By Anthony Caruso III | Publisher
The first Championship has been clinched inside the Bubble. The Tampa Bay Lightning won the Stanley Cup over the Dallas Stars on Monday night at the Rogers Place in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.
The Lightning defeated the Stars, 2-0, in Game 6. With the win, Tampa Bay won the series overall with a 4-2 mark.
“It takes a lot to be in a bubble for 80 days or whatever long it was,” defenseman Victor Hedman said, who won the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP. “But it’s all worth it now. We’re coming home with the Cup.”
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The Lightning won the Stanley Cup just one season after a disastrous playoff exit. Tampa Bay — who was one of the favorites to play in the Stanley Cup during the 2018-19 season — was eliminated in the first round of the playoffs by the Columbus Blue Jackets.
Jon Cooper regrouped his players to make the run this year. Every team Cooper has coached, he has guided them to the Championship.
Tampa Bay had just one player, who won a Stanley Cup in their career. Now, all of their players can say that they won the Championship after being a part of this Cup team.
Patrick Maroon was the one player who had prior experience winning the Stanley Cup. He won the Stanley Cup during the 2018-19 season with the St. Louis Blues.
Cooper was the one within the Lightning who pursued Maroon last off-season after coaching him in the North American Hockey League.
The Lightning has won the Stanley Cup for the second time in team history. They previously won the Cup during the 2003-04 season.
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Blake Coleman scored his fifth goal of the postseason to put the Lightning up 2-0 at the 7:01 mark in the second period. Brayden Point scored on a power play, as Tampa Bay led 1-0 at the 12:23 mark in the first period.
Point scored a postseason-high 14th goal when he scored in the first period.
“The beauty of our team is everyone was chipping in,” Point said. “We got contributions from anyone and everyone at different times, and that’s what makes this win so special.”
Rick Bowness lost to many former players that he coached. He spent five seasons with the Lightning.
As an assistant coach, he was a part of Tampa Bay’s team that lost the 2015 Stanley Cup to the Chicago Blackhawks. Bowness was named the Stars’ interim head coach following Jim Montgomery’s departure on December 10, 2019.
“I couldn’t ask more from our players,” Bowness said. “So it wasn’t enough to beat that team, so it wasn’t enough. But it’s better than sitting here saying how we could [have] done this or could have done. We don’t second-guess anything we’ve done.”
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