For more than a month, a black cloud hovered over the Tampa Bay Lightning, ready to strike down another player to add to the list of the injured.

Might there finally be a stream of sunlight breaking through threatening to dissipate the feeling of foreboding?

Ben Bishop appears no worse for the wear after being taking off the ice on a stretcher. Anton Stralman is no longer considered out for an indefinite period of time. Tyler Johnson said he's good to go for Game 2 of the Eastern Conference finals while J.T. Brown was back in the lineup to start the series.

Now, might the Lightning be ready to welcome back Steven Stamkos after the captain took part in practice on Sunday no longer wearing a red no-contact jersey?

It all seems to be coming together for a Lightning squad that has pushed through all the injuries during the postseason and currently holds a 1-0 series lead against Pittsburgh in the conference finals.

The fact that Bishop has not been ruled out for Game 2, two days after being taken off the ice on a stretcher, might be the best - and perhaps most surprising - news of all. He is listed as day-to-day.

"It was just a scary experience for myself,'' Bishop said during a meeting with the media at CONSOL Energy Center. "You saw the play, fell back, and felt something I've never felt before, and just pain right away. Your mind just starts racing. You start thinking the worst thing. I'm thinking my leg is broken. Then you start -- your mind just starts
spinning, and I was really scared.''

But Bishop was up and walking around as the Lightning returned to practice on Sunday. Though he did not take part in practice, he did step on the ice to see how his leg felt.

"Just take it day by day right nowk,'' Bishop said. "Feels better than it did yesterday, and it's just a matter of getting to where it feels good enough to think that you can go out there and help the team win. ... Afterwards it was pretty painful, and then as the night went on and then the next day, it's slowly gotten better. It's not too painful right now, but going out there and playing hockey is different than just walking around.''

Then there is the matter of Stamkos, who created quite a stir when he took part in an optional morning skate ahead of Game 1 on Friday wearing a regular blue jersey instead of the red no-contact variety. While that was not out of the ordinary to see - he has frequently worn red during full skates but not during optional practices - Stamkos took part in Sunday's full practice wearing a white jersey.

While there is no update as to whether anything has changed for Stamkos in terms of being cleared to play or if he's been taken off blood thinners, the mere fact he has been cleared to take contact and was getting some work on the penalty kill during practice gives some hints that he might be on the verge of returning to the lineup.

A source over the weekend indicated Stamkos "was close'' and Sunday's developments point toward that, even if there has been nothing said publicly to this point.

"I think there was a point where there was so much uncertainty, it was kind of accepted that he wasn't going to be able to play,'' Tampa Bay head coach Jon Cooper said. "But now you're getting
to a point where we're kind of in that holding pattern type, and he's feeling good because he's been on the ice so much more, now he's getting himself back into game shape and in these situations.
"He's got to wait for other people to tell him he can play. He's not the one making the decision. I
think that's what's really tough as opposed to what happens to other players when they're injured. But he's been unreal to have around. I think that's really helped us. Even though he hasn't been able to play, just having his presence around with the guys, because he's such a well-liked teammate, that's really helped us. It would help us even more if he was able to get back in.''

And finally, Stralman has seen his status change from out indefinitely to day-to-day as he recovers from a fractured fibula suffered on March 25. A return to the lineup for Monday's Game 3 seems more likely now than it did at the start of the weekend.

"Stralman is definitely day-to-day now, and that's great news because he is extremely important player on our team,'' Cooper said. "So we'll just -- it's kind of going to be all on Strals here now,
how he's feeling. It's been encouraging to watch him play, and you're looking at him right now at
practice, you wouldn't even think he was hurt. He's not favoring anything, so it's a really good sign.''

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