The raucous call of “St. Louis! St. Louis! St. Louis!” made by Tampa Bay Lightning radio announcer, Dave Mishkin, continues to ring in the ears of many Washington Capitals fans.
It was Easter Sunday 2003 and after three overtime periods Martin St. Louis had scored the game-winning goal, ending the Caps’ playoff hopes in the first round.
It would be five more years before the Caps would make it back to the playoffs.
The Lightning, on the other hand, would win the Stanley Cup in 2004.
The rosters of both teams have been revamped since that time. Of the players scoring points that afternoon six plus years ago, only St. Louis and teammate Vincent Lecavalier remain on either team.
Since that game in 2003, both teams have endured some ups and downs. The down times allowed the teams some high draft picks, which have resulted in building the teams they have today.
The Capitals used first round picks to select Alex Ovechkin and Mike Green in 2004, as well as Nicklas Backstrom and Semyon Varlamov in 2005. The Lightning were able to select Steven Stamkos with their first round pick in 2008.
Read Full Article at Bleacher Report - NHL
Article written by Trent Reinsmith
Washington Capitals-Tampa Bay Lightning: The Start of a Rivalry?
November 27th, 2010 by Trent Reinsmith Leave a reply »
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