Ten Years Ago They Played for The Cup — Lightning/Flames Renew Rivalry Tonight

Bolts look to rebound from tough loss in Edmonton and get road trip back on winning track. Surmounting injuries is the key.

Ten years.

Ten years have passed.

Already.

Ten years have passed since the Tampa Bay Lightning defeated the Calgary Flames, 2-1, in Game Seven of the Stanley Cup finals to win the 2003-2004 NHL championship. Dave Andreychuk lifted The Cup. Many will cherish that Vinny Lecavalier and Jarome Iginla claimed a place in NHL lore for the fight in Game Three that boosted Tampa Bay’s game and Bolts’ fans’ hopes. The Lightning readied to defend The Cup 10 years ago this month and all was beautiful in Bolt-land.

Then came the strike. Then the Lightning raised the Stanley Cup banner to the rafters on October 23, 2005, but the year off made for an off year for the Bolts. Then came the trades. Then came the injuries and retirements and seasons begun in high hopes and ending short of the goal, the only goal. The Cup. And 10 years have passed, 10 years filled with highlight reel moments and banners rising to the rafters, but not THE banner. Neither team has returned to The Cup finals.

And so the Flames host the Lightning tonight in the Saddledome in Calgary, both teams off to a promising start to the season, both teams beginning a second decade NOT playing in the Stanley Cup finals. None of the players who battled for The Cup still skates on either roster. Both teams are young — among the youngest in the NHL — and hungry and keeping steely eyes on the prize. The puck drops at 9:00 p.m. Tampa time, and the game is available on TV through Sun Sports and radio from 970/WFLA.

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Tampa Bay enters the match with a 3-2-1 record after Monday’s 3-2 loss to Edmonton. The Bolts are 1-1 on this 5-game road trip through western Canada, central Canada, and Minnesota (southern Canada?). Tonight is the second straight Monday-Tuesday of back-to-back games for the Lightning; the Bolts lost to New Jersey, 2-1, last Tuesday at home.

The Bolts approach this game dealing with the first major injury issues of the new season. Defenseman Victor Hedman, off to a huge start, will miss 4-6 weeks after fracturing a finger on his right hand against Vancouver on Saturday; he was expected to undergo surgery today. Hard-hitting defenseman Radko Gudas, nursing a lower body injury, has yet to play on this road trip and may not return until the weekend. Forward Alex Killorn is day-to-day after getting hurt during Monday’s morning skate in Edmonton. And forward Ryan Callahan left last night’s game in the second period with a lower body hurt; his status for tonight has not been announced.

Coach Jon Cooper, as a result, will have to juggle his line-up once again. Killorn’s injury put Jonathan “Cool Hand” Drouin in the spotlight last night and the highly-touted forward made his NHL debut with an impressive display of flashy skating, skilled puck control, and stealthy steals. He could even end up skating on the top line with Steven Stamkos and Ondrej Palat tonight if Callahan is a no-go. The Bolts might have to bring up a forward from Syracuse — maybe Mike Blunden — to avoid going with only 11 offensive skaters. Defenseman Mark Barberio made his season debut last night in place of Gudas, leaving recently called up Luke Witkowski as the only scratch. Expect Witkowski to suit up tonight. Evgeni Nabokov is expected to start in net just as he did in the second half of last week’s back-to-back. Nabokov had some big saves in the loss to the Devils.

The Lightning will not only be dealing with injuries and line-up changes tonight. The Bolts face a Calgary team that is better rested, not having played since Sunday, as well as energized by a return to home ice after an unusually long six-game road trip. The Flames have gotten off to a 4-3 start (4-2 on the daunting road trip after an opening night loss to Vancouver at home).  The Flames may have found a hot scoring line in Johnny Gaudreau, Mason Raymond, and Joel Colborne, who combined for six points in the final two periods in the 4-1 win over Winnipeg on Sunday. Coach Bob Hartley has been alternating Jonas Hiller and former Lightning prospect Karri Ramo in goal this season, with comparable results. Ramo takes his turn tonight against his former teammates.

The Lightning and Flames split their two meetings last season, each team winning on the road. The clubs meet twice again this year, the next meeting on November 6 at the Amalie Arena in Tampa. A third meeting could only occur in the Stanley Cup finals, but that is not only a long time coming but a long way from now. For in hockey, autumn is the most hopeful season. As John Keats asked in “To Autumn,” his Romantic masterpiece, “Where are the songs of Spring? Ay, where are they? Think not of them, thou hast thy music too,—” The Stanley Cup season, even 10 years later, still sings loudly in both of these towns; we will see if the music is still blasting come April.