Throughout the year, the Sip Advisor will alphabetically travel the National Hockey League (NHL), discovering the best and worst each team has to offer in a variety of subjects. We will also feature a drink based off the franchise. Today, we stop for a smoke in the Cigar City (what a nickname!), and learn about the Tampa Bay Lightning:

Establishment Story: The Lightning joined the NHL as an expansion team in 1992. Two groups had bid to bring a team to Tampa Bay, with the consortium led by Phil and Tony Esposito being awarded a franchise, as they were able to pay the full $50 million expansion fee in advance. The Lightning moniker was given to the team because Tampa Bay is the Lightning Capital of North America.

Stanley Cups: The Lightning have won three Stanley Cups, including back-to-back championships in 2020 and 2021, defeating the Dallas Stars and Montreal Canadiens, respectively. Their other win came in 2004, over the Calgary Flames. Tampa Bay has also lost in two Stanley Cup Finals appearances, defeated by the Chicago Blackhawks in 2015 and the Colorado Avalanche in 2022, as they attempted to complete a three-peat.

Celebrity Fan: Hulk Hogan, a Tampa Bay resident, has been a Lightning fan for some time. The Hulkster appeared regularly at games during the team’s 2004 Stanley Cup run and has continued to support the franchise, despite his own scandals. Fellow wrestler Chris Jericho, another Floridian, has been the Lightning’s Social Media Captain before, but the Canadian has also showed up to a Lightning-Winnipeg Jets game wearing a Jets jersey.

Super Fan: The Malektronic Rocketman began life as a Lightning super fan, appearing at games during the 2014-15 season, before becoming a viral sensation and marketing campaign during Tampa Bay’s 2015 run to the Stanley Cup Finals. The character was created by Malektronic (wireless speaker/headphones company) CEO Ben Malek, who is an avid supporter of the Lightning, having both rink-side season tickets and owning a suite at Amalie Arena.

Mascot: ThunderBug is a lightning bug who wears jersey number 00. He is known to play a drum as Thunderstruck by AC/DC blasts through the arena in one of the team’s pre-game customs. A 2012 viral video of ThunderBug spraying a Boston Bruins fan with silly string, prior to the fan becoming upset and pushing the mascot, resulted in the performer being fired by the team. The team stated the incident was among other issues leading to the dismissal.

Tradition: The Lightning’s home building, Amelia Arena, has a very unique fixture inside. A Tesla Coil hangs from the roof of the stadium, shooting lightning bolts as part of the teams entrance, as well as when they score a goal. Also comprising the team’s arrival is the song Thunderstruck by AC/DC. Another tune important to the club is Thunder and Lightning by Vo Williams, with the track known as the official anthem of the squad.

Appearances in Media: The animated series American Dad! Has featured a number of references to the Lightning, including a character being decked out in numerous Lightning logo tattoos, as well as the talking fish character Klaus asking if anyone knows the score in the Lightning game. Also, one of the guys playing hockey on top of the Quick Stop in the movie Clerks is wearing a Tampa Bay jersey.

Events/Scandals: Today, the Lightning are viewed as a model NHL organization. However, that wasn’t the case in the franchise’s earliest years, as the team was owned by a rarely seen Japanese businessman, who was rumoured to have ties to the yakuza (Japan’s mafia) and was operating with 236 per cent debt in 1997. Some believed the Lightning were merely a money laundering device. Later owners Oren Koules and Len Barrie weren’t much better, as their interference with the team led to the resignation of GM Jay Feaster.

Rivalry: The Battle of Florida, between the Lightning and the Florida Panthers, has existed since both teams joined the NHL in subsequent years in 1992 and 1993. The teams compete annually for the Governor’s Cup (aka Sunshine Cup/Nextel Cup Challenge), with the Panthers holding an advantage of 15-12-1. That said, the teams have only met in the playoffs twice, with the Lightning winning both series.

Tragedy: John Cullen was one of the Lightning’s top players when he was diagnosed with cancer in 1997. The disease forced Cullen to sit out the 1997-98 season, during which he went into cardiac arrest while attending a treatment. Cullen survived and the cancer went into remission, leading to the forward attempting to make a comeback. He made the 1998-99 roster, but wasn’t the same player and decided to retire early that campaign. Cullen was awarded the 1999 Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy for his efforts.

