Lightning Navigate Stadium Game and Olympic Hype

Tampa Bay Lightning coach Jon Cooper, as well as nine of his players, have a whirlwind of a February staring them in the face.

“I’m on a plane to Milan (Italy), Cooper told the media on Saturday, “in six days.”

However, prior to Cooper and those Lightning players flying off to participate in the 2026 Winter Olympic Games in Italy, each of them have a whole lot of hockey – important hockey, at that – in their immediate future.

The Lightning (34-14-4, 72 points) will host Boston (32-20-3, 67 points) today at 6:30 p.m., with a twist.

The game will be played in front of nearly 70,000 fans, outdoors, at Raymond James Stadium (ESPN).

“It’s going to be great,” Cooper said. “It will be great for this city.”

All involved are extremely excited about the nationally televised event in this super cool atmosphere. However, at the end of the day, it is a critical Atlantic Division game.

“We need to (win), just to compete in this division,” Cooper said following Thursday’s 4-1 win over Winnipeg at Benchmark International Arena. “I don’t think that I have ever seen our division this tight.”

The 13-year coach took that assessment a step further.

“Actually,” Cooper continued, “any division in this league as tight as the Atlantic has been with so many teams that are competing for a playoff spot.”

Going into today’s game, the Bruins have the final (eighth) spot in the playoff race in the Eastern Conference, so the awesome atmosphere or not, they are going to be incredibly focused on gaining two points (with a win).

“You talk about distractions,” Cooper said, “I’m on a plane to Milan in six days, and this game is between there.”

And it isn’t the only thing happening for the Lightning players and coaches in the next week.

Cooper will be coaching Lightning players Brandon Hagel, Brayden Point, and Anthony Cirelli for Team Canada in Milan, while Jake Guentzel (United States), Victor Hedman and Pontus Holmberg (Sweden), Erik Cernak (Slovakia), Zemgus Girgensons (Latvia), and Oliver Bjorkstrand (Denmark) will also be representing their countries.

“I was just thinking about all of the things that are going on, that are so special, unique, and once-in-a-lifetime,” Cooper said. “You can check all of the boxes, and these are happening all in the same month.”

And so are three Atlantic Division games this week.

Following today’s game, the Lightning hosts Buffalo (Tuesday, 7:30 p.m.) and Florida (Thursday, 7:30 p.m.).

The Sabres are one of the hottest teams (five consecutive wins entering Saturday’s game with Montreal) in the National Hockey League, while Florida is fighting for its postseason life.

“We would love to spread (these events) out,” Cooper said. “But that can’t happen. We have quite a number of players going to Milan, and a big point for us, moving into (this week), is that we have kind of staged this whole thing out.”

Tampa Bay has a 16-1-1 record over its past 18 games, which is why it leads the Atlantic Division, although it holds a mere two-point lead over Detroit. Cooper, as well as his players, have managed this incredible run by focusing, not on the big picture of success through 18 games, but by having a laser-like focus on the next game only.

That will be imperative to possess at 6:30 p.m. today.

“We know what we need to do,” Cooper said, “and where we need to be, when this game hits, and who we are playing after this. We know that we have Boston, Buffalo, and Florida.

“We have to finish this off. I am extremely proud of the players for what we have accomplished. But, we are not letting this slide.”

During Saturday’s practice at Raymond James, Hedman, Point, and defenseman Emil Lilleberg all participated despite being injured of late.

Hedman hasn’t played since December 9, while Point (January 12 was his last game) and Lilleberg (December 13) have been out, as well.

Cooper expects Hedman to play today, but did not indicate either direction on the other two regulars.

“Barring (Hedman) coming in and saying ‘No,'” Cooper said, “which I think is extremely doubtful, he will most likely be in.”

As far as Point, Lilleberg, and rookie defenseman Charle-Edouard D’Astous, who has not played in a week after being injured against Columbus, fans will have to wait until today to see of their availability.

“The part that is tough,” Cooper said, “is that only 20 people get to play. We have a bunch of guys, who have been a big part of this organization, and won’t get to suit up.

“For them to be in this, we’ll see what the limits are in warm-ups. Guys are on the roster, to at least be able to go out there and see what is going on. This is such a unique event, you want to make sure that everybody is a part of this, and they feel like they are a part of it.”