Neo Workxx » y. He could be back in the lineup on Wednesday. Wayne

BUFFALO, N.Y. -- Given the choice, defenseman Victor Hedman and the Tampa Bay Lightning would prefer not being thrust into the position of having to once again prove theyre capable at succeeding without captain Steven Stamkos.The only real consolation is knowing the Lightning have done it before.You live in this reality now, and weve just got to have to face it, Hedman said, Thursday. Itll be a good test for us. But at the same time, we know we can handle it, and we know we can win hockey games even though were going to miss him.Hedman spoke before the Lightning played at Buffalo, and a day after the team announced Stamkos was out indefinitely with a torn ligament in his right knee. Stamkos was hurt in the first period of a 4-3 win at Detroit on Tuesday.Later on Thursday, the Lightning announced Stamkos had surgery and was expected to miss four months as coach Jon Cooper had suggested might be the timetable earlier in the day.If we put ourselves in a position to make the playoffs, hes going go to be back, Cooper said. And thatll be better than any trade deadline acquisition than anybody else is going to get.The challenge now is for the Lightning to make the postseason without the two-time NHL scoring champion and the teams on- and off-ice leader.Youve got to take your head out of the sand, dig your heels in and march on, Cooper said. And unfortunately, this has happened to us before and the guys have found a way.The injury is the latest recent setback for the 2008 No. 1 draft pick who signed an eight-year, $68 million contract last June to remain in Tampa Bay rather than test free agencyStamkos missed the final five games of last season and all but one playoff game after having surgery to remove a blood clot near his collarbone. Tampa Bay responded by reaching the Eastern Conference finals before losing Game 7 to eventual Stanley Cup champion Pittsburgh.In 2013-14, Stamkos missed 45 games with a broken right leg. The Lightning went 22-18-5 without him and still reached the playoffs before being eliminated in the first round.Cooper was a rookie head coach that season and still recalls the dread he felt when Stamkos was hurt in November 2013.The only difference this time is being able to draw upon that experience.The more youre put in the situation, unfortunately, the better equipped you are to handle it, so well see how we do, Cooper said. Yes, we are going to miss him dearly. But like Ive said, our season is not over by no means.The Lightning are off to an encouraging start. Since snapping a three-game skid, Tampa Bay has gone 5-2-1 in its past eight.Stamkos led the team with nine goals and was tied for third in the NHL with 20 points.The Lightning have plenty of talented depth on a lineup that returned the teams top 13 scorers and both goalies from last season.Its a group that includes Hedman, forward Ryan Callahan and Nikita Kucherov, who leads the team and is second in the league with 21 points (eight goals, 13 assists). And then theres third-year forward Jonathan Drouin, who was called up from the minors in April and provided the Lightning an offensive punch with five goals and 14 points in 17 playoff games.I think thats one of our strengths in how deep we are and the amount of talent we have in our lineup, Callahan said. By no means are we not going to miss (Stamkos). I mean, you lose a guy like that and its going to affect you. But the way were built, how deep we are, you can help absorb some of that. Swell Bottle Norge . Takahashi, who had a 10-point lead after the short program, received 268.31 points after the free skate to finish 15 points ahead of second-place Nobunari Oda. Swell Flaske Tilbud . Philadelphia is 2-0 against the Senators this season and scored five goals in each victory. The Flyers recorded a 5-0 win in Ottawa on Nov. 12 and then earned a 5-2 home decision on Nov. 19. The Flyers have claimed three straight and four of the last five encounters with the Sens overall and Philly has won two in a row and three of its past four tests in Canadas capital city. http://www.swellflaskenorge.com/ .C. Lions has come to an end. Banks told TSN on Jan 2 that he had no interest in playing out the option year of his contract with the Lions in 2014, and he again made that clear in a conversation with Lions GM Wally Buono last week. Swell Flaske Blomster . -- Aldon Smith believes he is on the path to being sober for good. Swell Flaske Marble . Miller finished in two minutes, 6.09 seconds, one day before the first medal race on the Alpine schedule. The 36-year-old American also turned in the top time in Thursdays opening training session. CORVALLIS, Ore. -- Oregon State trailed at halftime, and coaches told players to be more physical, take care of the ball and get into a rhythm on offense.The group we have are competitors and they all want to win. Well do whatever it takes to try to come back and chip away at the lead, and sure enough, we did, said Tres Tinkle.Tinkle had a career-high 26 points and 12 rebounds as Oregon State stormed back in the second half to defeat Texas-San Antonio 72-64 on Sunday afternoon.Drew Eubanks and JaQuori McLaughlin each had 13 points for the Beavers (2-0).Guys I thought showed a ton of resiliency and toughness, which is great for us early in the year, said Oregon State coach Wayne Tinkle, Tres Tinkles father.Jeff Beverly scored 12 points and Lucas OBrien had 10 points but both fouled out for the Roadrunners (0-2), who have lost both their games this season to teams that were in the NCAA Tournament last year.I was proud of the way our guys competed. We did a really good job defensively in the first half. We were in foul trouble again. We have to figure out a way to defend without fouling, said first-year Roadrunners coach Steve Henson.Were going to be a good ballclub at the end of the year, he added.Texas-San Antonio (0-2) led 37-29 at the break, but Oregon State opened the second half on an 11-2 run, capped by a Tinkle 3-pointer, to take a 40-39 lead and seize the momentum.The Roadrunners trailed 61-50 when they responded with a 9-0 surge, punctuated by a Giovanni De Nicolao layup with 4:38 remaining.With 1:44 left and Oregon State up 67-63, the Roadrunners had a chance to cut into the lead, but Tinkle had a block in a wild sequence near the basket where the Beavers ended up with the ball. On thhe next possession, McLaughlin scored a layup.ddddddddddddOregon State held the Roadrunners to 24 percent shooting in the second half.BIG PICTURETexas-San Antonio: J.R. Harris injured his right leg about midway through the first half and finished with eight points in six minutes. ... The Roadrunners early season schedule features plenty of travel, as the team plays eight of its first 11 games away from home.Oregon State: Stephen Thompson Jr., Oregon States third-leading scorer last season, missed the game for precautionary reasons with a left foot injury. He could be back in the lineup on Wednesday. Wayne Tinkle said that none of the guards active for Sundays game played a minute last season, but players stepped up. Losing Stevie, hes a guy thats capable of getting 20, 25. ... Thats big, he added.FREE THROWSFor the second straight game, the opposing coach pointed to Oregon States aggressiveness in driving to the basket as being the difference. They went at us and got to the free-throw line, Henson said. The Beavers made 23 of 37 free throws, while the Roadrunners were 18 of 27.NO RESTTres Tinkle is recovering from a foot injury, but with the close game, he played 38 minutes. I kept saying to the staff on the bench, `Ive got to take Tres out. Ive got to take Tres out. I cant play him this much, Wayne Tinkle said.UP NEXTTexas-San Antonio: Plays Wednesday at Illinois-Chicago, which lost their season opener at San Francisco on Friday.Oregon State: Hosts Lamar on Wednesday. The Cardinals are 1-0, but were picked to finish 12th out of 13 teams in the Southland Conference. ' ' '