Lawton dismisses latest Vinny rumor

Just in time for Tampa Bay's first trip to the Big Apple this season come rumors that Lightning captain Vinny Lecavalier is being courted by Rangers GM Glen Sather in the hopes of reuniting Lecavalier with former Bolts coach John Tortorella.

A report in Sunday's Ottawa Sun suggested that Sather reached out to Tampa Bay counterpart Brian Lawton to inquire about a potential deal. The Sun reported the Rangers would send D Matt Gilroy, D Wade Redden and either C Brandon Dubinsky or LW Ryan Callahan for the Lightning's all-time leading scorer.

The report, however, was dismissed by Lawton on Monday.

"It's complete B.S. and nobody ever calls me or even asks me," Lawton said. "I haven't talked to Glen Sather in weeks, so that is completely false that he contacted me to inquire about that. It absolutely did not happen."

Trade rumors involving Lecavalier tend to pop up every year, but the thought was with Lecavalier's no-trade/no-movement clause in his contract, those rumors would die down. But with 12 goals on the season, Lecavalier is on pace for 20, which would be his lowest output since 2001-02, when he finished with 20.

Though Lecavalier entered Monday ranked 22nd in scoring with 45 points and 13th with 34 assists, more goal scoring is expected from the 2006-07 Rocket Richard Trophy winner.

"The fact of the matter is he hasn't scored as much as he would like to from a goal standpoint," Lawton said. "But I still think it's going to happen for him. I still think he gets 30-plus goals. It will take a big push for him to get that, but I still think he is capable of that. He's that type of a player. He's that dynamic and he has that skill level. He just has to get it out of himself."

Minors change

Lawton on Saturday fired Darren Rumble, head coach of Tampa Bay's American Hockey League affiliate in Norfolk and replaced him with assistant coach Jim Johnson.

Rumble, a member of the Lightning's 2004 Stanley Cup championship team, led the Admirals to a 50-61-6-5 record in 122 games over a season-plus. Lawton said the driving force behind the move was Norfolk's lack of offensive production as the Admirals' 105 goals entering the All-Star break were second fewest in the league.

"I'm happy with the way things have gone defensively. They have been competitive every night ... but we are looking for a little more offense," said Lawton, who also serves as Norfolk's GM. "I think we are capable of generating more. I think we are capable of doing better as a team and we would really like to make the playoffs. I felt that in order for that to have any possibility, we needed to make a change at this time."

Back home

G Mike Smith returned to Tampa over the weekend to receive extended treatment for a neck strain he suffered Jan. 12 against Washington and has been placed on injured reserve retroactive to that date.

Smith skated Monday for the first time since being injured and is expected to be back on the ice again today. The belief is Smith will be ready to resume practice Wednesday.

National call

Although tonight's game against the Rangers will be televised nationally by Versus, a familiar voice will supply the play-by-play as Sun Sports and Lightning lead announcer Rick Peckham will call the game for the network.

Peckham, in his 15th season as play-by-play announcer for the Lightning, previously has done work for Versus, including postseason action during the 2007-08 and 2008-09 playoffs.

Nuts and bolts

D Matt Smaby was activated off injured reserve and returned to the lineup in place of D Matt Walker, who was a healthy scratch. ... Ryan Malone's first-period goal was his fifth this season against Carolina and his first goal overall since Dec. 26.

Erik Erlendsson