![]() Phil Esposito fronted an ownership group that was later awarded an NHL franchise in 1992. The Esposito group would win the expansion franchise on December 6, 1990, and name the team the Lightning, after Tampa Bay's status as the "Lightning Capital of North America". In contrast, the Esposito/Kokusai Green group was one of the few groups willing to pay the full $50 million expansion fee up front. Although it appeared on paper that the Karmanos/Rutherford group had more financial resources, it only wanted to pay $29 million before the game began. One of the Esposito group's key backers, the Pritzker family, backed out a few months before the bid, to be replaced by a consortium of Japanese businesses headed by Kokusai Green, a golf course and resort operator. Petersburg-based group fronted by future Hartford Whalers/ Carolina Hurricanes owners Peter Karmanos and Jim Rutherford, and a Tampa-based group fronted by Phil Esposito and his brother Tony, both members of the Hockey Hall of Fame. Two rival groups from the Tampa Bay Area decided to bid for a franchise: a St. In the late 1980s, the NHL announced it would expand. ![]() Jon Cooper has served as head coach since March 2013, and is the longest-tenured active head coach in the NHL.įranchise history Early years (1992–2000) Bringing hockey to Tampa The team is owned by Jeffrey Vinik, and the general manager is Julien BriseBois. They also reached the Stanley Cup Finals in 2015 and in 2022. The Lightning have won three Stanley Cup championships: 2004, 2020, and 2021. They play their home games at Amalie Arena in Downtown Tampa. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference. The Tampa Bay Lightning (colloquially known as the Bolts) are a professional ice hockey team based in Tampa, Florida.
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