Blackhawks Green Jersey, The NHL awarded Tampa, Florida an expansion franchise in 1990. Henry Lee Paul, Mel Lowell and Hall of Fame member Phil Esposito spearheaded an ownership group that would begin lobbying efforts in the fall of 1990 by hosting an exhibition game between the Los Angeles Kings and Pittsburgh Penguins at the Florida Suncoast Dome. Over 25,000 fans attended that game and the NHL\'s move to Florida was a reality. The group struggled to work out the financial equation until Kokusai Green came in with a large infusion of cash and a restructured offer. The NHL and the ownership group reached an agreement, and in December of 1991 they welcomed the Tampa Bay Lightning in as an expansion franchise.
The Lightning then shocked the hockey world with the signing of a woman, Blackhawks Green Jersey Manon Rheaume to a minor league contract. She was the first female to play in any of Blackhawks Green Jersey Blackhawks Green Jersey the four major professional sports. She played in goal for one period of a pre-season game against the St. Louis Blues. The Lightning\'s first home game was at the Lakeland Civic Center in Lakeland, Florida. The Bolts won their opening home game 7-3 against the Chicago Blackhawks. The team was led by ex-Canuck Brian Bradley, who went on to represent Tampa Bay in the All-Star game that year. They finished their inaugural season looking like the usual expansion team. They finished with 53 points, missing the playoffs. The next few seasons were ugly as Tampa Bay finished well out of the playoff picture. The big headlines came off the ice. The franchise was in financial trouble and the IRS was investigating the Bolts books. In 1995 the team on the ice was looking good. Coach Terry Crisp and players like Paul Yserbart and Roman Hamrlik were becoming stars. The goaltending of Darren Puppa was outstanding. The Lightning finished the season sixth in the Atlantic division with 88 points and made the Stanley Cup playoffs for the first time ever. They lost to the heavily favored Philadelphia Flyers, but managed to win two games. The next season, the Lightning moved to the brand new Ice Palace in downtown Tampa. They were playoff bound until the last weekend of the season.
The ownership\'s Japanese partner was determined to sell the team, because the organization was hemorrhaging money. While this was taking place the Lightning had serious problems on the ice. The team lost John Cullen, Troy Mallete, Dino Ciccarelli and Vladimir Vujtek to injuries. Also, the Philadelphia Flyers signed Chris Gratton to a multi-year offer sheet. Unable to match the $16.5 million salary for the young Gratton, Phil Esposito performed his magic and got the Flyers to send Mikael Renberg and Karl Dykhuis to the Lightning instead of the obligatory draft picks. As was the teams luck, Renberg was lost to injury later that season. Jacques Demers replaced Terry Crisp as coach but the team would finish at the very bottom of the standings, with their worst record ever. The only bright side was that their dismal 17 wins put them in position to draft the highly touted center, Vincent Lecavalier.
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