Tampa Bay Lightning: Detroit Fan Sets Fire To Amalie Arena During Game 7

A Detroit Red Wings fan was arrested last at the Amalie Arena for setting fire to a Tampa Bay Lightning flag being passed around the arena.

The Tampa Bay Lightning was on fire last night in the third period of Game 7 against the Detroit Red Wings. Unfortunately, the players weren’t the only thing heating up.

Brace yourselves, Bolts Nation…this is a good one. According to a report from Fox 13 here in Tampa Bay, a Detroit Red Wings fan was so ticked off at the fact that the Lightning had forced her precious Red Wings into a Game 7 that she found it appropriate to try and burn the place down…literally.

Allow us to set the scene for you. The Tampa Bay Lightning are getting ready to kick off the final game in the series against the Detroit Red Wings. This is the Lightning’s defining moment; the one that will determine whether their next mode of transportation is a golf cart hitting the links or a plane heading to Montreal for the next round. Anticipation and excitement filled the entire arena.

As you are all aware by now, the Tampa Bay Lightning are all about fan interaction and getting everyone into the game. When things were starting to look good for our Boys in Blue, the Bolt Brigade pulled out the giant Tampa Bay Lightning flag and began to pass it around the arena in much the same way the American flag makes its rounds during the singing of the National Anthem. Then…it happened.

A 35 year old woman by the name of Lena Sinishtaj thought that it would be a bright idea to reach for her lighter, pull it out and light the Lightning flag on fire. Whether it was simply meant as a sign of disrespect or whether she actually believed that it was her calling to burn the building down is not known.

The one thing we do know for absolute certain is that this has to rank up there with the strangest things we have ever seen at a Tampa Bay Lightning game, and that includes projectile Octopi.

According to Fox 13, there were approximately 200 people were underneath the flag at the time of the incident. About the only good news to come out of this is that Fox 13 is not reporting that there were any injuries as a result of the incident; however, that did not make a difference in the fate of the young woman.

After the Tampa Police Department and Tampa Fire Rescue’s arson investigator were made aware of the incident Sinishtaj was taken into custody and arrested on charges of Arson. The Fox 13 article states that she is a resident of Sterling Heights, which is a suburb of Detroit.

Ok…so let’s take a step back here for a second. Over the course of this series we have heard all manner of insults from some of the Detroit Red Wings fan base about how horrific we supposedly are, how we’re not real fans, and just about every other form of insult you can think of; however, allow us to ask you a question…did we ever try to burn down the Joe Louis Arena? No…because that would just be insane.

As we mentioned before, the good news is that we have not heard any reports of anyone being injured during the incident and the person responsible is facing the music for their crimes. Unfortunately, that doesn’t really help our charred flag very much.

On the bright side, we’re sure that the Tampa Bay Lightning will have another one at the ready when Round 2 heads to the Amalie Arena on Wednesday night Game 3.

What are your thoughts on the incident? Is this something that even in the most inebriated of states has ever seemed appropriate, or at the very least a viable idea, for you to do at a hockey game? Let us know what you think in the comments below.

Next: Tampa Bay Lightning: Round 2 Schedule Announced

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