Tkachuk was the first to stop by and Lomberg joined him a few minutes later.
“[Tkachuk] came down to the rink and we were banging our sticks,” said Nightingale, 32. “Then he came down to one of the benches just to say what’s up and give people an opportunity to take some pictures.”
Lomberg then went out on the ice for a ceremonial puck drop.
“It’s hard to describe,” said Nightingale about the moment. “I guess the only word you can say is surreal.”
Sunday night’s visit ended up being one of Lomberg’s final moments with the Panthers, as he signed with the Calgary Flames on Monday.
“That just goes to show his character,” Nightingale said. “Even though there was a good chance he knew he was on his way out, he was still trying to show some love and appreciation to the fans.”
Nightingale, a lifelong Panthers fan, couldn’t make it to the parade, but was in attendance for Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Final and Games 5 and 7 of the Stanley Cup Final. He got a standing room ticket to Game 7 just to be in the building for the historic game.
“It was unreal,” Nightingale said. “This was one of those things I always thought I’d only see on TV. I never thought I’d see it in person.”
Nightingale spends his days as an attorney in South Florida and recently picked up playing hockey about three months ago. He joined this beginner’s league to “get some exercise and hang with the boys” and it’s probably fair to say Sunday’s run-in with Tkachuk and Lomberg was the highlight of his hockey career thus far.
Even though the interaction was pretty quick, Nightingale and the rest of the guys now have lifelong memories and can always brag about meeting the Stanley Cup champs.
“My friends and I were talking about how this whole championship and the celebration, the players have been so accessible,” Nightingale said. “The Panthers are celebrating with the fans. It makes it more meaningful. Obviously we’re not on the team and we’re just fans, but it makes you feel a little bit more part of it.”
