He came, he saw, he stayed with Tampa Bay.
Markham-born Steve Stamkos won’t be returning home to the GTA to win the hearts of Maple Leaf fans, but he surely broke many with a decision to remain with the Lightning for another eight years at a reported $68-million US.
A huge disappointment to those who read too much into his playful tweets about the Leafs, the slow process of contract talks with the Bolts and under-estimated his desire to win a Stanley Cup with the team that drafted him, rather than risk a change of scenery at age 26.