TAMPA — Nearly 16 hours after absorbing the feelings associated with a season-ending defeat in Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Final – heartbreak, anguish, despair, emptiness – Lightning players and coaches experienced a different emotion on Tuesday afternoon.
It was love.
Pure love.
Approximately 500 fans welcomed home the Lightning at the Tampa International Jet Center, braving 92-degree temperatures as they set up a receiving line that stretched down an exit and onto Jim Walter Boulevard.
With memories of Monday night’s 2-0 loss at Chicago still fresh, the fans carried banners. They sang songs.