A day later, they finally got to come back home to their family and friends and loved ones and share in the special moment.
And they came home 35 pounds heavier than when they left.
"It's 65 days in that bubble, really, really challenging conditions for everybody involved," Lightning owner Jeff Vinik said outside the Sheltair jet center moments before the team charter plane arrived. "This was not only a hockey Stanley Cup. This was a mental Stanley Cup to get through that period of time. Kudos to them and kudos to their families for being so supportive. That's a long time away from home. I don't think any of us can appreciate how tough that was."
One by one, the Lightning players, coaches and staff filed off the plane to their awaiting families gathered on the tarmac below. Victor Hedman came off second to last carrying the Conn Smythe Trophy as the player judged to be the most valuable to his team in the playoffs.
And finally, Lightning captain Steven Stamkos, who played just 2:47 in Game 3 of the Cup Final for his only action of the playoffs but scored maybe the most iconic goal in Tampa Bay franchise history, emerged with the Stanley Cup, walking it down the stairs to hand to Vinik so the owner could touch the trophy for the first time in his life.
"We've seen that joy on a lot of other faces the last 10 years when whether it's (Alex) Ovechkin or (Sidney) Crosby or other great players have lifted the Cup," Vinik said. "It was just tremendous to be able to experience our guys having that moment, the happiness, the joy, the relief. It was wonderful watching them."
"When you end up looking at the big picture, we lost, what was it, six games in the entire Stanley Cup Playoffs. It's all them," Cooper added, pointing to the players. "I basically just stand there and chew gum. They do all the heavy lifting, and it was just, I couldn't be more proud of the guys. They deserve it for all the heartbreak we've gone through in the last five or six years. Only reason I'm wearing sunglasses, it's not for the sun, it's actually to hide the tears."
The team boarded open-air trolleys and cruised down Westshore before cutting across South Tampa on Bay to Bay Boulevard and one final left on Bayshore Boulevard toward AMALIE Arena, past the throng of spectators who'd lined up along the sidewalk to witness the returning heroes.
Once at the arena, the party moved inside to the event level for pictures with the Cup, reconnecting with family and a chance to return to the place where the season started nearly a year earlier on October 3 in the season opener against the Florida Panthers.
"It was just the culmination of 10 years of being so close, feel like we had a really good team, finally getting over the hump," Vinik said. "It wasn't relief. I wouldn't call it relief. I would call it elation, joy, happiness. Celebrating it with my family at the same time, that was our community, that was our enjoyment. It's a once-in-a-lifetime-type thing, winning the Stanley Cup once. I'd like a once-in-a-lifetime thing of winning the Stanley Cup twice someday. That'd be great, but we'll leave that for another day. But it was just fantastic. We had a tremendous time. Just great joy."
The Lightning recreated their on-ice celebration from Edmonton on the freshly laid ice at AMALIE Arena, each coach and staff member introduced to the small crowd of mostly friends and family and Lightning staff. Then each player came out onto to take their turn hoisting the Stanley Cup over their head while skating around the rink.
"Wow, this thing is actually ours," Stamkos said as he addressed the crowd. "I was getting sick and tired of (Pat) Maroon telling me all year how amazing it was to win the Stanley Cup…Your support has been unwavering, especially with everything that went on last year. I've been here for a long time now. What Mr. Vinik has done, his family has done in this community and with this organization is amazing. So much credit goes towards him and what he's been able to do with this franchise."
