Viel notched an assist in Thursday's 6-4 win over the Jets.
The helper was Viel's first point in nine games for the Lightning. The 29-year-old was signed to a five-year contract in July, which was a bit of a head-scratcher at the time even at a reasonable $2.5 million cap hit. He has done what he was supposed to do -- add toughness. He's logged 29 hits and 16 PIM so far and should continue to ramp up the physicality whenever he's in the lineup.