A PGP Guide to: The Tampa Bay Lightning

A PGP Guide to: The Tampa Bay Lightning

The Tampa Bay Lightning aesthetic is electric blue, palm trees outside of a hockey arena, Tesla coils shooting actual lightning inside of it, Russian superstars doing completely unreasonable things with a puck, Andrei Vasilevskiy staring directly into your soul, Jon Cooper somehow looking calm at all times, Stanley Cup boat parades, and Florida on Florida violence. 

The Lightning are one of the defining NHL franchises of the 21st century. They have won 3 Stanley Cups, appeared in 4 Stanley Cup Finals since 2004, reached the Final 3 consecutive years from 2020 through 2022 and built one of the greatest modern NHL cores around Steven Stamkos, Nikita Kucherov, Victor Hedman, Brayden Point and Andrei Vasilevskiy. Tampa has also gone from a 1990s experiment team that was playing hockey at a fairground to one of the NHL's model organizations. They’re still extremely good, but somehow haven't won a playoff round since 2022.

The Basics

Team: Tampa Bay Lightning

Conference: Eastern ConferenceDivision: Atlantic DivisionHome Arena: Benchmark International Arena

Location: Tampa, Florida

Franchise Founded: 1992

Team Colors: Blue, white and black

Stanley Cups: 3 – 2004, 2020, 2021

Biggest Rivals: Florida Panthers, Boston Bruins, Toronto Maple Leafs, Montreal Canadiens

The Lightning play at Benchmark International Arena in downtown Tampa. If you thought it was called Amalie Arena and you think you’re losing your mind, I promise you’re not. The building officially changed names in August 2025 after Benchmark International signed a multi-year naming rights agreement. It originally opened in 1996 and has hosted all three of Tampa Bay's Stanley Cup championships. The building is also very committed to the whole Lightning branding! There are giant Tesla coils that shoot bolts of electricity inside the arena after goals!!

The Origin Story

Professional hockey in Tampa sounds completely normal now, but in the late 1980s, trying to convince the NHL to put a team in Florida was slightly more ambitious. Hall of Famer Phil Esposito led the effort to bring an NHL franchise to the Tampa Bay area. The league eventually awarded Tampa one of two expansion franchises that would begin play in 1992-93, alongside the Ottawa Senators. Tampa became the first NHL franchise in Florida, one season before the Florida Panthers arrived.

Before Tampa had even officially been awarded a franchise, Esposito was at a barbecue at the home of local lawyer Bennie Lazzara when a huge summer thunderstorm rolled through. While everyone was discussing possible names, Lazzara's elderly mother apparently came outside and suggested they call the team the Lightning. Esposito immediately loved it. A later fan naming contest included options like Oceanics, Pelicans and Gators, but according to Esposito, the decision had basically already been made. He also specifically liked that “Lightning” did not have an “S” because he wanted the name to feel different from traditional team names.

The Lightning finally played their first NHL game in 1992 at Expo Hall on the Florida State Fairgrounds. Chris Kontos scored four goals, including the first two goals in franchise history, and Tampa defeated Chicago 7-3. Expo Hall was very temporary! Tampa moved into the much larger Florida Suncoast Dome, later known as the Thunderdome and now Tropicana Field, in St. Petersburg for the next three seasons. The baseball stadium routinely produced enormous hockey crowds, and when the Lightning reached the playoffs for the first time in 1996, they drew 28,183 fans for a game against Philadelphia.

In 1996, the Lightning moved into their permanent downtown Tampa arena, originally called the Ice Palace. After several naming changes, that building is now Benchmark International Arena.Tampa hockey went from playing at a state fairground to filling an actual NHL arena in about four years…

The Vibe Check

The Tampa Bay Lightning are probably the best argument against every person who once insisted hockey could never work in Florida. This is a franchise where fans walk into a hockey arena wearing shorts because it’s 80 degrees outside, then watch giant Tesla coils shoot electricity from the ceiling while one of the greatest Russian hockey players alive scores another powerplay goal. Hockey culture does not have to look like Montreal to be real!! The palm trees, the boats, the Stanley Cup parades happening on boats, the blue and white, the storms, “Bolts Nation”, “Be the Thunder”, all goes to show just how well hockey works even in the warmest of climates. The fact that the city's championship era helped produce the nickname Champa Bay just makes it even better! The Lightning never pretended they were a traditional northern hockey franchise. On the ice, their identity for more than a decade had basically been collecting absurd amounts of skill, drafting ridiculously well outside the first round, letting Jon Cooper figure everything out, having Vasilevskiy clean up whatever remains, and somehow finding another good player while everyone else asks how they’re fitting all these people under the salary cap, but it worked!

