One thing I have learned in my years of being a sports fan is that it's incredibly easy to become jaded. Especially with your own team. Especially after several lean years strung together made it seem like light at the end of the tunnel had been turned off in order to save money. We all do it, whether we notice it. No one is more critical of our teams than ourselves. It is very rare that we think our teams are as good as they are and can truly appreciate when something amazing is happening right before our eyes. A moment like that is happening for the Tampa Bay Lightning right now. It's hard to register that you are seeing records being made on a nightly basis, but there it is. Steven Stamkos scored his league leading 12th and 13th goals in the Bolts' 4-0 shutout of the Toronto Maple Leafs tonight.
Let me explain.. no. There is too much. Let me sum up. He has the most goals in the NHL right now and the most points of any other player. He is in the top five for assists. He has the most power play goals in the league. More goals than Sidney Crosby and Alex Ovechkin. He is on pace to not only reclaim the Rocket Richard trophy, but not have to share it with a damn soul this time.
You can't put up numbers like that without the rest of the league and the press starting to take notice. I am seeing more mentions in the TSN twitter feeds, in articles in the Hockey News, stories on the NHL site itself. We are so very lucky to see him play on a regular basis. We are watching the birth of a genuine star. A far cry from the tough first half of his rookie season when people were ready to send him packing to the AHL.
I can't wait for the next game. I can't wait to see what this team will do next. Patrick Roy might have said that the system Guy Boucher employs isn't exciting, offense minded hockey. It might be different, but things have been plenty exciting at the arena this year. And it's only the beginning of November.
A little something to leave you with, more Stamkos:
You're doing good work Lexi. Keep it up!
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