It should be no surprise Ruslan Fedotenko will not be back next season. The Lightning wing, an unrestricted free agent, dressed but did not play in Game 5 against the Devils and was scratched in Game 6.

By DAMIAN CRISTODERO

TAMPA - It should be no surprise Ruslan Fedotenko will not be back next season. The Lightning wing, an unrestricted free agent, dressed but did not play in Game 5 against the Devils and was scratched in Game 6.

That after scoring 12 regular-season goals, 14 fewer than 2005-06, and only one in his past 29 games.

"I don't think I'm coming back here," Fedotenko said. "That's pretty obvious. Both parties agree to move on and close a chapter. Now I'm excited about what is going to happen next."

Fedotenko, 28, was one of the stars of the 2004 Stanley Cup run in which he scored a team-high 12 goals, including two in the title-clinching Game 7 over the Flames.

"It's disappointing," said general manager Jay Feaster, who gave the No. 4 pick in the 2002 draft to the Flyers for Fedotenko. "It got off the track this season and was never able to get back on. He won a Stanley Cup here, and that's something special, and he'll always have a special place in the organization's heart."

How he feels about coach John Tortorella is likely another matter. Even Tortorella said, "I don't think he's too crazy about me," after Game 5.

"Everybody has this conspiracy theory that I was out to get him," Tortorella continued. "Was I upset with his play? Yes. Did I plan to dress him and not play him in a game? No. He was given plenty of opportunity in the regular season and the playoffs. It didn't materialize, and I needed to make a change."