The History You Need to Know

Tampa's inaugural 1992-93 season ended 23-54-7, and although Brian Bradley emerged as the franchise's first real star, the Lightning spent most of their early existence doing exactly what expansion teams usually did in that era – losing. Their first breakthrough came in 1995-96, when Tampa reached the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the first time. They took a 2-1 series lead against Philadelphia before the Flyers came back to win in six. Then things got ugly again. Ownership instability, financial problems and bad teams consumed much of the late 1990s.

The 1998 NHL Draft changed everything! Tampa selected Vincent Lecavalier first overall, then somehow drafted Brad Richards 64th overall in the third round. Martin St. Louis joined as an overlooked free agent in 2000, Dave Andreychuk eventually arrived, Nikolai Khabibulin became the goalie, and John Tortorella took over behind the bench.

In 2004, the Lightning finished 1st in the Eastern Conference and went through the Islanders, Canadiens and Flyers to reach their first Stanley Cup Final against Calgary. Tampa fell behind 3-2 in the series, meaning Game 6 in Calgary was an elimination game. Martin St. Louis scored only 33 seconds into double OT to send the series back to Tampa for Game 7. Then Ruslan Fedotenko scored both Lightning goals in Game 7, Nikolai Khabibulin allowed only one, and Tampa won 2-1 to capture the first Stanley Cup in franchise history. Captain Dave Andreychuk finally lifted the Cup, while Brad Richards won the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP. Right after this, the NHL immediately locked everyone out for an entire season. Great timing!

The Lightning struggled to sustain the 2004 success, but their bad years built the next dynasty. They selected Steven Stamkos first overall in 2008, Victor Hedman second overall in 2009, Nikita Kucherov 58th overall in 2011, Andrei Vasilevskiy 19th overall in 2012 and Brayden Point 79th overall in 2014. Tampa wasn't simply drafting good NHL players, they were trying to assemble one of the most ridiculous cores of the salary cap era. Y'all thought Vegas was the first to circumvent the cap space? Think again!

Jon Cooper became head coach in March 2013. By 2015, Tampa was back in the Stanley Cup Final, losing to Chicago in six games. They reached the Eastern Conference Final again in 2016 and 2018 but could not get back over the hump.

Then came 2018-19!! The Lightning went 62-16-4, tied the NHL record for wins in a season and won the Presidents' Trophy. Nikita Kucherov scored 128 points!!!!!! WTF!!!!!!! They looked completely unstoppable, then Columbus swept them in the first round. Tampa became the first Presidents' Trophy winner in NHL history to get swept in the opening round. It remains one of the most shocking playoff collapses ever, and it fundamentally changed the team.

Instead of blowing everything up, Tampa doubled down. Management surrounded its stars with heavier, nastier playoff players, and when the 2020 postseason was played inside the NHL's COVID bubble, the Lightning finally finished the job. They defeated Dallas in six games to win the franchise's second Stanley Cup. Victor Hedman scored 10 goals and 22 points during the playoffs and won the Conn Smythe Trophy.

In 2021, they did it again! Tampa defeated Montreal in five games to win consecutive Stanley Cups. Vasilevskiy was absolutely insane, finishing the playoffs 16-7 with a .937 save percentage and five shutouts and winning the Conn Smythe Trophy. He somehow ended every series that postseason with a shutout.

The Lightning nearly made it three straight! Tampa reached the Stanley Cup Final again in 2022 but lost to Colorado in six games, ending the threepeat attempt. After this, Tampa never stopped being good, but the playoff wins stopped coming. Toronto eliminated them in the first round in 2023, and Florida eliminated them in five games in both 2024 and 2025. Then in 2026, Tampa pushed Montreal to Game 7 at home and somehow lost 2-1 despite holding the Canadiens to nine shots on goal. Montreal went almost 27 minutes without recording a shot at one point and still won the hockey game…

Entering 2026-27, the Tampa Bay Lightning have not won a playoff series since the 2022 Eastern Conference Final which feels insane considering everyone is still terrified of them.