Player Nicknames: Wayne Gretzky’s less famous, less successful younger brother Brent played 13 games for the Lightning over two seasons from 1993 to 1995. While Wayne was nicknamed ‘The Great One’, Brent received the dubious title ‘The Other One’. Brent’s four points, combined with Wayne’s NHL record 2,857 points make the pair the highest scoring brothers in league history.

Line: Martin St. Louis and Vincent Lecavalier were a formidable duo, being combined with Vaclav Prospal to form the MVP Line. Later, Prospal would be replaced by Steven Stamkos, establishing the Centers Line. Other notable units, include The Triplets/Coop’s Troops (Nikita Kucherov, Ondrej Palat and Tyler Johnson) and Dirt Line (Dave Andreychuk, Tim Taylor, Chris Dingman).

Captain: Steven Stamkos was named captain on March 6, 2014, replacing Martin St. Louis. He is the longest serving captain in franchise history, still in the role as of this article. And why not? Stamkos holds the franchise records for goals and points and is on track to takeover the games played and assists marks in due time. While injuries were thought to have taken their toll on the former first overall pick, Stamkos is still putting up great statistical seasons.

Enforcer: Zenon Konopka (aka Zenon the Destroyer) only played one full year with the Lightning, but he set the franchise single-season penalty minute record at 265, during that campaign. The next two highest totals belong to Enrico Ciccone, who likely would have set a higher bar for Konopka, had he not been traded to the Chicago Blackhawks during the 1995-96 season, while sitting at 258 penalty minutes.

Family Values: A couple brother combos have been members of the Lightning at the same time. First, Nolan and Cal Foote were first round draft picks by Tampa Bay in 2017 and 2019, respectively. Unfortunately, before the two could play together, Nolan was traded to the New Jersey Devils in 2020. Also, Darren and Taylor Raddysh were briefly members of the 2021-22 squad at the same time.

Returning Players: Chris Gratton had three separate stints with the Lightning. He was drafted by the team third overall in 1993, immediately joining the team that season. Gratton signed an offer sheet with the Philadelphia Flyers in 1997, but was traded back to Tampa Bay early in the 1998-99 campaign and traded again to the Buffalo Sabres in March 2000. His final run with the Lightning lasted from 2007 to 2009. Gratton holds the franchise record for career penalty minutes at 828.

Short Stint: Two goalies, known for their time with other teams, finished their careers with brief Tampa Bay tenures. First, after rewriting most of the Washington Capitals goalie records, Olaf Kolzig played eight games with the Lightning in 2008-09. He was traded to the Toronto Maple Leafs at the trade deadline, but never suited up for them. Second, Evgeni Nabokov played 11 games with the Lightning in 2014-15, before being traded back to the San Jose Sharks, retiring with the team he backstopped for a decade.

Undrafted: Yanni Gourde, a 5’9” undersized junior star, almost gave up on having a hockey career, feeling stuck in the minor leagues. He was finally signed by the Lightning in March 2014, becoming a full-time member of the roster in 2017-18. Gourde would go on to be an integral part of Tampa Bay’s 2020 and 2021 Stanley Cup championship squads, before being selected by the Seattle Kraken in their expansion draft.

Trade: The arrival of Vincent Lecavalier in Tampa Bay changed the team’s fortunes. Lecavalier only ended up with the Lightning due to a trade with the San Jose Sharks, which gave them the first overall selection in the 1998 draft. Lightning owner Art Williams (who also owned the Detroit Pistons of the National Basketball Association) proclaimed that Lecavalier would be “the Michael Jordan of hockey”. For his part, Lecavalier did bring a Stanley Cup championship to Tampa Bay.

Signing: When Martin St. Louis signed with the Lightning in 2000, he had just endured being exposed and not selected in the Expansion Draft and being bought out by the Calgary Flames. St. Louis had recorded only four goals and 20 points over a combined two seasons and 69 NHL games. Upon arriving in Tampa Bay, his game grew and he became a star and leader with the team.

Draft Pick: The Lightning selected two franchise players with the first overall choice, taking Vincent Lecavalier (1998) and Steven Stamkos (2008). Tampa Bay also did well choosing Victor Hedman second overall in 2009. The Lightning have also made some steal selections, with the likes of Brad Richards (64^th overall in 1998), Nikita Kucherov (58^th overall in 2011) and Brayden Point (79^th overall in 2014) all coming in later rounds.

