Steven Stamkos missed his first game this season Saturday versus the New Jersey Devils due to an upper-body injury.
It's the Tampa Bay Lightning captain's first game lost to injury since returning from a broken leg in March 2014, Erik Erlendsson of the Tampa Bay Tribune notes.
Stamkos sat out practice Friday and wasn't a participant at the team's morning skate.
He was vocal following Thursday's shutout loss to the Montreal Canadiens, challenging the "passengers" in the Lightning lineup. From the press box, he'll now have a better vantage point at who may or may not be coasting.
Tampa Bay remains two points behind the first-place Florida Panthers with five games remaining.
