It’s a small deal but one that could have people patting Steve Yzerman on the back for later. Tampa Bay acquired defenseman Bruno Gervais from the New York Islanders in exchange for future considerations.
Gervais was a serviceable blue liner for the Isles and a good depth guy. Gervais’ issue through his career has been staying healthy as he’s never played a full 82 game season in his career. With the depth the Lightning have on the blue line, Gervais will fight for a starting spot.
After all with the likes of Eric Brewer, Pavel Kubina, Victor Hedman, Mattias Ohlund, and Brett Clark finding ice time will be tough. Gervais will compete to be the sixth guy in the mix there. If he can stay healthy and keep his game strong, he’ll get his share of ice time. If all goes correctly and he does blend in well, he’ll help both Yzerman and Guy Boucher look like the smartest guys around all over again.