The Icons

Martin St. Louis

Martin St. Louis was undrafted, undersized and discarded by Calgary before Tampa signed him as a free agent in 2000. He proceeded to become one of the greatest players in franchise history. During the 2003-04 championship season, St. Louis won the NHL scoring title and Hart Trophy as league MVP, then scored the double-overtime winner in Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Final to keep Tampa alive. He spent 13 seasons with the Lightning and recorded 953 points in 972 games before eventually leaving for the Rangers.

Vincent Lecavalier

Tampa selected Lecavalier first overall in 1998 and basically told the world this is our guy. He eventually played 1,037 games for the Lightning, scored 383 goals and recorded 874 points. He captained the team before Dave Andreychuk, became one of the key offensive players on the 2004 championship roster and later scored 52 goals in 2006-07 to win the Rocket Richard Trophy.

Steven Stamkos

The Lightning selected Stamkos first overall in 2008 and then spent an entire advertising campaign putting “Seen Stamkos?” billboards around Tampa. Safe to say people eventually saw him. Stamkos spent 16 seasons with the Lightning, served as captain from 2014 through 2024 and became the franchise's all-time leader in games played, goals and points. He finished his Tampa career with 555 goals and 1,137 points in 1,082 games and captained the organization to consecutive Stanley Cups in 2020 and 2021. Then came the breakup nobody really thought would happen. Tampa and Stamkos could not agree on a new contract in 2024, and he signed a four-year deal with Nashville. 

Nikita Kucherov

Tampa drafted Kucherov 58th overall in 2011, which should probably annoy every general manager who passed on him. Kucherov became one of the defining offensive players of his generation. He has won two Stanley Cups, multiple scoring titles and now two Hart Trophies, winning his second in 2026 after producing 130 points in only 76 games. He finished 42 points ahead of the next highest scoring Lightning player last season

Victor Hedman

Tampa drafted Hedman second overall in 2009. He developed into one of the greatest defensemen of his generation, won the Norris Trophy in 2018, won the Conn Smythe Trophy during Tampa's 2020 championship and helped the Lightning win both modern Cups. When Stamkos left in 2024, Hedman became captain. Hedman stepped away from hockey late last season to prioritize his mental health and missed the 2026 playoffs.

Andrei Vasilevskiy

Vasilevskiy has spent most of his career making goaltending look unfair. Tampa selected him 19th overall in 2012, and he eventually became the backbone of the entire championship era. He won the Vezina Trophy in 2019, the Conn Smythe Trophy in 2021 and then, because apparently he was not finished, won his second Vezina in 2026 after leading the NHL with 39 victories. He has now been a Vezina finalist six times. During Tampa's back-to-back Cup run, Vasilevskiy developed a habit of shutting teams out whenever they were about to be eliminated. 

Brad Richards

Richards sometimes gets overshadowed when people talk about Lecavalier and St. Louis, but the Lightning do not win the 2004 Stanley Cup without him. Tampa somehow drafted him 64th overall in 1998, and six years later he was the most valuable player of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Richards recorded 26 points during the 2004 postseason and scored seven game winning goals, then an NHL playoff record. The franchise's first Cup era was built around Lecavalier, St. Louis and Richards together, and all three became foundational figures in turning Tampa from an expansion curiosity into a legitimate NHL market.

The Current Era

The current Lightning are living in an extremely weird place between dynasty aftermath and still being a contender. This is NOT a rebuilding team, not even close. Tampa went 50-26-6 with 106 points in 2025-26, finished second in the Atlantic Division and reached the playoffs for the ninth consecutive season. Nikita Kucherov won the Hart Trophy, Andrei Vasilevskiy won the Vezina, Jon Cooper finally won the first Jack Adams Award of his career, Anthony Cirelli finished second in Selke Trophy voting, and then they lost in the first round AGAIN!

The standard in Tampa is different than almost everywhere else because making the playoffs is not enough. This is a team who knows what winning is like and wants it again. 

The roster looks noticeably different from the Cup teams, though. Stamkos is gone, Alex Killorn is gone, Ondrej Palat is gone, Mikhail Sergachev is gone, Pat Maroon is gone, Tyler Johnson is gone, and the famous third line from the back-to-back championships has long since disappeared. Kucherov, Hedman, Vasilevskiy, Point, Cirelli, Erik Cernak and Ryan McDonagh remain, while Tampa has rebuilt around them with Jake Guentzel, Brandon Hagel, JJ Moser and a new group of younger players.

