Dominic James Returns, New Lightning Lines & Power Play Questions | Lightning Power Lunch - October 15, 2026

The Tampa Bay Lightning look to start a new winning streak tonight as they host the Seattle Kraken, and the biggest story heading into the game is the return of Dominic James to the lineup. On today's episode of Lightning Power Lunch, Dave Mishkin and Greg Linnelli discuss James' return from injury, the lineup changes that come with it, and what the Lightning hope to see from one of their fastest and most energetic young forwards.

The guys break down Tampa Bay's revamped forward lines, including the reunion of Nikita Kucherov, Brandon Hagel, and Anthony Cirelli, while Jake Guentzel joins Brayden Point on a new-look top unit. They also discuss the continued use of 11 forwards and 7 defensemen, Emil Lilleberg returning to the lineup, and why Gage Goncalves will be a healthy scratch tonight.

Later, Everett Fitzhugh, radio voice of the Seattle Kraken, joins the show to discuss Seattle's impressive road trip, balanced offensive attack, strong goaltending from Joey Daccord and Philipp Grubauer, the development of Matty Beniers, Shane Wright, and Kaapo Kakko, and why the Kraken believe they're ready to return to the playoffs.

Plus, the guys discuss Conor Geekie's development, the Lightning's faceoff challenges, the ongoing power-play struggles, trade deadline flexibility, and another strong season from captain Victor Hedman despite a reduced special-teams workload.

Topics Discussed

Dominic James returns to the Lightning lineup Why Gage Goncalves is sitting tonight New forward lines featuring Kucherov, Hagel and Cirelli Jake Guentzel joining Brayden Point The continued 11-forward, 7-defenseman approach Emil Lilleberg back in the lineup Conor Geekie's development and role on Power Play 2 Lightning faceoff concerns and solutions Power-play struggles through the first six games Trade deadline cap flexibility and future roster moves Previewing Lightning vs. Kraken Everett Fitzhugh on Seattle's hot start Why the Kraken succeed with balanced scoring Jared McCann's importance to Seattle's offense The development of Matty Beniers, Shane Wright and Kaapo Kakko Seattle's goaltending tandem of Joey Daccord and Philipp Grubauer The Pacific Division playoff race Fan questions on lineup decisions, power-play adjustments, and more ⚡ Subscribe for daily Tampa Bay Lightning coverage, game previews, postgame reaction, roster analysis, prospect updates, and exclusive interviews all season long.

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