Boucher remains cautious with ailing Malone

--Ryan Malone seems set to return to the lineup for the first time since Jan. 21 when he suffered an undisclosed upper-body injury. Malone has been taking contact in practices and has been cleared to return to the lineup. But head coach Guy Boucher wants to be cautious with Malone, who has missed 13 games this season with various injuries.

"The last time he came back he was fine, too, and got injured pretty much the same way," Boucher said. "I tend to be a little more cautious this time. We lost him for so long, missed him for half the season, so if we have to wait two, or three or four more days to be 100 percent sure, we just might do that."

--Dominic Moore received a fine of $2,500 for his hit to New York Rangers forward Ruslan Fedotenko that caught the ire of the Rangers after the game. Fedotenko received a swollen cheek and a possible concussion after Moore leaned back into him. But the ruling from the league was that Moore did not make any contact with Fedotenko's head, instead it was Fedotenko's stick that was knocked back into his face. Moore received the fine for an interference infraction that resulted in an injury.

--Tampa Bay has points in four consecutive road games (3-0-1), its best stretch of road success this season.

QUOTE TO NOTE
"Early in the season, we weren't able to finish games like this or we weren't able to grind it out and pay the price. We have to find a way sometime." -- Lightning C Steven Stamkos, after a 2-1 victory in Buffalo.

Copyright (C) 2012 The Sports Xchange. All Rights Reserved.