from Erik Erlendsson o fhe Tampa Tribune,

Now that he’s back in the lineup, it’s difficult not to think Tampa Bay will be even better, which is quite a possibility for a team that enters tonight’s game against the Rangers at Madison Square Garden in a six-way tie for the most points in the league with 34.

Hedman fractured a finger at Vancouver on Oct. 18, the fifth game of the season, and had surgery to insert pins two days later. Including the game Hedman left, Tampa Bay was 13-5-1 without him.

Hedman returned on Saturday against Ottawa, logging 19 minutes and 55 seconds of ice time and looking as if he never missed a beat. He had three shots on goal, two hits, two blocked shots and was a plus-2.

“He was commanding out there, with and without the puck,’’ Lightning head coach Jon Cooper said of Hedman’s first game in six weeks. “It’s great to have him back. It takes a lot of relief off other guys who play big minutes on our team. I’m sure when he gets his legs more, he’ll play more. But in the second and third (periods), he was outstanding.’’

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