturday night, second among all Lightning forwards in time on-ice. Cooper though made it sound like more maintenance -- Tampa Bay has seven games remaining in the regular season -- than a long-term thing. Stamkos logged a 91 second shift with 2:01 to play Saturday with the Lightning trailing by a goal, and there was nothing during the loss against the Devils to indicate an injury was sustained