Coach Craig Berube revealed that Tavares is slowly improving after the illness, and while he's not back to 100%, things are now looking good for the veteran forward to return to the lineup soon. It's a long season in the NHL, so a game this early likely won't impact their overall chances this season, and while players missing games will never be a good thing, it's given players opportunities up the lineup that we wouldn't usually see, with
Pontus Holmberg playing a great game recently in place of Tavares.