Two things happened on March 6th, 2014. First, Ryan Callahan made his debut as a member of the Tampa Bay Lightning. Second, Steven Stamkos made his debut as the Lightning’s captain. Despite the historic occasion (and 44 shots) the Bolts fell to the Buffalo Sabres, 3-1, at Amalie Arena.
It was the beginning of a new era for the Lightning. Marty St. Louis, sent to the Rangers in the deal for Callahan, had been the team’s last link to the 2004 Stanley Cup. The roster was composed of young players like Tyler Johnson, Nikita Kucherov, Vladislav Namestnikov, and Richard Panik (yeah, it didn’t work out for them in the end, but on that particular date, he was one of their top prospects).