The Steven Stamkos-Tampa Bay Lightning Divorce: What Happened?
If you’re wondering why it took so long to release this article, it took forever to find the words needed to talk about this. In some ways, there are no words for this.
This might be one of, if not the, biggest shot in the heart for fans in the history of Tampa sports. Tampa Bay Lightning fans are still feeling sad, angry, disgusted, and pretty much every other negative emotion. And that’s understandable. Steven Stamkos is the greatest player in Lightning history. Potentially the greatest athlete in Tampa history. He’s the face of the franchise. But despite all of that, the man who arguably saved the team and led them through their greatest period signed with another team.
On the first day of free agency, Stamkos signed a four-year, $32 million contract with the Nashville Predators. Even though he recently did a photo shoot, revealing what he looks like in a Preds’ jersey, this still doesn’t feel real. It feels wrong to think that the guy who played for the Lightning for 16 years and captained them to two Stanley Cups will now be wearing a different uniform.
As mentioned earlier, Lightning fans are not taking this well. Go on social media and you’ll see calls for general manager Julien BriseBois’ head. A man who once garnered praise for helping to put together those cup teams is now seeing comments that read “Fire BriseBois.”
Other major and exciting free agency news has been shot down by fans because of this. The team extends franchise legend and the guy who will probably be the next captain, Victor Hedman. Most of the comments you see on social media say “Could have given this money to Stammer.” The team gets former all-star Jake Guntzel. Most of the comments read along the lines of “Stamkos replacement” and “should have given this money to Stammer.”
Now that there has been some time since Stamkos’ departure was announced, it’s probably a good time to try and analyze how we got here. We can start by looking at the letter Stamkos wrote in The Athletic.
If you don’t get choked up after reading this letter, you’re not a true Lightning fan. The whole thing was a long, emotional, heartfelt message to the people who impacted his life. He talked about getting drafted and coming to the city as a scared kid to growing into a confident man. He talked about his favorite memories from the team, mainly winning those cups. He thanked his teammates and coaches for everything, including their support when he and his wife lost their child.
The key thing from this letter was the ending, where Stamkos talked about his love for the city of Tampa itself.
“These past few weeks have been bittersweet,” Stamkos wrote. “I never thought this day would come. I did everything I felt I could do to make it work, but sometimes things just happen. It didn’t work. And I’d be lying if I said it wasn’t heartbreaking. But my family and I, we’re human, you know? Tampa is home. It’s where our three kids were born … it’s where our memories are. It’s always going to mean so much to us.”
The reason this statement is so noteworthy is not just because it’s emotional but because it makes one thing clear, Stamkos really wanted to return to the Lightning. The guy admitted he hoped it wouldn’t come to this and he loved living in Tampa. The statement “I never thought this day would come. I did everything I felt I could do to make it work, but sometimes things just happen. It didn’t work. And I’d be lying if I said it wasn’t heartbreaking” really says it all.
Some people might argue against this because athletes say this all the time when they leave. But this one felt genuine. And when you hear some of Stamkos’ statements to the media, it becomes even more clear he’s telling the truth.
In an interview after he announced he was signing in Nashville, Stamkos said “I’m not going to lie, it was difficult. When you’ve been in one organization, your whole career, as lucky as I’ve been to be in Tampa for 16 years, by no means did I ever envision that a day like today would happen…. it was certainly a tough pill to swallow when it started really to materialize that it wasn’t going to work in Tampa.” Honestly, it feels like he’s said he wished he could stay in Tampa more than he’s said he’s excited to be a Predator.
So Stamkos wanted to remain a Bolt. Why didn’t he? Well, the answer may be that the team wasn’t interested. Stamkos said to the media that he was willing to lower his financial demand, but it seemed like the team had no interest in accepting.
“At the end of the day, there was no question that I was willing to put all that stuff aside to remain a member of the Tampa Bay Lightning,” Stamkos said. “It just seemed like maybe not everyone thought that way.”
Though he said he was willing to take less money, BriseBois has made it seem like he was still asking for too much.
“It was clear throughout our process that [Stamkos] also had financial expectations that he expected us to meet,” BriseBois said. “Ultimately, I felt and made the decision that if I agreed to the terms that he wanted in order to get a deal done I would not be putting ourselves in the best position to chase championships going forward.”
Though it’s not officially known what the Lighting offered Stamkos, NHL Insider reported that the team offered him an 8-year deal with a $3 million AAV. They also reported Stamkos was hoping to get paid around $4 or $5 million a year, an amount three million less than the Preds signed him to.
Based on the reports what it sounds like is even though Stamkos was willing to take less money, the Lightning offered him an amount that was too low for him, so he signed with a team that was willing to pay him what he wanted.
If the report that the Lightning offered him a $3 million per year deal is true, that’s kind of crazy because that’s a low amount for Stamkos. Not just because it looks like they lowballed a Lightning legend, but because that’s a low amount for a player who’s still producing.
Last season Stamkos recorded 81 points and 40 goals. He was the team’s leading scorer in the playoffs. Stamkos is still an elite NHL talent. But it looks like the Lightning didn’t want to pay him like one.
The only reason that can explain why the team didn’t want to pay Stamkos a large amount is they didn’t want to end up in a Washington Capitals situation. The Capitals paid their best player ever, Alex Ovechkin, what he wanted to make sure he retires a Capital. However, as a result, the team has struggled to truly compete for a championship because they haven’t been able to get other talented young players and Ovechkin has started to decline due to his age.
This is just the most recent example of something that has happened throughout NHL history. A team pays a legend out of loyalty. The player declines due to age and the team fails to win.
Stamkos is 34. Though he hasn’t shown signs of decline yet, he will eventually. Maybe it won’t be next year, but it’s gonna happen. And you can argue that the Lighting chose to try and compete for more championships by avoiding paying for his twilight years.
So to sum it up, it appears that though he wanted to remain a Bolt, Steven Stamkos chose to sign with another team because the team he was with for 16 didn’t want to risk paying for his declining years.
More information about this event will come out in the coming years. We will learn more about what happened here. But until then all we can do is wait. Wait to see who will win this divorce.
Will Stamkos continue to put up all-star numbers and make the Lightning regret not signing him? Or will this move help the Lightning remain a championship contender? Regardless of what happens, what clear is Steven Stamkos not being re-signed is going to be remembered as one of the crucial moments in Lightning history. If this move turns out to be a mistake, fans will remember this as what got BriseBois fired and was the sign that the Lightning glory years were over. If it works out, then it will be a moment fans will point to as a moment that shows how well this team was run.
Regardless of what Stamkos does, it’s disappointing to see him leave. The guy played here forever and it’s already strange to see the promo pictures of him in that ugly yellow sweater.
If there’s some comfort to be had after our mourning period, it’s that Stamkos won’t be gone forever. He’ll return to Tampa. Maybe he returns to finish his career. Maybe it’s to get one last cheer from the Amalie Arena crowd, as a Bolts Blue banner with “91” rises in the sky.
He’ll be back in Tampa one day. He’ll come home.
