Mission’s Gage Goncalves made his return to the NHL.
The Tampa Bay Lightning recalled the forward on Nov. 5 ahead of a meeting with the St. Louis Blues.
The 23-year-old logged over 10 minutes on the ice and tallied one hit in Tampa’s 3-2 loss to the Blues. Against the Philadelphia Flyers on Nov. 7, Goncalves played just under 10 minutes and fired one shot on net.
Tampa Bay vice president and general manager Julien BriseBois announced on Saturday (Nov. 9) that Goncalves was re-assigned to the Syracuse Crunch in the AHL.
Goncalves was one of the final cuts for the Lightning at training camp earlier in the fall and has played four games with the Crunch this season
“I thought I had a good camp here, so I was really, really fortunate to get the call. And, you know, even if it's just injuries or whatever it is, it's nice to get kind of that recognition and have a chance,” Goncalves told Lightning staff.
Goncalves made his NHL debut with the Lightning last season against the New Jersey Devils on Jan. 11. He made one more appearance before returning to the Crunch.
He was drafted by Tampa Bay in the second round of the 2020 NHL Draft.
Goncalves has 216 career AHL games under his belt with the Crunch, tallying 43 goals and 149 points. He was named an AHL All-Star for the North Division last season.
Additionally, he appeared in 17 career Calder Cup Playoff games with Syracuse, producing four goals and 12 points.
