End of An Era: The Tampa Bay Lightning’s Modern Day Dynasty

The way we look at dynasties in any sport has changed. No longer do we see a team dominate a decade with four straight championships or four titles in a decade period. You look across the sports, from the New England Patriots in the NFL to the New York Yankees in MLB, to the Chicago Bulls or Golden State Warriors in the NBA, the definition of a dynasty has changed. And that brings us to the NHL, where the last modern dynasty could be coming to an end in the Tampa Bay Lightning.

Some people will say well, the Lightning did not win three Stanley Cups in a row; therefore, they are not considered a dynasty. Again the definition of a dynasty in this era of sports has changed. That Tampa Bay Lightning group was a modern-day dynasty.

And really the change in the definition of what a dynasty is started with the Chicago Blackhawks in 2010. Put the other stuff aside, the Blackhawks won three Stanley Cups in five years, including two in three years. In between that, the Los Angeles Kings had a modern-day dynasty of their own, with two Stanley Cups in three years.

Throw in the Pittsburgh Penguins, who went back to back in 2016 and 2017, but the Lightning group, before the salary cap and free agency caught up to them, were the definition of a modern-day dynasty.

Before losing to the Toronto Maple Leafs in six games in Round One of the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs, a series the Lightning dominated, the Lightning went to three Stanley Cup Finals, winning back-to-back Stanley Cups in 2020 and 2021. That group also went to the 2015 Stanley Cup Final, losing to the Blackhawks. That is where the foundation started.

During their rise and including their championship-winning seasons, the Lightning went to the Eastern Conference Final in six of eight years. During the 2016-17 season, the team missed the playoffs but only by a couple of points. And of course, the famous first-round loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets in 2019 set the stage for what was to come.

Think about the success this Tampa Bay Lightning team had and is still having. Eventually, playing that much hockey will catch up with a team, and it did this past season. However, the Lightning won 11 straight playoff series before losing to the Colorado Avalanche in the 2022 Stanley Cup Final. The Lightning are second behind the Islanders, who won 19 straight playoff series.

That kind of company is hard to ignore, especially in such a grueling sport. The wear and tear on the body of a long playoff run. Not to mention the short offseason. It is very impressive what that group did.

As previously mentioned, the Tampa Bay Lightning lost some major players toward the end of their dynasty years. Two of the three triplets in Tyler Johnson and Ondrej Palat are no longer there. Ryan McDonagh, a key piece to their defence is in Nashville. Pat Maroon had to be traded. Ross Colton, Blake Coleman, Barclay Goodrow, Yanni Gourde and the list goes on of players who helped win multiple Stanley Cups that are no longer there.

Of course, the foundation of Nikita Kucherov, Steven Stamkos, Brayden Point, Andrei Vasilevskiy, Victor Hedman and Mikhael Sergachev are still there. But entering this season, this Lightning team will look a lot different than it did in years past. You knew what to expect entering the season. This year there is a bit of an unknown, but you have to think they make the playoffs. Though there is a belief in the team, they are not done just yet.

Losing key pieces but keeping the core together is always challenging in a salary-cap world. The Lightning found out the hard way, but they went for it because their window was now to win. Their general manager was aggressive because he knows the players he would select in the NHL Draft keeping those picks will not help his club hence why he moves them every year to keep the window alive.

You see that in Vegas as well. That team is on the verge of becoming a modern-day dynasty, if not already there. But what the Lightning have done has truly been remarkable. Championship titles do not always measure the success of a team. That helps, but the overall track itself is what makes the Tampa Bay Lightning a modern-day dynasty.