Outdoor Hockey Could Happen In Tampa Next Year
It’s not set in stone… yet. But fans have been hammering the NHL to bring an outdoor Stadium Series game to the Sunshine State. A NHL reporter Kevin Weekes, who is notoriously known to break NHL news before anyone else, tweeted the rumor today. It seems that the outdoor hockey series could be played at Raymond James Stadium next year, with Tampa Bay Lightning taking on the Florida Panthers. But there’s lots of factors to consider.
As has been reported re a potential Stadium Series Game In Florida next year; I’m told could be the Battle Of The Sunshine State w @FlaPanthers and @TBLightning at Raymond James Stadium 🏟️. Situation is fluid, lots of factors. @espn @NHL @NHLNetwork @TSNHockey #HockeyTwitter
— Kevin Weekes (@KevinWeekes) February 8, 2023
Obviously the NHL has a lot to consider with this. They would have to pick the right weekend in January/Feb when our temps are most likely to be at the lowest. A warm climate outdoor game isn’t that crazy of an idea. In 2015, the Stadium Series game between the San Jose Sharks and Los Angeles Kings was played at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California. The temperature during that game was 57 degrees, which is totally achievable during the right weekend in Tampa. There have been outdoor games in states like Texas, South Carolina, and Tennessee.
This isn’t the first time Tampa has pushed for the outdoor series to come to Florida. The Tampa Bay Times highlighted a billboard back in 2018 after we hosted the All Star Game. It suggested the NHL thinks “outside the box” for their next Stadium Series game. The billboard even included an image of Raymond James Stadium with a hockey rink.
The Lightning recently played in a Stadium Series game in Nashville. Tampa fans took over Broadway and showed up big time! We love our hockey here in Tampa Bay and want to show everyone why Tampa is such a great hockey town.
Here’s a flashback to the Stadium Series Game in Nashville:
