NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — Inside Bridgestone Arena is normally bathed in Nashville Predators gold, but instead, lightning has struck — Tampa Bay Lightning, that is.
But don't rue seeing this shade of blue in the house that Pekka built. After all, they are invited guests.
The Nashville Predators were supposed to play in Tampa Thursday and Friday night, but the game was moved to Nashville once it became clear Tampa would be in the crosshairs of Hurricane Ian.
"Monday evening was a lot of discussions of what our plan was going to be and Tuesday it kicked into action," said Zach Bogosain, a player for the Lightning.
The Preds opened up Bridgestone Arena so the Lightning could still practice, but unlike most away games, Tampa players brought a lot of "home" along with them. "I have my wife, my four kids, my dog and my mom," said Bogosain.
Each player was allowed to bring any family members that would otherwise be left in the path of the storm. "To be honest with you, I don’t think many guys really thought too much about the game. Just trying to get everyone’s families out safely and as quick as possible. We’re here now, everyone’s here and safe," he said.
Bogosain says his crew barely noticed a difference. "We have a bunch of young kids so they don’t really know what’s going on too much, so to them, they’re probably just on vacation having fun, running around the hotel, having fun at the hotel, swimming, just trying to keep them busy and have some fun with it," he said.
But the gesture wasn't lost on the star defenseman. "For Nashville to open up their facilities for us was obviously super generous of them and you know I’m sure if roles were reverse, we would do the same for them and a lot of other organizations as well," said Bogosain.
Because while colors and rivalries will always be important in this league, some things really are just more important. "Once the puck drops, guys are competing for their respective organizations," said Bogosain. "But in tough times like this, hockey is such a small world. You know, we’re a close-knit community."
The Nashville Predators Foundation is also holding a charity auction, benefiting the victims of Hurricane Ian in Florida. Just text "Preds" to 76278 to bid on both Predators and Lightning jerseys and a trip to see the Preds play the Lightning in Tampa on December 8, 2022. The auction closes at 9 pm central Thursday night.
The puck drops on Thursday night's preseason game at 7 pm.
