Steven Stamkos

Steven Stamkos (born February 7, 1990) is a Canadian professional ice hockey centre and team captain for the Tampa Bay Lightning of the National Hockey League (NHL). Stamkos was the first overall pick in the 2006 OHL Entry Draft, from the Markham Waxers of the OMHA. Playing with the Sarnia Sting of the Ontario Hockey League (OHL), he scored 100 goals over two years. After a successful OHL career, Stamkos was selected first overall in the 2008 NHL Entry Draft by the Tampa Bay Lightning. He is a two-time Maurice Richard Trophy winner as the NHL's leading goal-scorer (2010 and 2012), is a one-time NHL Second Team All-Star (2011) and has been named to four NHL All-Star Games (2011, 2012, 2015, 2016).

On January 7, 2014, Stamkos was named to the 2014 Canadian Olympic Hockey Team, but after a CT scan in the afternoon of February 5, 2014, it was determined he would not play in Sochi due to the broken tibia he sustained the previous November.

Early life

Stamkos is of ethnic Macedonian and Scottish descent. He grew up in Unionville, Ontario, and played for the Markham Waxers in the Eastern AAA Hockey League of the Ontario Minor Hockey Association (OMHA). During one of his seasons with the North York Canadiens, he was teammates with current NHLer P. K. Subban. Prior to being drafted in the OHL, Stamkos attended Central Park Public School and St. Brother André Catholic High School in Markham, Ontario. After being drafted by the OHL's Sarnia Sting, he attended Northern Collegiate Institute and Vocational School in Sarnia. Stamkos won eight OMHA titles in a row in minor hockey and led his Waxers club to the OHL Cup title in March 2006.

Tampa Bay

Tampa Bay is a large natural harbor and estuary connected to the Gulf of Mexico on the west central coast of Florida, comprising Hillsboro Bay, McKay Bay, Old Tampa Bay, Middle Tampa Bay, and Lower Tampa Bay. The surrounding area is home to about 4 million residents, making it a heavily used commercial and recreational waterway but putting much stress on the bay's ecosystem, which once teemed with enough wildlife to easily support an extensive indigenous culture. Much greater care has been taken in recent decades to mitigate the effects of human habitation on Tampa Bay, and water quality has slowly improved over time.

The term "Tampa Bay" is sometimes used as shorthand to refer to all or parts of the Tampa Bay area, which comprises many towns and cities in several counties surrounding the large body of water. Local marketing and branding efforts (including several professional sports teams, tourist boards, and chambers of commerce) commonly use the moniker "Tampa Bay", furthering the misconception that it is the name of a particular municipality when this is not the case.

Tampa Bay Lightning

The Tampa Bay Lightning are a professional ice hockey team based in Tampa, Florida. Established in 1992, they are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League (NHL). Tampa Bay has one Stanley Cup championship in their history, in 2003–04. They are often referred to as the Bolts, and the nickname is used on their current third jersey. They play their home games in the Amalie Arena in Tampa.

The owner of the Lightning is Jeffrey Vinik while Steve Yzerman serves as general manager. The team is currently coached by Jon Cooper, who has led the team since 2013.

Franchise history

Early years

In the late 1980s, the NHL announced that it would expand. Two rival groups from the Tampa/St. Petersburg area decided to bid for a franchise: a St. Petersburg-based group fronted by future Hartford Whalers/Carolina Hurricanes owners Peter Karmanos and Jim Rutherford, and a Tampa-based group fronted by two Hall of Famers—Phil Esposito and his brother Tony.