Eastern Conference - Southeast Division

Tampa Bay Lightning

Team's name: Southeast Division Conference: Eastern Division: Southeast Location: Tampa, Florida Nickname: none Mascot: Thunderbug Team Colors: Black, Dark Blue, Silver and White Joined the Conference: 1992 General Manager: Jay Feaster Hockey Head Coach: John Tortorella Hockey Stadium: St. Pete Times Forum Current Capacity: 19,500 First Year of Hockey: 1992 Team Titles: Stanley Cup: 2003-04 Conference Champs: 2003-04 Division Championships: 2002-03, 2003-04

Based in Tampa, Florida, the Tampa Bay Lightning are members of the NHL’s Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference. The Lightning played their first game in 1992, defeating the surprised Chicago Blackhawks 7-3. Although the team bottomed out its division, the Lightning did boast one of the best NHL records for an expansion team with 53 points.

The next several seasons saw the Lightning stuck in the cellar. The team made the playoffs for the first time in 1996 and picked up sharp shooter Dino Ciccarelli from the Detroit Red Wings in the offseason; however, a series of injuries ruined the Lightning’s chances in the 1996-97 season. In the late 1990s, financial scandals and poor management tossed the team back to last place.

After a change of ownership and the addition of Coach John Tortorella, the Lightning began to turn around. A slew of talented young players, including Vincent Lecavalier, Brad Richards, Martin St. Louis, and Fredrik Modin, led the Lightning to a Division championship over the Washington Capitals and advanced them to the conference semifinals, where they lost to the New Jersey Devils.

In the 2003-04 season, the Lightning broke 100 points and finished at second best in the league, behind the Red Wings. The Tampa team gained its first-ever berth in the Stanley Cup finals after defeating the Philadelphia Flyers, and, after trouncing the Calgary Flames in 7 games, claimed its first Stanley Cup.

The Lightning would make the postseason in 2006-07, although they had a short run. The 2007-08 season, however, saw the Florida team drop to dead last. Another change of ownership had taken place, with the Lightning sold OK Hockey LLC. The team had traded Caclav Prospal for AHL All-Star defenseman Alexandre Picard and gained goaltender Mike Smith, Jussi Jokinen, and Jeff Halpern for Brad Richards and Johan Homqvist. Dan Boyle was resigned. The trades were to no avail, however. Tortorella was fired and Barry Melrose hired.

For the 2008-09 season, the team acquired Matt Lashoff and Martins Karsums, trading away Mark Recchi and Olaf Kolzig. In 2009, the team picked up Antero Niittymaki as a back-up goaltender despite Niittymaki’s questionable hips. However, the new season proved no better than the last. Melrose was fired, and assistant coach Rick Tocchet was promoted to head coach in the interim. The team finished the season with a dismal 24 wins and 40 losses.

Tampa Bay Lighthing Current Roster

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