Tampa sports fans in a tizzy about the start of the Lightning season

TAMPA, FL –With the NBA still wading through its preseason and the Sony Ericsson Tennis Open having already been played earlier this year, there was very little sports entertainment to be found in America’s sunshine state. That is, until the Tampa Bay Lightning took to the ice at the St. Pete Times Forum.

The long wait is over for Florida sports fans as the arrival of the new hockey season has finally given them a hometown team to cheer for. All eyes are on star forwards Martin St. Louis and Vincent Lecavalier. Sports enthusiasts are thrilled at the arrival of the ever popular winter game, streaming from the beaches and checking their surf boards at the door to catch the latest game. Despite a poor performance last season, the arena was full of optimistic supporters.

“I can’t wait to see if first overall draft pick Steven Stamkos will live up to the hype!” said Tampa resident Paul Andrews. “If he plays like he did in junior, then Tampa might actually win a professional sports trophy this year.”

Nightly sports broadcasts cover the ins and outs of the hockey team, offering analysis on whether Mike Smith will prove to be a steady number one goaltender for the team and if Barry Melrose was the right pick for head coach.

“The Buccaneers aren’t bad, but they don’t compete like our Lightning do,” said Lightning fan Shane Madison as he exited the chilly arena into the hot summer night following another loss. “I also used to watch our baseball team every so often. What was their name again? The Devil Rays or something? Yeah, I stopped watching them a long time ago. Just a bunch of losers on that team.”

It’s going to be tough for this sport to sweep any nations, but it’s still pretty frickin’ cool!