Ryan Callahan didn't intend to board Kris Letang and was happy to see him return.
Related: Lightning's Callahan assessed boarding major for hit on Penguins' Letang
So said the Tampa Bay Lightning forward after Friday's Game 1, describing the incident with the Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman as unfortunate.
Ryan Callahan on the Kris Letang hit: pic.twitter.com/edkAHvdNwH
— Seth Rorabaugh (@emptynetters) May 14, 2016
Callahan was handed a five-minute major penalty but was not ejected.
Still, it's expected the NHL's Department of Player Safety will take a second look with a view to potential supplementary discipline.
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Following the Tampa Bay Lightning's Game 1 victory over the Pittsburgh Penguins, head coach Jon Cooper provided an update on goaltender Ben Bishop, who left the game on a stretcher with an apparent lower-body injury.
Related: Ben Bishop leaves Game 1 on stretcher
"Everything came back negative," Cooper said of Bishop's X-rays, according to NHL.com's Tom Gulitti. "So we're hoping for the best."
"He's definitely hurt," he added. "But there's nothing structurally wrong."
Cooper could not provide any description of the injury, or any timetable for how long the 29-year-old may be sidelined.
Backup netminder Andrei Vasilevskiy filled in admirably in Bishop's absence, stopping 25 of the 26 shots he faced to help the Lightning take a 1-0 series lead.
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Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Brian Dumoulin was forced to leave Game 1 of the Eastern Conference finals after being boarded by Ondrej Palat of the Tampa Bay Lightning.
Head coach Mike Sullivan did not have an update on the defenseman's status immediately following the game.
Kris Letang was also boarded earlier in the game but was able to return and is said to be fine, according to the coach.
Dumoulin is averaging over 20 minutes a night in the playoffs, with four assists in 12 games.
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PITTSBURGH - The Tampa Bay Lightning's 3-1 victory over the Pittsburgh Penguins in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference finals on Friday night may have come at a heavy price.
Tampa Bay goalie Ben Bishop left the ice on a stretcher in the first period after injuring his left leg. Andrei Vasilevskiy made 25 stops while filling in and the Lighting took advantage of some sloppy miscues by Pittsburgh's defense to take away home-ice advantage in the best-of-seven series.
Andrei Vasilevskiy (@TBLightning) earned his 2nd career playoff win, both in relief efforts (also Game 2 of 2015 #StanleyCup Final vs. CHI).
— NHL Public Relations (@PR_NHL) May 14, 2016
Game 2 is Monday night in Pittsburgh.
Alex Killorn, Ondrej Palat and Jonathan Drouin scored for Tampa Bay, and the Lightning kept Pittsburgh's dynamic offense under wraps for long stretches.
Patric Hornqvist picked up his sixth goal of the playoffs for the Penguins. Rookie goaltender Matt Murray finished with 17 saves, but was put in a tough spot several times because of defensive miscues in front of him.
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Contrary to Doc's initial thought, Drouin has himself a lovely goal. #StanleyCup pic.twitter.com/WOCvzHRm9A
— #StanleyCup Playoffs (@NHL) May 14, 2016
Jonathan Drouin continues to come up big for the team he didn't want to play for.
The young Tampa Bay Lightning forward, who publicly demanded a trade earlier this season, scored in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference finals against the Pittsburgh Penguins with a tremendous finish off the odd-man rush.
Ondrej Palat served up one of his famous saucer passes to record the assist.
Palat saucer feed to Drouin like his one last round, which Johnson called "A little sauce but not too much. Good home-cooked Italian pasta"
— Joe Smith (@TBTimes_JSmith) May 14, 2016
The goal was Drouin's second of the postseason, and his 10th point in 11 games.
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After Ben Bishop was stretchered off the ice with an apparent injury during the first period, Andrei Vasilevskiy took over in goal, but the Tampa Bay Lightning brought in an emergency backup in the second.
Related: Ben Bishop leaves Game 1 on stretcher
Enter Kristers Gudlevskis, who is best known for his 55-save performance for Latvia in a 2-1 loss to Canada during the 2014 Winter Olympics, but was gaining more attention on Twitter during Game 1 for his hair.
🚨 GUDLEVSKIS MAN BUN 🚨 pic.twitter.com/4xfBbAwdaR
— Trevor Sikkema (@TrevorSikkema) May 14, 2016
Gudlevskis appears to be rocking a man-bun as opposed to the traditional backup baseball cap #TBLvsPIT
— Noah Vanderhoeven (@NV31Hawk) May 14, 2016
That man-bun on Gudlevskis tho! Dude looks like a Cali surfer
— Christian Kewley (@ChristianKewley) May 14, 2016
The 23-year-old made one start for the Lightning during the regular season, making 31 saves in a 1-0 overtime loss to the Chicago Blackhawks.
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No one was safe early in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference finals.
The latest victim was Tyler Johnson of the Tampa Bay Lightning, who had to be helped off the ice following a knee-on-knee bump courtesy of Pittsburgh Penguins forward Chris Kunitz.
The hit came after Kris Letang was boarded but able to return, and Ben Bishop was carted off the ice on a stretcher with an apparent lower-body injury.
Johnson did not return for the beginning of the second period, but emerged from the locker room later in the period.
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