- Pandemic Cup: Thanks, Bolts, we needed that. Stanley needed another Tampa Bay tan, and our community needed the opportunity to revel with a cause beyond bar reopenings. Yes, the Lightning, encased in its two-month Toronto-Edmonton bubble, won the iconic Stanley Cup with its Game 6, 2-0 shutout of the Dallas Stars on Monday. There’s no more iconic trophy, one that was first presented in the 1890s, in the sports world. It also resonates internationally—from North America to Scandinavia, Europe and Russia.
After last season’s colossal disappointment, the Bolts got bigger, tougher and better. Redemption, at last, will no longer be a theme going forward. Nothing needs exorcising.
For now it’s well-timed, community celebration after that two-month Canadian gauntlet, and nobody embodies the ultimate hockey achievement and feel-good fan frenzy quite like Lightning captain Steven Stamkos, who has long been the competitive face and classy identity of the Bolts. A Lee Roy Selmon on skates. That’s why it was appropriate for Commissioner Gary Bettman to literally present the Stanley Cup to him. And how appropriate that the injured Stamkos, who played less than three minutes total throughout the playoffs, used his precious time to score a key goal on his only shot, one that further energized and galvanized the Bolts to go on and win game three. It was no mere cameo. It was an adrenaline boost for a team on a mission. And now mission accomplished: a Stanley Cup for a franchise that was overdue—and a COVID diversion for a community that needed to test positive for unbridled joy and pride.
- “Our hope is going to be to fill this stadium with fans. But the smart thing to do is to prepare just in case.”—Jonathan Barker, head of live events and production for the NFL, on fan scenarios for Super Bowl 55 at Raymond James Stadium.
- This year’s pandemic-impacted NCAA basketball season will still begin with the annual Maui Invitational—Nov.30-Dec. 2—but it will be played in bubble-prepared Asheville, N.C.—not Hawaii.
- The Rays won the American League East for the third time. It’s a very big deal—even if the celebration involved Silly String being sprayed instead of champagne. But confetti canons are still cool.
- “Phandemic.” How especially loyal sports fans describe their new-normal gatherings to root on their favorite team.