Purcell gets fresh start after trade

Standing around the locker room Wednesday, taping his hockey stick, Teddy Purcell learned via television he needed to pack his gear.

Purcell was in the locker room in Nashville preparing for an afternoon practice with the Los Angeles Kings when a report flashed on the screen that the Kings had acquired veteran center Jeff Halpern with no word of the return. Moments later, the 24-year-old learned he was part of the return to the Tampa Bay Lightning.

"It was a little strange. It's the first time I've ever been traded, and it was a little awkward at first being there with all the guys. But then we started joking about it and had a good laugh."

Purcell joined the team in Washington late Wednesday night, arriving at the team hotel around 11:30 p.m. after his initial flight was canceled. By Thursday morning, he was on the ice with his new teammates preparing to take on the Eastern Conference-leading Capitals and looking forward to a new start.

"At the beginning of the year I was playing a lot of minutes and playing a lot of power play and feeling comfortable," Purcell said. "For whatever reason, the points weren't coming. I'm an offensive type of guy. The chances were there. The points just weren't coming. The coach decided to mix some things up, and the last little while I was bouncing around between the fourth line and not playing, not a lot of power play, not a lot of minutes. This is a fresh start for me, so I'm looking forward to it."

Purcell slotted into the second line playing with captain Vinny Lecavalier and Ryan Malone, playing 13:42 in his Lightning debut.

Meet the new boss

While the team will formally introduce new owner Jeff Vinik to the Tampa Bay area at a news conference this afternoon, fans will have an opportunity to quiz Vinik from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. during a question-and-answer session in the lower bowl of the St. Pete Times Forum.

The event, which will also include C Steven Stamkos, will be hosted by television play-by-play announcer Rick Peckham. Fans are invited to submit questions for either Vinik or Stamkos.

In addition, season-ticket holders are invited to skate on the Forum ice until 8 p.m. while tours of the locker room area will also be held.

Hound dogs

While Purcell and Lecavalier never met prior to Thursday morning, the two have plenty to talk about.

Both Lecavalier (1995-96) and Purcell (2003-04) attended Notre Dame Academy prep school in Wilcox, Saskatchewan, a small school at which the student population outnumbers the locals by a two-to-one ratio. And as far as Lecavalier is concerned, there are plenty of story-sharing opportunities for the two to swap.

"I didn't realize he went there, we can definitely share some stories now," Lecavalier said. "There is definitely a bond with anybody who has gone to there. There are still a lot of the same people working at the school and we can talk about the different dorms and stuff like that. It's a pretty special school."

Purcell didn't realize how small the Wilcox community was - the year-round population of the town is roughly 300 - until he was on his way from the airport.

"The first day I arrived there, I was picked up from the airport and I had a pair of roller blades with me, and the driver asked me what I was going to do once I got to the school," Purcell said. "I told him maybe I'd just go out and roller blade around town and get a chance to see what's there. He told me I couldn't do that, and I said my skates were right here. That's when he told me there were no paved roads in the town."

Walker out

Injured defenseman Matt Walker took part in the full morning skate Thursday, but missed his second consecutive game with an undisclosed lower-body injury. Walker practiced Wednesday, but left the ice early.

"I thought he looked pretty good out there, but he's got to get some full skates in before he's ready," Coach Rick Tocchet said.

Nuts and bolts

LW Brandon Bochenski was a healthy scratch. ... RW Steve Downie extended his scoring streak to nine games with a first-period goal. Downie has five goals and 12 points during the nine-game streak.