Melrose Skips Team's Practice

Lightning coach Barry Melrose went out for a walk Tuesday as the rest of the team lined up on a bus.

Melrose held a short meeting with the team at Bank-

Atlantic Center, addressing the poor first-period efforts in the past two games, then walked back to the team hotel as the rest of the Lightning took the team bus to practice.

"Just getting away for the day," Melrose said outside the team hotel.

Associate coach Rick Tocchet and assistants Wes Walz and Cap Raeder ran practice in Melrose's absence. Tocchet said there is nothing to read into Melrose's absence, stating it is a tactic many coaches use to get a point across.

"Sometimes guys get tired of hearing him and he gets tired of hearing them," Tocchet said. "Every coach does that. You need a break, have to get away from the team for a second. I honestly don't think it's that big a deal. It really isn't."

MALONE RESTS: LW Ryan Malone, who left during the first period of Monday's game with an undisclosed lower body injury, was held out of practice Tuesday, and his status for tonight's game is questionable. Malone, who took only three shifts before leaving the game against Washington, is officially listed as day-to-day. He was not limping after the game, and because teams are allowed not to disclose specific injuries, Malone's status is unclear.

Tampa Bay has been hit by a number of groin injuries, with Jason Ward (two games), Ryan Craig (six), Radim Vrbata (five) and Evgeny Artyukhin (two) missing time.

Artyukhin, who has missed the past two games, skated Tuesday but was wearing the red jersey normally given to players who are expected to be scratched. With Malone expected to be out tonight, Matt Pettinger - a healthy scratch the past five games - practiced alongside Steven Stamkos and Vrbata.

NUTS AND BOLTS: Before Monday's game in Washington, Tampa Bay had allowed five goals in the first period all season. The Capitals scored three times in the opening 20 minutes. ... Sharks defenseman and former Lightning star Dan Boyle and his wife Amber announced the birth of their first child, a girl they named Eastin Sky Boyle. ... Tonight's game is not being televised locally, but it is being broadcast by the Panthers on FSN Florida.