There were more changes this summer! Tampa traded Darren Raddysh to Toronto after he exploded for 70 points from the blue line, then also sent Nick Paul to Toronto for goalie Dennis Hildeby and draft picks. The Lightning signed John Carlson to a two year contract and added Ilya Mikheyev, essentially replacing some of the outgoing production with another veteran defenseman who has already won a Stanley Cup. This Lightning team is now what is left of the surviving superstars from the dynasty and all they’re doing is trying to build one more contender.

The Players You Need to Know

Nikita Kucherov

The best player on the team & reigning NHL MVP.

Kucherov had 130 points in 76 games last season and won his second Hart Trophy. He creates offense in ways that look like he knows what everybody else on the ice is going to do five seconds before they do it. Kucherov is entering the final year of his contract this season. Tampa and his camp have been discussing an extension, and general manager Julien BriseBois has publicly said the organization expects Kucherov to remain in Tampa for many years. Still, until the contract is actually signed, everybody will be watching.

Andrei Vasilevskiy

The Big Cat & reigning Vezina winner.

Somehow, at 31 last season, Vasilevskiy reminded everyone that he is still one of the best goalies alive. He went 39-15-4 with a 2.31 goals against average and .912 save percentage, leading the NHL in victories and winning his second career Vezina Trophy. Tampa has changed significantly around him over the years, if everything else breaks, hope Vasy fixes it.

Victor Hedman

The captain.

Hedman is now the connective tissue between every version of modern Lightning hockey. He was drafted before the dynasty existed, played in the 2015 Final, survived the 2019 Columbus disaster, won both Cups, won a Conn Smythe and inherited the captaincy when Stamkos left. Hedman missed the final part of last season and all 7 playoff games while taking a leave to prioritize his mental health. He returned to the lineup on October 1 and has said he feels healthy, energized and ready for his 18th NHL season!

Brayden Point

The playoff killer.

Point might be the perfect example of Tampa's drafting insanity. The Lightning selected him 79th overall in 2014 and somehow got an elite first line center. At his best, Point combines ridiculous speed with one of the quickest releases on the roster, and his postseason resume is already absurd – 14 goals during Tampa's 2020 championship run, another 14 during the 2021 repeat, including a 9 game playoff goal streak. Last season was a down year by Point standards after three consecutive 40 goal seasons, which makes his bounce back one of the more important things to watch in 2026-27!

Jake Guentzel

The extremely expensive Stamkos replacement who has actually worked.

When Tampa realized Stamkos was probably leaving in 2024, Julien BriseBois acquired Guentzel's negotiating rights from Carolina and signed him to a seven year deal. It was emotionally ruthless, but hockey-wise, it was pretty effective. Guentzel recorded 38 goals and 88 points in 81 games last season, finishing second on the Lightning in scoring behind Kucherov. He already had years of experience playing alongside elite talent in Pittsburgh with Sidney Crosby, so putting him next to Tampa's stars was not exactly a difficult adjustment.

Brandon Hagel

The chaos agent.

Hagel gives Tampa something slightly different from its other stars. He can score, kill penalties, play against top lines, annoy people, forecheck, draw penalties and occasionally become the center of some extremely heated hockey. He has developed into one of Tampa's most important two way forwards and plays a major role alongside Anthony Cirelli. If Kucherov and Point are the elegant skill part of Lightning hockey, Hagel is the part that makes opponents want to throw something.

Anthony Cirelli

The defensive conscience.

Cirelli recorded 52 points in 71 games with a career best +38 rating last season and finished second in voting for the Selke Trophy as the NHL's best defensive forward. He plays difficult minutes, kills penalties, takes important faceoffs and is usually asked to make life miserable for whoever the other team's best players are. Third round pick turned two time Stanley Cup champion turned legitimate top six center… we love to see it.

John Carlson

The very experienced new guy.

Carlson signed a two year contract with Tampa this summer after splitting last season between Washington and Anaheim. He produced 60 points in 71 games between the two teams and brings more than 1,100 games of NHL experience, a Stanley Cup from 2018 and another elite puck moving option to Tampa's defense. Putting Carlson and Hedman on the same blue line would have sounded like someone's fantasy roster a decade ago. They're obviously older now, but that’s still an absolutely ridiculous amount of hockey intelligence and talent.

Conor Geekie

The giant kid they’re waiting on.