Holdouts: Jonathan Drouin was drafted by the Lightning third overall in 2013. As the young winger struggled during the 2015-16 season, he was sent to the minor league Syracuse Crunch. After a few games, though, Drouin refused to further play for the team and demanded a trade. The holdout ended after two months, with Drouin agreeing to rejoin the Crunch. Shortly after, Drouin was recalled by the Lightning and played the full 2016-17 year with them, before being traded to the Montreal Canadiens.

Buyouts: The Lightning have paid out a fair bit of money to players they no longer want on their roster, including Vaclav Prospal ($7 million) and Matt Carle ($7.33 million), but nothing compares to the team using one of their compliance buyouts, coming out of the 2012-13 lockout, on captain Vincent Lecavalier. Lecavalier had signed an 11-year, $85 million deal in 2008, so he was due $32.67 million over 14 years. He will be paid $1.76 million per year until 2026-27.

Unique Game: In 1998, the Lightning and Buffalo Sabres took part in a four-team tournament in Austria, with the Lightning defeating the Sabres in the finals. Tampa Bay returned to Europe to open their 2008 season with a pair of contests against the New York Rangers in Prague, Czechia. As part of the 2019 Global Series, the Lightning once again faced the Sabres, this time in Stockholm, Sweden. As for outdoor games, Tampa Bay battled the Nashville Predators as part of the 2022 NHL Stadium Series.

Goal: In Game 1 of the 2020 playoffs for the Lightning, center Brayden Point scored the winning goal against the Columbus Blue Jackets in the fifth overtime period. This ended the fourth longest game in NHL history and started Tampa Bay’s run to the 2020 Stanley Cup. Point would also score the winner in Game 5 of that series, in only the first overtime period, helping the Lightning advance to the second round.

Fight/Brawl: Lightning teams of recent years have been involved in a number of skirmishes with opposing clubs. This includes in back-to-back playoffs, with the Lightning having early line brawls with the Florida Panthers in 2021 and Toronto Maple Leafs in 2022. They also had a memorable melee with the Vegas Golden Knights near the end of the 2022-23 season, which resulted in all 10 players involved being ejected from the contest.

Injury: During a November 11, 2013 game against the Boston Bruins, Lightning star Steven Stamkos crashed into the Bruins net, breaking his leg. A stretcher was needed to remove Stamkos from the ice and surgery was required to repair his right tibia. At the time of the injury, Stamkos was tied for the league lead in scoring. He would be forced to miss the 2014 Olympics due to the injury.

Penalty: During a pre-season game against the Washington Capitals on September 19, 2000, winger Gordie Dwyer left the penalty box to join a bench-clearing brawl. During that fracas, Dwyer verbally and physically abused the on-ice officials, earning himself a 23-game suspension. This total was based on adding up three automatic suspensions for his actions. Dwyer played 78 games with Tampa Bay over three seasons, scoring zero goals, with four assists and 291 penalty minutes.

Wildest Story: When Lightning GM Steve Yzerman didn’t name Martin St. Louis to the Canadian Men’s Hockey Team for the 2014 Olympics, he didn’t realize the events he’d set off with his own star player and captain. Feeling disrespected, St. Louis requested a trade and despite eventually joining the Olympics team as an injury replacement and winning a gold medal, St. Louis still wanted out. He was dealt to the New York Rangers shortly after returning from Sochi, Russia.

Blooper: Steven Stamkos is among the most offensively dangerous players in NHL history, but his scoring acumen failed him during a 2011 penalty shot attempt. Down 5-0 to the Pittsburgh Penguins, Stamkos was awarded a penalty shot. As he broke in on goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury, he lost control of the puck, then fell, sliding into the end boards, as Fleury easily knocked the puck away, negating the penalty shot attempt.

Miscellaneous: Female goaltender Manon Rhéaume became the first woman to play in a major North American sports league, when she attended the Lightning’s inaugural training camp in 1992. While the invite was a bit of a publicity stunt, with Rhéaume appearing in one pre-season period, she played well enough to earn a contract with Tampa Bay’s International Hockey League affiliate, the Atlanta Knights.

Tampa Bay Lightning: Lightning Bolt Lemonade

• 2 oz Vodka or White Rum
• 1 oz Blue Curacao
• Top with Lemonade
• Garnish with Lemon Slices

There are a number of Lightning-named cocktails, with some of them having a similar composition to this drink. I’m finding it quite interesting how many of the hockey-themed beverages include Blue Curacao as an ingredient.