It was difficult to tell after Tuesday night's 5-3 loss to the Oilers in Edmonton how badly Lightning star Vinny Lecavalier was hurt. He limped badly out of the locker room to visit the Oilers team physician, Dhiren Naidu, and limped back without putting any pressure on his right heel after being checked out.

But there was no visible swelling on the spot on the back of his right leg where he took a Marty St. Louis slap shot in the game's final seconds. There was no visible red spot, either. Lecavalier, wearing only a towel around his waist and another hanging around his neck, even stopped to sign some autographs, take a few photos and chat with fans waiting in the fenced-off meet-and-greet area.

As he limped into the Lightning locker room, all he said about his leg/foot/heel/Achilles/whatever, was, "It's good."

Maybe, maybe not. We'll see how he feels Wednesday. The good news for Lecavalier is the Lightning does not play until Friday in Vancouver. There is no practice Wednesday, either, meaning he has plenty of time to get treatment. Still, it is just another thing Tampa Bay must deal in a season in which so much has gone wrong.

The Lightning was outshot 45-29 by Edmonton; the fifth straight game in which it has allowed at least 40 shots. That should be no surprise to anyone. With defensemen Paul Ranger and Andrej Meszaros out for the season with shoulder problems, and Lukas Krajicek out with a right hip injury (he had an MRI but we don't know the results), Tampa Bay is playing with David Koci and Marek Malik on the blue line (not exactly two speed merchants), minor leaguer Josef Melichar, the willing but smallish Cory Murphy and Matt Smaby, who is a rookie playing on a painful right foot.

Not a good recipe, really. But as St. Louis has said, "That's the hand we've been dealt."

Don't expect things to get much better at the trade deadline. Nobody is giving up top-of-the-line defensemen for whom the Lightning is likely offering; players such as Mark Recchi and Gary Roberts. So get used to the shot disparity. It's going to be around for a while.

Still, the more immediate concern is Lecavalier. We'll see soon enough if his right leg is as "good" as he says.