Photo by Irena Mesa | The Crow’s Nest
By Matthew McGovern
The NHL brought Tampa Bay its first taste of outdoor hockey on Feb. 2 during the 2026 Stadium Series between the Tampa Bay Lightning and Boston Bruins.
Coming off a historically cold weekend across Tampa Bay, the conditions for the nearly 65,000 fans in attendance were ideal for the matchup between Atlantic division rivals, with a temperature of 38 degrees at puck drop.
The NHL had worked tirelessly to ensure the integrity of the ice surface over the past weeks, having constructed a tent to be removed just before the start of the game.
Players and fans arrived dressed to the nines to commemorate this undoubtedly unique opportunity to see hockey played in the open air in the Sunshine State.
Tampa Bay arrived dressed in full orange creamsicle Buccaneers uniforms, a nod to the regular occupants of Raymond James Stadium. The Bruins followed suit, wearing colonial garb in reference to their neighboring New England Patriots.
Fresh off the heels of a chilly Gasparilla celebration in Tampa on Feb. 1, the field was adorned with a pirate’s treasure map with playful references to some of the Lightning’s star players.
Once the stage was set, the Lightning wasted no time getting on the board, with Brandon Hagel scoring 11 seconds into the game, capturing the record for the fastest goal scored in an outdoor NHL game.
After scoring the opening goal, the Bolts fell flat through the end of the first period.
Rookie Alex Steeves opened the scoring for Boston midway through the first, tying the game at one a piece.
Morgan Geekie gave the Bruins the lead off a tip from a Charlie McAvoy point shot, followed by another deflection by Viktor Arvidsson shortly thereafter to put Boston up 3-1. McAvoy had an assist on both Arvidsson and Geekie’s tallies in the first period.
The spectacle of outdoor hockey continued in the intermission with a concert from country music star Tim McGraw, who performed in front of an enthusiastic home crowd, despite the Lightning’s lackluster first-period performance, having been outscored and outshot 22 to 12.
In his second game of the season, rookie Matthew Poitras scored his first goal of the season to put the Bruins up 4-1 early in the second.
Photo by Irena Mesa | The Crow’s Nest
At 12:42 of the second, Morgan Geekie added to the onslaught, scoring his 32nd goal of the season, good for third best in the NHL, trailing only Colorado Avalanche star forward Nathan Mackinnon and Edmonton Oilers’ forward Connor McDavid.
Lightning forward Oliver Bjorkstrand narrowed the Bruins’ lead to three goals midway through the second. During the celebration, Bruins forward Mark Kastelic landed a punch on Bjorkstrand, collecting a two-minute roughing penalty along the way.
From this point on, tempers continued to flare.
Known for his fiery spirit on the ice, Bolts forward Brandon Hagel poked at a puck that seemed to be covered by Bruins’ goaltender Jeremy Swayman, causing chaos to unfold shortly thereafter.
Players from both sides joined in on defending their teammates in the Bruins’ crease; meanwhile, Lightning goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy charged out of his crease at the opposite end of the ice to challenge Swayman to a fight at center ice.
The two goalies pushed linemen aside, shook off their equipment and went toe-to-toe in a spirited bout, seldom seen in any hockey game.
Though victors are never explicitly determined in hockey fights, Vasilevskiy landed three left hooks to knock Swayman to the ice, ending both netminders’ first career fight and only the second goalie fight in the NHL in the past six seasons.
The Bruins’ parade to the penalty box continued with Swayman taking a delay of game penalty and former Bolt Tanner Jeannot interfering with Jake Guentzel late in the period, leaving Tampa Bay with a five-on-three power play in the dying moments of the second frame.
Darren Raddysh and Nick Paul scored 23 seconds apart to close Boston’s lead to one heading into the third period.
With the crowd reinvigorated by three second-period Lightning goals, the Bolts carried their momentum into the locker room.
In a tightly contested third period, both teams were able to address team defense and tighten up their game in the final 20 minutes. Both teams met at the net front periodically to remind each other that the game was far from over.
With 10 minutes remaining in the third period, Lightning defenseman Erik Cernak and Ryan McDonagh cycled the puck before feeding Nikita Kucherov, who scored on a well-placed one-time shot for his 28th goal of the season, tying the game at five a piece, sending both teams to sudden-death overtime.
The Bruins’ lack of discipline returned in extra time, seeing Hampus Lindholm and star forward David Pastrnak head to the box for stick infractions. Tampa Bay swarmed the crease around Jeremy Swayman but were unable to capitalize on their two overtime power plays.
In a game that once seemed out of reach, both teams were now headed to a shootout to determine a winner.
Opting to shoot first, Lightning head coach John Cooper sent out Gage Goncalves to face off one-on-one against Jeremy Swayman, who stood tall with a blocker save.
Countering this first attempt for the Bruins were Casey Middlestadt and Fraser Minten, both of whom were unsuccessful against Tampa Bay’s Vasilevskiy.
After a missed attempt by Nikita Kucherov, Jake Guentzel tested his luck against Swayman. Slowly approaching Swayman, he squared up and ripped a shot above Swayman’s glove hand, leaving the Bruins’ fate in the hands of David Pastrnak.
Pastrnak did beat Vasilevskiy, but not the goal post in his attempt.
The Lightning emerged victorious in a thrilling game that once seemed out of reach, completing one of the largest comebacks in franchise history in the process.
Before heading to the locker room, both teams lined up to shake hands at center ice, a long-standing tradition of the NHL’s Winter Classic and Stadium Series games.
The Lightning paused to be photographed with pirates, punctuating a truly unforgettable evening of hockey played in the not-so-warm Florida elements.
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Written by: Matthew McGovern on February 3, 2026.
Last revised by: Alisha Durosier