Meszaros steps up in Ohlund's absence

With D Mattias Ohlund missing all four games on the just-completed road trip with a foot injury, D Andrej Meszaros took on an expanded role in the absence of the team's ice time leader.

The added responsibility comes on the heels of a conversation both Coach Rick Tocchet and associate coach Rick Wilson have held with Meszaros to issue a challenge to the 24-year-old defenseman. Consider the message received as Meszaros has logged 22 or more minutes in six consecutive games after playing more than 20 minutes three times in the first 15 games of the season.

"I think Mez has been playing pretty well for us; we challenged him and his game has gotten better," Tocchet said. "Rick Wilson showed him video, he didn't play as much some times, we took him out of certain situations. Those are the kind of bullets you have (to challenge players), but he knows it, he knows he wasn't playing that well. Now he's starting to get his game rounded out."

Meszaros has now been seeing consistent time on the power play and being put on the ice at key times in games. And although he has picked up a point in 13 games, he feels his game has picked up.

"I have to be focused, play hard, skate and obviously be more aggressive, grittier and hit more people," Meszaros said. "That's really what Tocc and Rick (Wilson) want me to do that, try to do that and as I said I have to be prepared to do that for 60 minutes every game."

Dog on a puck

Rookie James Wright had one of those kind of games on Sunday when he received zero reward for his effort. The 19-year-old was on top of his game in all areas of the ice, forechecking hard and playing sound defense in his own zone yet the scoresheet showed zero points, one shot on goal and a minus-1 rating. The stat sheet, in this case, gave no indication of how Wright played.

"He's a breath of fresh air for me," Tocchet said. "This is a guy that does everything you ask, he dogs the puck and he's exactly what this team needs."

Another side

As G Mike Smith sat for two weeks watching Antero Niittymaki go on a run of success, he ramped up his work ethic during practice while waiting for his chance. When that chance came, Smith showed he was ready.

On the four-game road trip that ended Sunday in Atlanta, Smith started the first three games, posting a 1-1-1 record with a 2.65 goals against average and a .906 save percentage. But it was more the quality of saves Smith made, and some at key times, than the numbers he posted that earned praise from Tocchet.

"The mental part of his game was tested," Tocchet said of Smith. "He didn't play for two weeks and then he took the ball and played unbelievable for us. I saw another side of Smitty where he worked his (tail) off even harder in practice and he took this and used it as motivation. He played really well for us those three games."

Back on track

C Steven Stamkos saw his game slip slightly in recent games with only three shots on goal in the first three games of the recent four-game road trip. And other than his highlight-reel goal in Anaheim in which he scored by batting a puck into the net while falling to the ice, Stamkos had been rather silent.

That changed on Sunday in Atlanta as he scored his 15th goal of the season for the overtime winner, added an assist and had a season-high seven shots on goal.

"He was working hard," Tocchet said of Stamkos on Sunday. "He was up and down and getting hit, and he got up. He played a solid game for us."

Nuts and bolts

After going without a point through his first 10 games of the season, D Kurtis Foster has three in the past two, including his first goal of the season coming on the power play in the third period on Sunday. ... C Vinny Lecavalier has a four-game scoring streak (two goals, four assists), which ties a season-long. ... D Mike Lundin was reassigned to the Norfolk Admirals. Lundin saw his first NHL action in nearly a year Sunday, logging 13:29 in ice time.

Erik Erlendsson