There’s rivalry in sports and then there’s stupidity when you put people at risk in order to stoke the flames of rivalry. Last night at Amalie Arena, stupidity made its presence known.
See, there’s a rally flag passed around the arena bowl, fans help pass it along… It bridges enough people that those who don’t want to be included don’t have to touch the thing; about 200 are under the flag at the time it’s being passed. I can imagine that fans of other teams don’t want to participate in helping pass that flag along. I realize some will likely get annoyed.
It’s when you react and put people at risk to squash your annoyance that you cross a line.
Detroit-area woman set fire to a huge Tampa Bay Lightning flag as it was passed over the sold-out crowd at Wednesday night’s playoff game at Amalie Arena.
Lena Sinishtaj, 35, of Sterling Heights, Michigan, was booked on a charge of first-degree arson of an occupied structure. She was being held without bond, according to Hillsborough County Jail records.
I don’t know if this was out of annoyance, out of rivalry hate, or someone out to accomplish something else that had little to do with hockey. It was stupid, period.
