The Tampa Bay Lightning allowed Steven Stamkos to hit NHL Free Agency this summer. Stamkos could not agree to a new contract with Tampa Bay before July 1. And in the end, he signed a contract with the Nashville Predators when the market opened. According to Victor Hedman, the departure of Stamkos will have a significant impact.
Hedman spoke with reporters at the NHL’s North American Player Media Tour on Monday. During his time with the media, he addressed Stamkos’ departure for the Predators. He said losing the former Lightning captain is tough both on the ice and in the dressing room.
“It was tough, obviously. We kept in contact a lot, but when it was July 1st and I realized he wasn’t coming back, it was shocking, obviously,” the Lightning defender said of his former captain, via NHL.com. “He is the best ever to wear the Lightning sweater. He had 500 goals, 1,000 points, 1,000 games, two Cups, multiple awards and being the captain for more than a decade. But the person himself is going to be missed in the locker room and on the road, everywhere. It’s going to be a lot different going into the locker room and not seeing him.”
Victor Hedman believes in Lightning even without Steven Stamkos
The loss of Steven Stamkos in NHL Free Agency is certainly going to be tough to deal with. However, Victor Hedman still believes in the Lightning. His view of Tampa’s skillset and abilities has not changed heading into the 2024-25 campaign. “(The Stanley Cup is) everyone’s goal, obviously, going into the season, but it feels like we have the team to be a contender,” the Lightning defender said, via NHL.com.
The Lightning certainly made moves to help them remain a competitive team even without their captain. Most notably, they signed Jake Guentzel to a huge contract after trading with the Carolina Hurricanes to acquire his signing rights. Other offseason additions include trading for Ryan McDonagh and signing Cam Atkinson.
Tampa Bay could certainly remain one of the best teams in the Eastern Conference. However, it certainly won’t be easy. And this is something Hedman is not overlooking as the 2024-25 campaign begins to appear over the horizon.
“It feels like the past few years it’s been us, Florida, Boston and Toronto. Now you have to throw in Ottawa, Montreal, Buffalo. Montreal is getting better. And Detroit. I just mentioned all the teams in our division, they are all getting better. So, for us, we have to hit the ground running, that’s the bottom line,” the Lightning superstar said, via NHL.com.
It’ll certainly be interesting to see how the Lightning get on without Stamkos. In any event, Tampa Bay is certainly one of the more fascinating teams to watch in the year ahead. Hedman and Tampa Bay kick off the 2024-25 season on the road as they take on Guentzel’s former team, the Carolina Hurricanes, on October 11.
