TAMPA — The Lightning have tried to make Amalie Arena a second home for their fans during this season’s Stanley Cup run by allowing them inside the venue to watch the team play on the road.
The team is expected to do the same Monday night — rain or shine, thanks to Tropical Storm Elsa — when it could win a second straight Cup in Canada.
The Lightning lead the best-of-seven series against the Canadiens 3-0 and will have the first of four chances to clinch the series in Game 4 Monday at Bell Centre in Montreal.
Amalie can hold up to 15,000 fans for indoor watch parties when the team is on the road. Friday, 13,752 watched the Lightning defeat the Canadiens 6-3 in Game 3.
“I’ve watched other teams’ jerseys be fairly prominent in our arena to now you really have to find one,” Cooper said. “When I first got here, it always felt like Tampa was everybody’s second-favorite team, because somebody was from somewhere else and that was their team and (until) they got knocked out, we would be the second-favorite. But now it feels like we’re everybody’s favorite team.
“The town is a sports town. It is a passionate (area) from the Lightning to the Bucs to the Rays. It’s a unique situation of camaraderie between not only the athletes and the franchises, but the fans and there’s a lot of pride in the town, and I’m proud to be proud to be part of it.”
Tickets are available at tampabaylightning.com for $10 apiece.
Contact Mari Faiello at mfaiello@tampabay.com. Follow @faiello_mari.
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