The Gasparilla Pirate Festival is a big deal in Tampa, so it should be no surprise that it has slowly worked its way into the Tampa Bay Lightning’s calendar over the years. What started with a few graphics during games and some social media posts has spawned a much-more-complete theme night for the team that even includes custom jerseys for the occasion and merchandise for fans to purchase. With the Lightning’s upcoming Gasparilla matchup against the New Jersey Devils, it begs the question: how have the Lightning fared in their previous Gasparilla games? It should be noted that if there is no home game on the day of the parade, then Gasparilla is usually celebrated at the closest home game prior to the event. With that being said, let’s take a look at how the Lightning have performed over the previous five seasons.
2019
In 2019, the Lightning were able to secure a 6-3 victory over the San Jose Sharks. The first two goals came courtesy of a couple players who are no longer in town, Mathieu Joseph and Alex Killorn. After the Lightning jumped out to an early 2-0 lead, Evander Kane ensured that the Lightning would not run away with the game so quickly by scoring in the final minute of the first period and the first minute of the second period to even the score at 2-2.
The Lightning, though, kept their composure and retook the lead midway through the period thanks to a diving effort from fan favorite Yanni Gourde. The lead was extended later in the period when Victor Hedman split the defense on the power play, and the Lightning did not look back. The third period saw Steven Stamkos score twice, and even though the Sharks ended up getting one back, it was not enough. The Lightning were outshot in the contest 39-26, but a strong effort from Andrei Vasilevskiy and some opportune scoring made all the difference.
2020
A year later, in 2020, the Lightning grabbed themselves another victory in a Jan. 14 showdown with the Los Angeles Kings. The game did not start how the Lightning wanted, but they were able to power past the slow start and get the win. Seven minutes into the game, they were already down 2-0, but by the end of the period, they were tied 2-2. Killorn once again factored into the game with a goal, the other coming from Stamkos. After a wild first period, the game went quiet for a while. There was no scoring in the second period.
Eight minutes into the third, that changed as a nice little tip-in from Dustin Brown put the Kings up 3-2. The Lightning answered, but it would take them until the dying moments of the game to do so. With just 1:15 left on the clock, the puck found its way to Nikita Kucherov right after a faceoff. He sent a beautiful slap shot into the back of the net and sent the game to overtime. With no scoring in overtime, the game went to a shootout where the Lightning were able to outlast the Kings, and so the nail-biter ended with a 4-3 win for the Lightning.
2021
In 2021, there was no parade due to COVID-19, but if there had been a Gasparilla game for the Lightning, it would have been on Jan. 30 against the Nashville Predators. Like in 2020, the Lightning got off to a slow start in that game. Heading into the second period, they found themselves trailing 1-0. The second period was a much different story. The Lightning lit up Pekka Rinne and the Predators, scoring four goals in the period. It would be even more impressive if they came from four different players.
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Tyler Johnson scored a messy power-play goal three-and-a-half minutes into the period, and from there, the Lightning were off to the races. Just five minutes later, Cal Foote and Hedman added to the scoring to give the Lightning a 3-1 lead. Stamkos made sure to leave his mark too with a power-play goal with a few minutes left in the period. The Lightning ended up needing every one of those goals as the Predators came roaring back to life in the third period. A pair of goals from the Predators put them on the doorstep of sending the game to overtime, but in the end, the Lightning were able to hold on. It might not have been the most complete game, but the Lightning did just enough to get a 4-3 win.
2022
2022’s matchup saw the Lightning take on the Vegas Golden Knights on Jan. 29. Just like the previous two years, the road team struck first. Unlike in 2021, though, the Lightning failed to answer in the second period. Both of the first two periods included a single goal from the Golden Knights, which left the Lightning down 2-0 heading into the third period. The Lightning did manage to rally back, though.
After looking defeated for so long, the Lightning found a way to score twice in the last two minutes to ensure the game would make it to overtime, as Ross Colton, and then Corey Perry put the puck in the back of the net. Unfortunately, the Lightning did not have enough gas left in the tank to finish the job. After a scoreless overtime period, the game went to a shootout that lasted seven rounds, with the Golden Knights coming away with 3-2 victory.
2023
The Lightning were able to bounce back in 2023 with a 5-2 win over the Kings on Jan. 28. More than that, the win actually set a team record, as it was their 12th-straight home win. Brayden Point got the Lightning started five minutes into the game, and just over a minute later, Pierre-Edouard Bellemare added to the lead with a goal of his own. The Kings answered, but Perry got a goal too, which made it 3-1 after one.
In the second period, the two teams traded goals, with the Lightning goal coming from Colton. Finally, Hedman made sure to close the door on the Kings with a slap shot goal in the third. Even though he did not score a goal, Nick Perbix had himself a very impressive showing with three assists on the night, and Vasilevskiy had a strong showing with 23 saves on 25 shots. Overall, it was a very well-rounded victory, as the only Lightning player other than Perbix to have more than a point on the night was Point.
2024 Preview
On Saturday, Jan. 27, the Lightning are taking on the New Jersey Devils for their Gasparilla game, which does fall on the same day as the parade. The Lightning have mostly been playing some great hockey lately and have pulled themselves back into the playoff picture. The Devils have been going in the opposite direction, going 4-5-1 in their last 10 games. Make no mistake, though — they are a talented young team and could give the Lightning trouble. In their last game against the Devils, the Lightning won 4-3 thanks to an overtime winner from Darren Raddysh. Look for this to be another tight matchup, with it being the last game for either team before the All-Star Break and both teams pushing hard to get one more win. Two points could go a long way for the Lightning’s playoff chances.