If there is a way to properly depict the atmosphere around the Tampa Bay Lightning right now, melancholy would likely be it.
There isn’t any anger going around. There are hard and hurt feelings, but overall, it’s just glum.
Nikita Kucherov is saying his time with the team is coming to an end. It’s not a situation he wanted, but the current situation indicates he wants out. When Tampa Bay Times reporter Eduardo Encina asked if there was a chance he’d stay, the answer was straightforward.
“Um, I made my request and yeah.”
The odds are likely still greater than zero that Kucherov sticks around. That answer leaves a bit of wiggle room depending on how you interpret it, but the odds look low.
We’ve reached a point where a partner has said they want to break up, and now they have to go through the awkward experience of moving out after years of living together.
Like in a relationship that breaks down, communication was at the middle of it. Kucherov said to the media that was the case. He added that Lightning general manager Julien BriseBois has only talked with him twice over the last four months.
That's going back to July. This could have been over with. Nothing happened.
The Lightning can make it clear in response that he’s not getting traded. Whether or not they insist on delaying what appears to be the inevitable is their choice. But he can either leave before the trade deadline in March in a trade, or he can walk in July as a free agent.
"Julien made it clear that I’m free to walk on July 1," Kucherov added.
That appears to be where everyone is at now. It can end earlier or later.
It’s a decision that’s clearly hard on Kucherov, too. It’s a decision made from heart break than from anger. It’s clear he didn’t want it to end this way.
“Everything,” Kucherov said when asked what the Lightning mean to him, via Benjamin Pierce. “I got drafted here. This is my 14th year. A couple championships, met a lot of great people. Everything. My kids grew up here, and I'm forever grateful for this organization.”
The fact that he made sure he told his teammates directly shows that he cares. He went out and played his heart out in Saturday’s loss ot Nashville.
He could easily have just put out a statement or relayed his decision through his agent. Even worse, he could have taken the Dylan Larkin or Connor Hellebuyck route and just opted to sit until a trade could happen.
“We love Kuch to death, Brandon Hagel said, via Benjamin Piece. “We know he has our back, so it's one of those things where, as a fan, I think you should appreciate what he's done for the city, what he's done for this organization. What he's done for myself personally, he’s a really good friend of mine.”
Some relationships end with bad blood. This is one where there is an active effort to make sure everyone ends things on good terms.
When it comes to the players, you feel for them. As for the Lightning, what else is there to say? They can still try a Hail Mary and save the relationship, or they can take the steps that prepare them for their own next chapter.
It’s an unfortunate fallout. This should have been a year of celebration. He just broke the team's all-time scoring record just over a week ago, and the expectation should have been that he was on his way to putting this record to rest for a long time.
Instead, all anybody can feel is the mood that matches the color of the jersey: blue.
Add us as a preferred source on Google