Tampa Bay Lightning owner Jeff Vinik spoke to media today ahead of training camp, and said that he is trying to get an outdoor game. Reported by both Tampa Bay Times reporter Joe Smith and NHL.com writer Bryan Burns, Vinik said that he’s talking to NHL commissioner Gary Bettman about hosting an outdoor game in Tampa Bay. Vinik also dismissed the hot Florida climate as an obstacle.
Vinik has a point about the climate. The NHL has held outdoor games in Las Vegas (1991), Los Angeles (2014), and Santa Clara (2015) without issue. Cooling technology has come far enough that hosting an outdoor game in a traditionally hot climate more than a pipe dream.
Boosting the Lightning’s chances of hosting is that the team has never participated in an outdoor game—one of just seven teams without any outdoor game experience. Tampa Bay is also slated to host the 2018 NHL All-Star Game this season on short notice. Tampa Bay was chosen later than usual because the NHL thought it might be heading to the Olympics this year instead. When those plans were scuttled, the league chose Tampa Bay as the All-Star venue.