Brandon Hagel: Lightning's Future Captain?

On April 28th, Brandon Hegel is on fire for the Tampa Bay Lightning in the Stanley Cup playoffs,

leading all players with six goals through just. Four games. He dropped the game tying and

game-winning goals in their Game 4 comeback against the Montreal Canadiens on Sunday 9th.

That's a huge turnaround from last year, and he's already got three multi-point games under his

belt. Coach John Cooper sees real leadership in Hegel, calling him a future captain material,

even if Victor Hedman holds the C for now. Teammates say his passion and emotion on every shift,

fire up the whole group, helping guys shake off nerves and get into the flow. Hegel's not just

scoring. He's physical, hits hard, and brings defensive chops too, earning soca-trophy votes

the last three seasons. Since joining Tampa full-time in 2022-23, he's averaged close to a point

per game, with 30 plus goals most years. Looking ahead, projections put him near 400 career goals,

and almost a thousand points by age 35 if he keeps this pace. But he's up against stars like

Braden Point, who's got clutch game winners and leadership award-nots, plus Nikita Kucherov and

others in the mix. As the lightning pushed deeper, Hegel's spark could shift the captain's

he talked for real when Hedman's era winds down, making him a name to watch. Long-term?

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