This story&nbsp;<a href="https://hockeysverige.se/2023/12/29/mot-jvm-s-yngsta-spelare-orebros-luka-radivojevic" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">appeared on hockeysverige.se</a><a href="https://hockeysverige.se/2023/11/16/tim-stutzle-om-jan-axel-alavaaras-hjalp" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">&nbsp;</a>this week and has been translated from Swedish to English.



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The Tampa Bay Lightning is once again set for the playoffs and a date with state rivals, the Florida Panthers. The core players from past championship times remain. Nikita Kucherov, Andrei Vasilevsky, Brayden Point, Steven Stamkos, and Victor Hedman are still the locomotives taking the team forward, aiming for another Stanley Cup. 



From 2020-22, the Bolts qualified for the Stanley Cup final three years in a row, winning it twice. But last year, Toronto knocked them out in the first round, closing out the team’s streak. However, Hedman said it wasn’t the end of an era.



 ”Absolutely not”, Hedman said. ”We’re still a fantastic team. It feels like we played better against Toronto last year than we did the year before when we beat them. It was actually good for us to have a slightly longer summer and build up our bodies better than in previous years.”<div class="injected-ad injected-video" data-nn-ad-tech-injection-count="0" data-nn-ad-tech-max-gap="130" data-nn-ad-tech-current-gap="160"></div>



 Hedman himself has had a productive season, with 76 points in 78 games. It’s the second most productive season in his career after putting up 85 during the 2021-22 season.



 ”I’ve returned to the level where I belong,” he said. ”After a down year last year, I’m back, and it feels like I have even more in me. It feels good heading into the playoffs.” 



But while the core group remains intact, there are still uncertainties.



Captain Steven Stamkos’s contract is expiring, and with a salary cap putting more pressure on him, it’s not yet clear if the star center will stay with the club. If he doesn’t sign an extension with the Lightning, it would be the first time Stamkos and Hedman – two huge pieces of Tampa’s core – will be split up in their NHL careers.<div class="injected-ad" data-nn-ad-tech-injection-count="1" data-nn-ad-tech-max-gap="130" data-nn-ad-tech-current-gap="139"></div>



 ”It’s a situation that I think Steven has handled fantastically well. I mean, he has 40 goals and over 80 points,” Hedman said. ”It’s not easy to go into a contract year and not be aware of what the future holds. He deserves all the credit for how he’s been as a captain and teammate during this time. At the same time, you know it’s tough; we know nothing else but playing here.



 ”We’ll have to wait until after the playoffs and not jump to any hasty conclusions. But I believe it will work out, and he will stay here for the rest of his career.”



As mentioned, Hedman and Stamkos have been through almost everything together during their careers. With a matchup against the Panthers looming, it’s not wrong to say that the duo will need to play a leading role to surpass their local rivals. <div class="injected-ad" data-nn-ad-tech-injection-count="2" data-nn-ad-tech-max-gap="130" data-nn-ad-tech-current-gap="148"></div>



Could the situation with Stamkos actually be an extra spark for the Lightning?



 ”If we need it, we can absolutely find everything and a bit more to use as fuel”, Hedman said. ”But we are just incredibly proud of what our team has accomplished this year and how we’ve taken charge of it after Christmas and put ourselves in this situation, and that’s where our focus lies.”



 However, they haven’t put any additional focus on the uncertain contract situation.



 ”We haven’t talked about contracts or anything since the comments made at the beginning of the season from Tampa’s and Steven’s side. Then we put it aside and focused on making it to the playoffs, and now we’ve done that.”



The Battle of Florida starts Sunday in Sunrise with an early 12:30 PM EDT puck drop. It remains to be seen if that’s the beginning of the last journey Hedman and Stamkos make together. But if they had their way, it won’t be.<div class="injected-ad" data-nn-ad-tech-injection-count="3" data-nn-ad-tech-max-gap="130" data-nn-ad-tech-current-gap="162"></div>