Lightning celebrate Stanley Cup victory with a boat parade
Captain Steven Stamkos wore a T-shirt bearing the message “BACK TO BOAT” and setting the tone for another signature Champa Bay celebration.
The back-to-back Stanley Cup champion Tampa Bay Lightning were toasted with a boat parade on the Hillsborough River for the second time in 10 months, with thousands of fans no longer burdened by COVID-19 restrictions gathering downtown to join the fun.
The scene — five days after the Lightning closed out a five-game Stanley Cup Final win over the Montreal Canadiens — hardly resembled the riverfront gathering organized after the team won last year’s title while playing in empty arenas because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Dozens of residents on boats and other watercraft enjoyed a close view of vessels carrying players and coaches. Aa post-parade rally in a downtown park was delayed more than an hour when a heavy thunderstorm accompanied by gusting winds sent fans scattering for cover.
Eventually, Lightning owner Jeff Vinik and players took the podium to address the crowd in a steady rain.
Forwards Alex Killorn and Nikita Kucherov took to the water, circling boats and cruising along the river bank on a jet ski.
Playoff MVP Andrei Vasilevskiy placed the Conn Smythe Trophy on his head, much to the delight of drenched spectators soaked by the rain and champagne sprayed by players.
It’s the third time in 10 months that the Tampa Bay region has celebrated a professional sports title with a unique parade concept Tampa officials developed to provide the Lightning and the NFL’s Tampa Bay Buccaneers a way to party safely with fans during the pandemic. REPORTS: BLACKHAWKS TRADING KEITH TO OILERS >> The Chicago Blackhawks are trading veteran defenseman Duncan Keith to the Edmonton Oilers in exchange for defenseman Caleb Jones and a third-round pick, multiple outlets reported.
Keith, who turns 37 on Friday, has spent his entire 16-year NHL career with the Blackhawks, winning three Stanley Cups and a pair of Norris trophies.
Keith asked the Blackhawks for a trade to Western Canada to be closer to his 8-year-old son, Colton.
Track and field
RICHARDSON TO RUN AT PREFONTAINE CLASSIC >> American Sha’Carri Richardson will compete in the 100 and
200 meters events at next month’s Prefontaine Classic, the Diamond League meet organizers said, weeks after she completes a one-month ban from the sport.
The 21-year-old was seen as the top contender for the 100m at the July 23Aug. 8 Tokyo Games but her Olympic dreams were cut short after she tested positive for cannabis at the U.S. Track & Field trials in Eugene, Oregon.
The ban wiped out her trials win, stopping her from running in the 100m at the Games, and USA Track & Field (USATF) later declined to include her on the Olympic relay team.
Golf
JOHNSON OUT OF BRITISH OPEN DUE TO COVID-19 >> Zach Johnson announced that he tested positive for COVID-19 and will withdraw from the British Open, which he won in 2015.
Johnson joins a list of 16 other players who have withdrawn, several due to COVID protocols in place for the tournament. That includes South African Louis de Jager, who also tested positive and had to withdraw, the Royal & Ancient Golf Club of St. Andrews announced Monday.
Football
LONGTIME LINE COACH GIBBS DIES AT 80>> Longtime NFL offensive line coach Alex Gibbs died in Phoenix following complications from a stroke, the Denver Broncos announced. He
was 80.
Gibbs coached in the NFL for three decades, including 14 seasons with Denver (1984-87, 1995-2003, 2013) that included back-to-back Super Bowl championships (XXXII, XXXIII). He also coached for the Raiders under Mike Shanahan (198889).
Wrestling
‘MR. WONDERFUL’ PAUL ORNDORFF DIES AT 71 >> WWE Hall of Fame wrestler “Mr. Wonderful” Paul Orndorff died at the age of 71, his son Travis Orndorff announced.
“... As much as many of you hated him as a wrestler, he absolutely loved you for it,” Travis Orndorff said in a statement.
At the first ever WrestleMania in 1985, Mr. Wonderful teamed up with “Rowdy” Roddy Piper to do battle against Hulk Hogan and Mr. T.
UFC
MCGREGOR ‘FEELING TREMENDOUS’ AFTER SURGERY >> Conor McGregor updated fans on his condition following a gruesome leg injury sustained during his loss to Dustin Poirier on Saturday in UFC 264 in Las Vegas.
“Just out of surgery room. Everything went to plan. Everything went perfect and I’m feeling tremendous. Six weeks on a crutch and we begin to build back,” McGregor said late Sunday night during a 59-second video posted on Twitter.