Tampa Bay Lightning Tickets Continued
Founded: 1992-1993 (awarded December 20, 1991)
Arena: St.
Pete Times Forum (formerly known as Ice Palace)
Former Home Arenas: Expo Hall (1992-1993), Thunderdome (1993-1998)
Uniform colors: Black, White, Blue, and Silver
Logo design: A circle pierced by a lightning bolt with the inscription "Tampa Bay LIGHTNING"
Prince of Wales Trophy: 1 - 2004
Stanley Cup wins: 1 - 2004 (1 finals appearance)
Mascot: Thunderbug
Rivals: Florida Panthers, Philadelphia Flyers
After their breakout season, the Lightning finished the 2003-04 season atop the Eastern Conference standings with a franchise record 106 points, the second-best record in the league. In the first round of the playoffs, as the top seed, the Lightning ousted the New York Islanders, a team many had picked to upset the Eastern Conference winners, as the Islanders had given the Lightning much trouble in the past.
However, this was not to be so, and with solid play from goaltender Nikolai
Khabibulin, the Lightning went on to win the series by a convincing 4-1 margin.
In the second round, the Lightning faced the Montreal
Canadiens. However, with at times jaw-dropping play from Lecavalier, playoff
MVP Brad Richards, and once again, Khabibulin, the Lightning were able to sweep
the Canadiens in 4 straight games.
They faced the Philadelphia Flyers in the Eastern Conference finals, winning in a back-and-forth seven-game series in which neither team was able to win consecutive games, earning the Lightning their first-ever spot in the Stanley Cup finals. There they defeated the Calgary Flames 4 games to 3 to win their first Stanley Cup on June 7, 2004. Brad Richards, who had 26 points, won the Conn Smythe Trophy; in all 31 contests in which he had scored a goal since the opening of the season, the Lightning did not lose a single game.