Geekie was one of the major pieces Tampa acquired from Utah in the Mikhail Sergachev trade in 2024. He is 6’5, skilled and still only 22, which makes him one of the more important players for Tampa’s future He spent much of last season developing with AHL Syracuse, but he made Tampa's opening roster and now has the opportunity to establish himself as a full time NHL player.

Ryan McDonagh

The defensive security blanket who came back.

McDonagh was one of the most important defensive pieces of Tampa's back-to-back Stanley Cup teams, then salary cap reality forced the Lightning to trade him to Nashville in 2022. Two years later, Tampa decided they missed him and traded for him back. He isn’t the offensive star Hedman is, but McDonagh blocks shots, kills penalties, handles defensive zone minutes and basically does all the deeply unglamorous things championship teams need. There’s a reason Tampa specifically went out and brought him home.

The Rivalries

Florida Panthers

At first, the rivalry was only because they were the two teams in Florida, but now, The Battle of Florida brings out so much hatred in people, it’s worse than LA/Anaheim. These guys HATE EACH OTHERRRRRR, GENUINELY HATE EACH OTHER. Tampa entered the NHL in 1992, Florida followed in 1993 and founder Phil Esposito was apparently furious because he believed Tampa had been promised several years as Florida's only NHL franchise. The teams were obvious geographic rivals, but for decades they were rarely good at the same time, so the matchup never quite became what it could have been. Things changed this decade. Tampa eliminated Florida in 6 games in the first round in 2021. The Lightning swept the Panthers in 2022. Then Florida took control, eliminating Tampa in 4 games in 2024 and doing it again in 5 games in 2025. That 2025 matchup was already the fourth Battle of Florida playoff series in five seasons. The games have become nasty, physical and completely unhinged. The rivalry now represents a fight over which organization owns the modern era of Florida hockey. Tampa had the consecutive Cups, then Florida emerged as the team standing between Tampa and another run. Even the Kings and Ducks didn't each other this much and they’re 40 minutes from eachother…

Boston Bruins

Before Florida truly exploded, Boston was probably the team most Lightning fans would have identified as Tampa's main rival. The Bruins and Lightning spent years battling near the top of the Atlantic Division, and the playoff history added actual substance. Boston eliminated Tampa in a 7 game Eastern Conference Final in 2011 on its way to winning the Stanley Cup. Tampa later returned the favor, eliminating Boston in five games in both 2018 and 2020. There’s also just a personality clash here because Boston hockey is old, Original Six, freezing cold, generationally miserable and extremely traditional whereas Tampa hockey involves palm trees, Tesla coils and boat parades. 

Toronto Maple Leafs

This one is newer, but consecutive playoff series will do that. Tampa and Toronto met in the first round in 2022, with the Maple Leafs trying desperately to win their first playoff series since 2004. Toronto led the series 3-2, Tampa forced Game 7, and Nick Paul scored both Lightning goals in a 2-1 win to send Toronto home again. They met again in 2023, but this time Toronto finally did it, eliminating Tampa in six games when John Tavares scored in overtime. It was the Maple Leafs' first playoff series victory in 19 years, and Jon Cooper had already described the matchup as a budding rivalry. Add Atlantic Division games, star power and two fanbases with extremely different relationships to playoff success, and this one became very easy to enjoy.

Montreal Canadiens

This rivalry disappears and then randomly becomes important again every few years, so I wanted to include it. Montreal swept Tampa in the opening round in 2014. One year later, the Lightning eliminated Montreal in six games on the way to the Stanley Cup Final. Then in 2021, Tampa defeated Montreal in five games to win the Stanley Cup. In 2026 Montreal and Tampa met again in the first round. Tampa forced Game 7 with an overtime win in Montreal, got the deciding game at home, held the Canadiens to nine shots, and somehow lost 2-1. Also, Martin St. Louis is currently standing behind Montreal's bench coaching the team that just eliminated Tampa…

The Fanbase

The Lightning fanbase might be one of the best examples of how quickly hockey culture can become real somewhere people once insisted it didn’t belong. This franchise spent its first season at a fairground and three decades later, Tampa has a generation of fans who genuinely don’t remember a city without Lightning hockey. A huge amount of that transformation happened during the Jeff Vinik era and the Stamkos/Hedman/Kucherov dynasty. Winning obviously helps! By the time Tampa reached three consecutive Stanley Cup Finals, “Bolts Nation” had become part of the identity of the entire region.

