EDMONTON, Alberta -- Steven Stamkos is back in the Tampa Bay Lightning lineup for the first time this summer.

The Lightning captain is making his postseason debut on Wednesday in Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Final against the Dallas Stars. The series is tied, 1-1.

Stamkos has not played in a game since Feb. 25. On March, he underwent surgery to repair a core muscle surgery, and had an initial recovery timeline of six to eight weeks. Stamkos joined his team for voluntary workouts over the summer, but apparently re-aggravated the injury and has had at least one set back since then.

"It would mean a lot to us, he's our leader," forward Pat Maroon said of a potential Stamkos return on Monday. "He's the guy that drives the bus in the locker room. It's good to see him skating, seeing a smile on his face."

In warmups, Stamkos took line rushes with Maroon and Cedric Paquette on what is usually the Lightning's fourth line. In Stamkos' absence, the top line of Nikita Kucherov, Brayden Point and Ondrej Palat has been buzzing, The trio have combined for 68 points, including 28 by Kucherov - which not only leads all players this summer, but is the new franchise record for most points in a single postseason.

The Lightning have remained optimistic about a potential Stamakos return all postseason, with GM Julien BriseBrois even saying ahead of the Stanley Cup Final that he was "hopeful" Stamkos could make a return.

Stamkos, who has 155 career power play goals, is expected to get a role on Tampa's man advantage until, which broke out of an 0-for-14 slump with two goals in Game 2.

"He changes the whole look on the power play, so that's a big factor," Dallas coach Rick Bowness, a former assistant with Tampa, said earlier this week. "We're expecting him to play at some point, and we'll just have to see how he's utilized. But immediately, you're concerned with the impact he'll have on their power play."

Stamkos hasn't played in seven months, so it's hard to gauge his level of impact. Although, as teammate Blake Coleman noted, "his 80 percent is better than most guys' 100 percent."

The 30-year-old Stamkos has spent his entire career in Tampa Bay after being selected No. 1 overall in 2008. He was named the Lightning captain in 2014. Since then, no team in the NHL has more postseason wins than the Lightning (51) however Tampa Bay has not won a Stanley Cup since its lone victory in 2004.

"I know it's killing him more than anyone else not to be in the lineup," Cooper said on Monday. "He's inching his way closer, there's no doubt. You don't get this many chances to be where we are. A) you want to be part of it, which he has. And he has helped the collective group with the mental thing of it. But B) he wants to be on the ice as well."