Breaking Down the Lightning’s Must-See Home Games of 2022-23 Season
With Tampa Bay Lightning single game tickets for the upcoming season going on sale today, we felt this was a great chance to point out a few of the headlining home games.
Of course, the home opener against Philadelphia on October 18th and the two meetings with division rivals like Toronto, Boston and Florida speak for themselves. We are going to look a little deeper at some of the single games that stand above the rest.
1. November 25th vs. St. Louis Blues
The St. Louis Blues one meeting in Tampa comes on Black Friday as the Lightning and Blues will be featured as part of the NHL’s “Thanksgiving Showdown”.
This will be a cool opportunity to play in one of the bigger showcased days of the NHL season. In past years, games featured on the “Thanksgiving Showdown” predominantly included original six franchises like New York and Boston.
Another benefit of continued success is a driving demand to be featured on national television and the Lightning and Blues will be a headline game to kick off the holiday weekend.
2. December 8th vs. Nashville Predators
The Lightning and the Nashville Predators have developed a fun rivalry in the last few seasons after playing in the Central Division during the 2021 season and becoming the heartbeat of hockey in the south.
When the Lightning and Predators met outdoors at Nissan Stadium in Nashville for the 2022 NHL Stadium series, the two teams but on a special showcase of how big hockey has become in non-traditional markets.
This year’s meeting in Tampa will have another twist to it as it will be the first game back in Tampa for Ryan McDonagh after being traded to the Predators on July 3rd.
3. December 29th vs. New York Rangers
After coming to Amalie Arena two times last regular season, the New York Rangers will visit just once this season. This will be the one and only chance to see the rematch of last year’s Eastern Conference Final and the battle of the league’s top two goaltenders: Andrei Vasilevskiy and Igor Shesterkin.
With a big team like the Rangers coming in, tickets will always be in high demand. With this year’s contest coming during the Christmas season, that makes this one even more of a can’t miss game.
4. February 9th vs. Colorado Avalanche
The Lightning will have to wait until February to get another crack at the Colorado Avalanche in a rematch of the 2022 Stanley Cup Final.
Nothing can happen in this game to change the feelings associated with the heartbreaking loss at the hands of the Avalanche in June, but this will be another chance to see two of the most loaded squads in the NHL.
Both teams will look a bit different since the Avalanche hoisted the Stanley Cup on the Lightning’s home ice, but both teams were able to maintain enough of their important pieces that keep the door open for them to meet down the road again.
5. March 19th vs. New Jersey Devils
Lightning fans will have to wait until March to see Ondrej Palat return to Amalie Arena for the first time. Palat signed a six year contract with the Devils on the first day of Free Agency and earned a well-deserved pay raise.
Palat will receive the same sort of hero’s welcome as McDonagh and others who have returned to Tampa after helping the team reach the top of the mountain two straight years. Palat’s will be a bit different as his 10 seasons with Tampa Bay are more than anybody else who has moved on from the Lightning in recent years.
Palat finds himself at seventh all time in games played for the Lightning with 626 regular season games and second, for the time being, in playoff games with 138.