This year the Florida-based hockey team, the Tampa Bay Lightning, was in the Stanley cup finals. The Tampa Bay Lightning not only defeated the New York Rangers in game seven, but they also became the first team to successfully defeat three Original Six teams in the first three rounds of the playoffs. This is not something that happens very often. The last time Tampa Bay made it to the Stanley cup finals was in 2004.
I have been a hockey fan since the moment I could sit on my dad’s shoulders at Atlanta Thrashers games, and cheer them on through the many losses and few victories.
The Atlanta Thrashers were also a new southern team that came to Atlanta in 1999, only seven years after the lightning came to Tampa. Both had high hopes to succeed, but often faced challenges in a football-dominated south.
The spirit of die-hard hockey fans is very similar to die-hard fans of the SEC. They live and breathe hockey, like many live and breathe football.
Attending hockey games is an activity normally associated with the north. This year Tampa Bay fans have walked to the stadium in their shorts, and then bundled up in winter coats to watch their boys fight on the ice.
This might be strange coming from a born and bred southern girl like myself, but hockey has always been one of my favorite sports to watch.
Huge, but nimble players fighting each other with sticks in Pillsbury Doughboy sized padding, all for a small, prized hockey puck. It really is entertaining to watch each player’s somehow swift movements while balancing on the thin, sharp blades of their ice skates.
The professional basketball, football, and baseball teams were ultimately more popular than hockey in Atlanta. The Atlanta Thrashers qualified for the playoffs only once during the 10 years they were in Atlanta. In the 2006 season they finally qualified, but they were ultimately defeated in the first round by the New York Rangers.
According to ESPN.com, in May 2011, the Thrashers were sold to a Canadian-based ownership group. The group moved the franchise to Winnipeg, Manitoba, which became the second creation of the Winnipeg Jets. The Thrashers were no more.
The Tampa Bay Lightning has had better luck in the south as a successful moneymaker and talent base. According to Wikipedia, “as a culmination of the 2004 Stanley Cup playoffs, the Tampa Bay Lightning defeated the Calgary Flames in seven games and were awarded the Stanley Cup.” This was Tampa's first-ever appearance in the final.
Finishing the 2014-15 season with 108 points, the Lightning qualified for the playoffs for the second straight season.
Tampa Bay eliminated the Detroit Redwings in seven games in the first round of the playoffs, before facing the Montreal Canadiens in the second round. They defeated the New York Rangers during the third round, and made it to the finals against the Chicago Blackhawks.
Tampa Bay lost after an impressive season to the Chicago Blackhawks during game seven.
I encourage you to watch a recording of one of the final games in the series. You may even become a southern hockey fan yourself, and be ready to cheer on your team next year!
