Lightning Round: Remembering the Bolts boat parade

It’s been six days since the Tampa Bay Lightning won the Stanley Cup. For me personally it’s still hard to process this information: it feels like just some moment ago we’ve all been sitting at home during the quarantine and waiting for the season restart, but now it’s already over and we have to wait an uncertain time for the next season’s opening. These two months have passed very quickly, and the best thing is that we’ve finally watched Steven Stamkos lifting the Cup over his head.

The Lightning beat reporter Bryan Burns recapitulated the day he spent with the team starting with jumping on an Alex Killorn’s boat during the boat parade in the Hillsborough River and ending with scenes of celebration at the Raymond James Stadium

A Sunday morning is probably a best time to remember this one in the lifetime event

10:13 - The event is over, but the fans aren’t ready to leave. A number of them have made their way to the barricade set up outside the end zone concourse area and are chanting “Let’s go Lightning,” while banging away on their rally drums. Pat Maroon runs over with beers in his arms, handing some out to the fans, spraying others with an open beer and pouring a full one down the throat of a couple lucky fans.

The underrated part of this article

6:29 - We discover our boat has a bathroom, which is the most clutch find of the evening. It’s tucked under the captain’s steering console and is only about four feet tall once inside, though, so you have to decide if you’re going to get on your knees and pee and risk getting unidentified liquids on your pants or squat as low as you can while still remaining standing. I opt for the latter and somehow manage to keep myself from falling over. Nobody can find the flush button, however, so by the time we disembark, the toilet is nearly overflowing.

Around the Hockey

Yesterday was a big day for goaltender signings. First Tristan Jarry signed an extension with the Pittsburgh Penguins. He agreed to a three-year deal, worth $3.5 million annualy.

The Vegas Golden Knights re-signed Robin Lehner to a five-year, $5 million deal

After the announcement a Swedish goaltender shared a message to the Golden Knights fans.

At the same time Tristan Jarry threw a light on what could be a potential opening day for training camps. According to this information, the league is probably planning to start a new season on early January, as it was mentioned before.

The Arizona Coyotes placed forward Michael Grabner on waivers for purpose of buyout the last year of his contract. Grabner has a contract with cap hit of $3.35 million and the buyout will cost the Yotes around $2.5 million.

Taylor Hall apparently could sign a 1-2 year deal

Former Lightning defenceman Radko Gudas is expected to test the open market. He spent the previous season with the Washington Capitals, recording 15 points in 63 games

According to Elliotte Friedman, the Carolina Hurricanes offered Andrei Svechnikov a 8x$7.5M, however the Russian forward would probably prefer to take a bridge deal with an opportunity to get a bigger contract when it expires. The Canes reportedly are also in the race for Patrik Laine.

Former Lightning goalie Nikolai Khabibulin shared his insights on a prospect Yaroslav Askarov. According to many draft rankings, Askarov is expected to be selected at number 10-15 at the 2020 NHL Entry Draft.