Tampa Bay Lightning Fans React To Mike Blunden, Justin Abdelkader Situation

Tampa Bay Lightning fans all around the Bolts Nation are pretty headed after the situation that went down in the final moments of Game 2 of the 2016 Stanley Cup Playoffs.

The Tampa Bay Lightning put on one heck of a show tonight as they took on the Detroit Red Wings at the Amalie Arena in Tampa in Game 2 of the 2016 Stanley Cup Playoffs. Unfortunately, the stellar play and the Lightning’s ultimate 5-2 victory was a bit overshadowed by the events that took place in the final seconds of the third period. Of course, by events we mean all-out line brawl.

Just in case you’re one of the few fans who didn’t get the opportunity to witness tonight’s game, we’ll set the scene for you a little bit. The Tampa Bay Lightning were leading the Detroit Red Wings 5-2. There was less than one minute left in the game. No matter how hard they tried, there was absolutely no way the Red Wings were leaving Tampa Bay with a victory in Game 2.

Tampa Bay Lightning defenseman Andrej Sustr and Detroit Red Wings center Brad Richards were battling for position in front of the Lightning net. Just as the play started to really heat up, Richards unleashed a slash on Sustr. Before anyone had any idea what was going on, these two teams were embroiled in an all-out line brawl. As the fists continued to fly, equipment was left strewn all over the ice.

One of the biggest storylines to emerge from this chaos is the rather blatant cheap shots Red Wings left wing Justin Abdelkader took on defenseless Lightning right wing Mike Blunden. Blunden was significantly pinned to the ground as Abdelkader unleashed a fury of punches to the head of Blunden. When Blunden was finally able to make it to his feet, everyone could see his face was significantly torn up.

Despite his injuries, Blunden was not backing down. Unfortunately, when Blunden attempted to take on Abdelkader face to face like men, Abdelkader wanted none of it and the pair was quickly separated by the officials. It was later reported by Joe Smith of the Tampa Bay Times that Blunden required nine stitches after the assault from Abdelkader.

Needless to say, Tampa Bay Lightning fans both here and around the Bolts Nation were none too pleased with what some referred to as the cowardly actions of Justin Abdelkader. Some fans, we included, are looking for the NHL Department of Player Safety to take a closer look at this situation and bring down some sort of supplemental discipline on Justin Abdelkader.

You’ve already heard our thoughts on the matter. Now it’s time to take a closer look at what some of you have to say about it. Here is a look at what some Tampa Bay Lightning fans had to say about the unfortunate situation between Mike Blunden and Justin Abdelkader.

We want you to keep in mind that these are some of the only responses we found that were suitable to print. There are plenty more comments to be had on the situation. All you need do is search Blunden on Twitter and you’ll find a barrage of heated comments from Bolts fans, and even some fans of other teams around the league.

However, the last comment we’re going to post brings to light a very interesting question.

On the bright side, it won’t be long before we’ll be able to witness the next chapter in this ongoing saga. After a day off tomorrow, the Tampa Bay Lightning will be headed to the Joe Louis Arena in Detroit to do it all over again in Game 3 of the 2016 Stanley Cup Playoffs.

Next: Lightning, Red Wings Erupt In Line Brawl In Game 2 (Video)

It’s hard to know for sure at this point whether we’ll get the opportunity to see round two between these two fierce competitors; however, the one thing we can guarantee you at this point is neither one of them will be receiving a Christmas card from the other anytime soon.