The arena experience also fully commits to the theme. As menioned before, the giant Tesla coils fire actual bolts of electricity! Fans gather outside on Thunder Alley before and during games. “LET'S GO BOLTS!” is everywhere, even though amusingly, Phil Esposito has admitted he doesn’t particularly like the Bolts nickname because, as he put it, if he wanted to call them the Bolts, he would have done that. The team's broader slogan “Be the Thunder” fits with the entire attempt to turn games into more than just watching hockey.

Now, I can’t forget about the boat parades. After the 2020 Stanley Cup, Tampa celebrated by taking the trophy onto boats through the Hillsborough River, then they did it again in 2021! Somewhere in Canada, someone definitely saw those pictures and cussed out Gary Bettman cause why the heck is the Stanley Cup on a boat with dudes in Hawaiian shirts surrounded by palm trees?

The Retired Numbers

Only two player numbers have officially been retired.

No. 26 — Martin St. Louis

St. Louis became the first player in Lightning history to have his number retired in January 2017. He recorded 953 points in 972 games with Tampa, won the Hart Trophy, helped deliver the franchise's first Stanley Cup and became one of the players who proved the organization could actually build something sustainable.

No. 4 — Vincent Lecavalier

Lecavalier played 1,037 games for the Lightning and recorded 874 points. Tampa retired his number 4 in February 2018, making him the second player in franchise history to receive the honor.

There is a certain number 91 that feels extremely likely to end up hanging beside them someday…

The Team Identity

Modern Tampa Bay Lightning hockey has been built around skill, development, continuity and a ruthless willingness to make difficult roster decisions. The drafting is a huge part of it. This is an organization that drafts WELL. Kucherov went 58th, Point went 79th, Cirelli went 72nd, Ondrej Palat went 208th, but the organization repeatedly found legitimate championship level players outside the obvious places, which allowed Tampa to keep replenishing a roster that should have eventually collapsed under the salary cap.

Then there’s Jon Cooper. Cooper has been behind the Lightning bench since March 2013, making him the longest tenured active NHL coach. Players have come and gone, captains have changed, assistant coaches have changed and the league itself has shifted, but Cooper is somehow still standing there. Tampa has reached four Stanley Cup Finals and won two Cups under him, and after years of somehow never winning Coach of the Year, he finally captured the Jack Adams in 2026!

The core philosophy has remained pretty consistent. Tampa wants high end offense, elite special teams and elite goaltending, but the other defining part of the identity is that this front office does not get overly sentimental. They traded McDonagh when they could not afford him. They traded Sergachev, let Stamkos walk, they even traded Raddysh immediately after a 70 point season. They will absolutely make a painful decision if Julien BriseBois believes it keeps the championship window open. Tampa spent years behaving like every season with this core could be the last real chance which is a huge reason the window somehow stayed open for this long.

Why You Should Watch Them

You should watch the Tampa Bay Lightning because we’re probably watching the final chapters of one of the greatest cores of the modern NHL. Nikita Kucherov is 33 and just won the Hart Trophy, Victor Hedman is 35 and beginning his 18th NHL season, Andrei Vasilevskiy is still winning Vezinas, Brayden Point is still here, Anthony Cirelli is still here, Ryan McDonagh somehow left and came back, and Jon Cooper is entering his 14th season as head coach.

Tampa won 50 games last season with Kucherov leading with 130 points, Vasilevskiy leading the NHL in wins, Guentzel had 88 points, and Cirelli almost won the Selke. They added John Carlson and Conor Geekie might finally be ready to become a meaningful NHL piece. None of those regular season accomplishments matter much in Tampa anymore. The Lightning haven't won a playoff round since 2022 and have been eliminated in the first round four consecutive years. Florida has knocked them out twice and Montreal just beat them in a Game 7 where the Canadiens managed nine shots.

Kucherov is entering the final year of his contract and extension talks remain unresolved as of the beginning of the season. Hedman is back after stepping away last year. Vasilevskiy is coming off another Vezina. Cooper just won Coach of the Year. The remnants of the championship core are still good enough that nobody can reasonably call the window closed, but old enough that nobody should assume there will be another five chances.

This team already has the banners, the dynasty, and Stamkos already lifted the Cup twice. Kucherov, Hedman, Point and Vasilevskiy have already established themselves as franchise legends, but now we get to find out whether they have one more run left in them.